Gladys in Sonderland

V1:
[Intro – “Down the Rabbit Song”]
[record crackle, heartbeat sample]
The curtain breathes smoke, the dream’s out of tune,
Gladys sings sideways beneath the fool moon.
Mister white rabbit spins clocks out of thin sand,
and time melts in mirrors all over the land.
She tumbles past tarot and tick-tock commands,
through ticker-tape tell-tales and tricksters game brands.
A chessboard of chaos, no checkmates no charms,
just strange sheeples praising god-given right to arms.
The Chessshire Cat strips in a glitch ’n bitch show,
Whispering, “Truth’s just a pathetic trick, meow.”
And Gladys keeps falling, big heart in her hand,
into the bassline bloom of Sonderland.


[Verse 1 – The Idol of Romance]
Some built their thrones from pain,
Whitened their teeth with gain.
Some swore that great was bright,
then stole the people’s light.
But hubris blinds ‘em guys,
it’s foolish still to pray,
to idols so unwise,
those who sell souls away.

[Chorus 1 – The Hook of Sonder]
Gladys in Wonderland, dance out of line,
chase that White Rabbit with a glass of wine.
Truth traded by cocky kings and sons,
Love is fool, woke… screw their whacky plans.
Oh laugh, my loves, the joke’s still grand,
we all fall slow in Sonderland.

[Verse 2 – The Idol of Nation]
They painted flags on bombs,
and sang of holy ground.
They jailed the women’s wombs,
and walled compassion down.
But every human bleeds,
and every anthem cries,
when life forgets its seed,
in the wonder of our eyes.

[Chorus 2]
Gladys in Sonderland, spin the disguise,
the Chessshire Cat hums lullabies.
Ducks traded our souls, under-hand, 
and called it truth we understand.
But love that sees, not love that blinds,
unchains the demons from our minds.

[Verse 3 – The Idol of Ambition]
They bought ivory towers,
Lost the meaning of fair,
They just traded our hours,
for fake-news thrones up there.
The colder they ascended,
the darker they resonated,
for glory is a real shitty song
when you were falling all along.

[Bridge – The Burlesque of Courage]
Contempt kills the courage meant to soothe,
Fear builds a cage on a stage, proof.
The Cat fakes smile in nonsense sand,
The King flips lands like contraband.
And Sonder sighs… and Gladys sings with the band:
“One big beautiful bill” is no magic wand.”
[beat drops, echo of laughter]

[Final Chorus – The Carnival Crescendo]
Gladys in Sonderland, lift up your mask,
toast to the fools who dare to ask.
White Rabbit’s wild, voices forced to shut chill,
we measure love by big beautiful bill.
So laugh, my loves, the truth’s divine,
the heart’s a door, swing open wide.
Gladys in Sonderland, you understand:
we fall to rise, let love command.

Outro – “The Curtain Closes, or Maybe Opens”]
White rabbit’s asleep on a record that skips,
the Queen wipes the blood from her wonder lips.
The Chessshire Cat hums an old stolen hymn,
its grin dissolving from outside to in.

The chessboard resets, black squares turn white,
the pawns start dreaming of choosing the night.
Gladys stands amazed, champagne in her hand,
and bows to the holes of Sonderland.

She laughs… It’s absurd, but it’s hers, this plan,
to lose herself just to understand…
“Every fall’s a beginning; Blessed be holes, Son.”

[record crackle, heartbeat sample]
[end]

--
V2:

[Intro : Waltz]
The curtain was velvet, the moon a disguise,
and Gladys stepped through where the looking glass lies.
The floorboards were breathing, the clocks out of hand,
and down she kept falling through Sonderland.
They warned her of faith, they warned her of sin,
and mocked the light that burned within.
So gather, my darlings, the brave and the damned,
to hear what she found in Sonderland.

[Verse 1 : The Idol of Romance]
They built their thrones from pain,
and crowned their teeth with gain.
They swore that great was bright,
then stole the people’s light.
But hubris blinds the wise,
it’s foolish still to pray,
to idols made of sighs,
those who steal souls away.

[Chorus]
Oh Gladys in Sonderland, look what we’ve done,
we sold our hearts to everyone.
We trade our grace for borrowed trust,
we kiss the gold and call it just.
But love that sees, not love that shines,
can free the ghosts inside our minds.

