Lessons They Don’t List

[Verse 1] They don’t tell you in the office, when you’re signin’ up to serve That your boots’ll teach you wisdom, not the rank you think you earned You’ll mop up rain on concrete, like it’s some kinda test And live off four hours sleep, if you’re lucky, maybe less You’ll learn to show up early just to stand around and wait And how to cut your own damn hair when base life seals your fate You’ll eat what shouldn’t be eaten, and still ask for one more bite With socks rolled tight and underwear packed down just right ⸻ [Chorus] It’s the school of suck, the hard-time charm Where duct tape’s holy and pain’s just part You’ll laugh ‘til it hurts ‘cause the tears ain’t allowed Make do with nothin’ and still stand proud Yeah, Uncle Sam don’t hand out degrees But you’ll learn more than you ever believed In this strange, old classroom of camo and grit These are the lessons they don’t list ⸻ [Verse 2] You’ll master makin’ minutes stretch like they’re whole days With thirty minutes of effort in an eight-hour haze You’ll push that paper, stamp that line, and act like it means more While drinkin’ Wild Tiger ‘til your heart hits the floor You’ll learn the do’s and don’ts of every sketchy strip club dive And how to sew up busted seams just tryin’ to survive A five-course meal in a microwave—yeah, that’s fine dining here While cohabitating with some black mold you should probably fear ⸻ [Chorus] It’s the school of suck, the hard-time charm Where duct tape’s holy and pain’s just part You’ll laugh ‘til it hurts ‘cause the tears ain’t allowed Make do with nothin’ and still stand proud Yeah, Uncle Sam don’t hand out degrees But you’ll learn more than you ever believed In this strange, old classroom of camo and grit These are the lessons they don’t list ⸻ [Bridge] Carry your brother home from the bar on your back Baby wipes become your bath, and pride’s what you lack You’ll sleep beside the roaches, toast with mice and mold But you’ll come out forged like steel, twice as bold ⸻ [Final Chorus] It’s the school of suck, the backbone life Where you learn to hold on through the daily strife You’ll joke through hell, you’ll find some grace In the filth and fire of that goddamn place No textbooks here, just blood and fists These are the lessons they don’t list ⸻ [Outro] So if you’re askin’ what I learned in green and brown Just know it ain’t what they put down It’s in the silence, the sweat, the fists, the grit— All the lessons… they don’t list.