wash it in the sea, let it soak all night   wash it in the sea, let the saltwater wash it away   soak it in bleach, till it's white on white   soak it in bleach till the blood just washes away   hang it in the wind, let it blow all night   hang it up high, let the high wind blow it away   hang it in the wind, let the sun burn bright   hang it in the wind till the blood just washes away   I have waited wasted years   for the child that's come and gone today   I have wasted all this fear   how can I just turn and wash it away   if I can then I will, then I will wash it away   if she can then she will wash it away   forty years spent one by one   forty years of blood just slipping away   what I'd give for a firstborn son   forty years of blood just washing away   I have waited wasted lives   I have waited long enough I'd say   say what about this wasted child   how can I just turn and wash it away   so send me an angel   send me the ghost that I was   send me an angel   send me the ghost that I was that I was   that I am   I will wash it away