[Verse 2 : The Idol of Nation]
They painted flags on bombs,
and sang of holy ground.
They jailed the women’s wombs,
and walled compassion down.
But every human bleeds,
and every anthem cries,
when life forgets its seed,
in the wonder of our eyes.

[Chorus]
And Gladys in Sonderland, she understands,
we’re building walls with trembling hands.
In chasing mirrors, hand in hand,
we lose the truth we understand.
But love that sees, not love that blinds,
unchains the demons in our minds.

[Verse 3 : The Idol of Ambition]
They climbed ivory towers,
and reached for golden air.
They traded all their hours,
for fake-news thrones up there.
The higher they ascended,
the lonelier the song,
for victory’s suspended
when you’ve been falling all along.

[Bridge]
Comfort kills the courage meant to soothe;
fear makes a god of safety.
But sonder, sonder whispers,
you are not alone in the ache.

[Verse 4 : The Idol of Self]
They polished up their mirrors,
’til blinded by the gleam.
They lost a thousand faces
inside a single dream.
Yet self in love can fly,
where selfish hearts must fall;
for every “I” that learns to cry
becomes the bridge for all.

[Final Chorus]
So Gladys in Sonderland lifts her eyes,
love is the riddle that never lies.
The truth’s divine, the joke’s on man,
we lose ourselves, yet understand:
only love that sees, that stands,
can lead us home from Sonderland.
And Gladys sings her trembling vow:
the heart’s a door, be open now.

[Outro]
I’m still falling, still fumbling,
still finding the thread of true love through the thickets.
But now I know:
it’s not how much you love,
it’s how wide your love can see.
For sonder is the secret door,
and love, the hand that turns the key.

--
v3:

[Intro – over sparse piano]
Once upon a somewhere,
I slipped through the glass,
where hearts wear their masks,
and mirrors confess.
They warned me of queens,
but not of the kind,
who are born from love,
and the loss of their mind.
(soft pause)
So listen, my darlings,
to what I’ve found there,
where crooked loves bloom
in the Sonderland air.

[Verse 1 – “The Idol of Romance”]
They built their thrones from pain,
and crowned their teeth with gain.
They swore that great was bright,
then jailed people in vain.
But hubris blinds the wise,
It’s foolish then to pray,
to idols made of sighs,
those who steal souls away.

[Chorus – “The Hook of Sonder”]
So laugh, my loves, the joke’s on us,
we kneel to hearts that turn to dust.
In chasing warmth, we miss the hand,
that waits unseen in Sonderland.
For love that sees, not love that binds,
can calm the demons in our minds.

[Verse 2 – “The Idol of Nation”]
They painted flags on skies,
and sang of holy ground.
They called the stranger lies,
and walled compassion down.
But every border bleeds,
and every anthem cries,
when love forgets its seed,
in the wonder of our eyes.

[Chorus – with growing strings]
So laugh, my loves — the joke’s on us,
we kneel to hearts that turn to dust.
In chasing mirrors, hand in hand,
we lose the truth we understand.
For love that sees, not love that blinds —
can free the demons from our minds.

[Verse 3 – “The Idol of Ambition”]
They climbed ivory towers,
and reached for golden air.
They traded all their hours,
for empty thrones up there.
The higher they ascended,
the lonelier the song.
For victory’s suspended,
when you’ve been falling all along.

[Bridge – Soft, over cello]
Comfort kills the courage meant to soothe.
Fear makes a god of safety.
But sonder... sonder reminds us
that we are not alone in the ache.

[Verse 4 – “The Idol of Self”]
They polished up their mirrors,
’til blinded by the gleam.
They lost a thousand faces,
inside a single dream.
Yet self in love can fly,
where selfish hearts must fall,
for every “I” that learns to cry,
becomes the bridge for all.

[Final Chorus]
So laugh, my loves, the joke’s divine,
we lose ourselves to love’s design.
For only love that sees, that stands,
can lift us home from Sonderland.
And Gladys sings, her trembling vow:
the heart’s a door, be open now.

[Outro]
I’m still falling, still fumbling,
still finding the thread of true love through the thickets.
But now I know:
It’s not how much you love,
it’s how wide your love can see.
For sonder is the secret door,
and love, the hand that turns the key.