Colorado Bruise
zoe stroupe
Lyrics:
sheltering you but you’re not so little
keeping you soft as my hands get brittle
climbing up your tower of the rocky mountain winter
up here I reject the other Earths, you stay center
accepting other worlds think you’ll always seem bigger
I will always hold a tender spot for you
my favorite shade of blue
my Colorado bruise
mmm
baby in a cradle high atop a tree
baby holds a cigarette and lets go of me
says I will never know what she needs
falls the flower in her hair that I grew all year
cause she’s a bee and she stings
and she makes me unafraid to feel
I will always hold a tender spot for you
my favorite shade of blue
my Colorado bruise
the best worst thing I knew
my Colorado baby, I would never undo
in the chilly air I became snow
in the snow your hands became froze
I don’t hate the warmth we couldn’t show
or the garden I couldn’t grow
on your body
I would've loved you again you know
I would always hold you
I could always hold you
I will always hold a spot for you
and I felt this feeling like I’m happy sick
for the first time since you
I drew a panoply of words since the last time I met you
I feel new
I will always hold a tender spot for you
I will always hold a tender spot for you
thank you to these rocks and this space
I can see them, I can feel them, I can almost taste
their internal light, eternal might
they might just be what keeps a friend alive
Zoe Stroupe is an 18-year-old singer/songwriter currently based in Northern Michigan. She attends Interlochen Arts Academy as a senior. She went to a Big Thief concert in Colorado this past summer (2023) and was instantly inspired to write this song. She aims for vulnerability in her lyrics about real life, and therefore writes songs portraying complicated emotions, not just “happy” or “sad”. This performance of Colorado Bruise was in Kresge Auditorium , a venue she will be eternally grateful for. She performed there a month after Brandi Carlile, a big inspiration for her, did, and holds this opportunity close to her heart.