she always told me 
that women were
all trouble and
no love left in them
that they would
take and take and take

but looking back 
at those women
and what I did
and what they did
she had it all wrong

there was that white-hot flash
riding an end of the line
train
and we did 
our best
with what we had 
but I was a man 
that was too hard to love
so it always ended
like I knew it would
with the blood on my hands
and sorry lodged in my throat
with a confused hurt look
coming from them 
from far away

but there was no way
I could ever explain
that I did them a favor