[Intro — Spoken, Reflective] Yeah... They say the Grinch had a heart two sizes too small But maybe he just forgot what it felt like to be called Called by name, called to belong Greenville, this is your song [Verse 1 — The Decline / The Isolation] Once upon a time the mills were running strong Capehart humming, Shetucket singing along Then the looms went quiet, jobs packed up and left Main St Greenville catching its breath Brownfield sitting like a scar on the land Folks drove past, never tried to understand Easy to judge from the outside looking in Call it forgotten, call it a has-been I felt that — cold in my chest like December Pulled back from the town, stopped trying to remember What it felt like to be part of something bigger Heart shrinking down, losing all its vigor Like the Grinch on the mountain, looking down at the lights Telling myself I don't need those Christmas nights But isolation's a lie you tell yourself to cope When what you really need is community and hope [Chorus] Christmas came without the ribbons, came without the tags Came without the funding, came without the grants It came from the neighbors who never lost faith Greenville rising, heart growing, finding our place We're not what they left behind We're what stayed, we're what's coming Block by block, heart by heart You can hear the future drumming [Verse 2 — The Revitalization / The Work] NRZ — that's the zone where the real ones meet Not flashy, not famous, just boots on the street Wednesday night meetings when it's cold outside Talking riverfront visions with nothing to hide See, they gave us four million to clean up the site But the money ain't the story, it's the years of the fight Environmental assessments, proposals and plans Brownfield to green field, took a lot of hands Pete and Nancy know, they've been in the room When the projector's dim and the future feels soon Transformative — that's the word they use But transformation takes the ones who refuse To give up on a block that the city overlooked Every signature, every vote, every meeting they took Shetucket River flowing like it always did We just cleared the path so the next generation of kids Can walk down to the water, feel the sun on their face And know that Greenville is more than a forgotten place [Chorus] Christmas came without the ribbons, came without the tags Came without the funding, came without the grants It came from the neighbors who never lost faith Greenville rising, heart growing, finding our place We're not what they left behind We're what stayed, we're what's coming Block by block, heart by heart You can hear the future drumming [Verse 3 — The Parade / The Arrival] Now picture this — first float Greenville ever had Rolling into Norwich, tell me that ain't bad Main St make room, we're coming through Green like the Grinch, green like things that grew From the edge of the city to the center of the scene Neighborhood that they slept on, now you know what I mean I'm dressed like the villain but I'm here for the love Heart busting out my chest, three sizes wasn't enough See, the Grinch came down when he heard the Whos singing Not to steal the roast beast but to see what they were bringing And that's us — we came down from the hill Not bitter, not broken, just ready to rebuild Kids on the float throwing candy to the crowd Greenville in the parade, man, say it loud We didn't wait for an invitation to the party We built our own float and we rolled in looking hearty [Outro — Spoken, Reflective] You know what the Grinch learned? It wasn't about the presents under the tree It was about the circle, the song, the belonging Greenville taught me the same thing The river was always there We just had to clear the way to reach it NRZ, the whole zone, everyone who showed up This is what it looks like when a neighborhood remembers itself Greenville Grinch... we're not stealing Christmas We're bringing it home
