Confidants and fish hooks

So here's the deal
I know enough to know I've lost
I've got no flag
And all my confidants are spies
And all the paperwork's been signed
Or so I'm told

And the world has lost its ears
So I'll save my breath
Time was never on my side
And now the clocks behind my eyes
Have all run down

Strike a match
And drop it in the canister
I promise I'll be back
But then again
I stole my words
From the ghost inside my head
He never sleeps
And if I read between the lines
I'll see that nothing's really mine
Or so I'm told

We're in a never-ending dream
Or so it seems
And I hope one day I'll wake to say
That nothing goes away
But I know I won't

Strike a match
And drop it in the cannister
I promise I'll be back
But then again
Who's keeping count?

*rewind*

So
For the one who can't sing along
Paint the sky
For a bird that never flies

The rope is being wound while the reaper plays the fiddle
And the kids erase the city line
I always want to thank them
I always want to thank them
The riddles in the clouds say the birds are going south
Till the weather changes face again
I know I'm gonna miss them
I know I'm gonna miss them
I know I'm gonna miss listening to their songs

It's all a dream
To the one who never sleeps
And make a joke
For the one who's going broke

The poster boy cracked
The priest is on his back and your love is on a Sunday train
I doubt you'll ever miss them
You'll probably never miss them
A bird is in the window with a fish hook in his beak
And he can't decide just what went wrong
And you know I'd love to help him
But I'm never gonna get to help him
I can't help, so I'm never gonna hear his songs