Paper dreams from the sky

Let ’em fly
Let ’em fly
Over Oxford tonight
Paper dreams from the sky

Waited by the tower while the daylight dropped
Delivery van pulled in and the driver stopped
Caught the door behind him, slipped inside
Kept our heads down as the doors closed tight

Lift to the top with a shake and a hum
She smiled and unwrapped a piece of gum
Said she’d seen this trick in an old-school film
A flash of silver foil and the alarm stayed still

Door swung open to the cold night air
Whole of Oxford glowing underneath us there
Flat-roof freedom in a city of stone
Above all the spires, like the sky was our own

She walked to the edge, held her arms out wide
Said, “We send something good with every flight
Maybe someone finds one, maybe smiles inside
Then the joy comes back when the planets align”

Paper dreams from the sky
Little white wings, let the good vibes fly
Over Oxford’s dreaming spires tonight
Past Magdalen Tower in the soft moonlight

Every little fold has a good vibe inside
Send it to the universe, let it glide
What you give comes back as a spark of joy
Paper dreams from the sky

Let ’em fly, let ’em fly
Paper dreams from the sky
Let ’em fly, let ’em fly
Send a little joy tonight

I said, “Nice plan, but what do we fold?
You didn’t bring paper, or so I was told”
She reached in her bag with a mischievous grin
Pulled out her mum’s romantic fiction

Battered old paperback, cover half gone
Full of forbidden kisses carrying on
We tore out the pages, split each into squares
Two smaller planes from every page there

Little sharp noses and little swept wings
Made from some fairly inappropriate things
She laughed at the thought of a stranger below
Finding one resting wherever it chose

Opening it out at the end of its flight
To half of a bedroom encounter in type
I started laughing, she laughed until she cried
Then we filled up the rooftop with planes side by side

One held hope, one carried good luck
One said, “Keep going when the whole world’s stuck”
Counted to three underneath Oxford’s lights
Then we threw them together and watched them take flight

Paper dreams from the sky
Little white wings, let the good vibes fly
Over Oxford’s dreaming spires tonight
Past Magdalen Tower in the soft moonlight

Every little fold has a good vibe inside
Send it to the universe, let it glide
What you give comes back as a spark of joy
Paper dreams from the sky

One for the lonely
Let it fly

One for the worried
Let it fly

One for the stranger who needs a sign
Send them some love from the Oxford sky

Over St Mary’s, under the moon
Past Tom Tower, they’ll be landing soon
Every good feeling that we send tonight
Comes back around in another life

Paper dreams from the sky
Watch them turn, watch them glide

Little white wings, let the good vibes fly
All over Oxford tonight

Over Oxford’s dreaming spires tonight
Past Magdalen Tower in the soft moonlight
Every little fold has a good vibe inside
Send it to the universe, let it glide

What you give comes back as a spark of joy
A smile on the face of a girl or boy
Let it go with love, let it travel light
Paper dreams from the sky

Let ’em fly, let ’em fly
Over Oxford tonight
Let ’em fly, let ’em fly
Paper dreams from the sky