The Things I Thought Would Last

[Verse 1] There was a house at the end of Maple With a porch that faced the street My father built it with his own two hands And said it’d always be There was a screen door that never shut And a swing beneath the light I thought that house would still be standing When I got old and gray [Verse 2] There was a friend I knew since childhood We swore we’d never part We’d sit beside the river And talk about the world We thought we’d grow old together Like two trees beside the road But one day I looked around And found myself alone [Chorus] Those were the things I thought would last The things I thought were carved in stone The people, places, promises I thought I’d always know But everything I tried to hold Slipped quietly through my hands Funny how the things I thought would last Were never mine to keep [Verse 3] There was a girl who wore a blue dress And laughed at everything I told her I’d love her forever She said forever sounded good We were young enough to mean it And foolish enough to try Now there’s silver in my hair And forty years gone by [Pre-Chorus] We didn’t know that time was waiting Just outside the door We thought we had forever We didn’t know what forever was for [Chorus] Those were the things I thought would last The things I thought were carved in stone The people, places, promises I thought I’d always know But everything I tried to hold Slipped quietly through my hands Funny how the things I thought would last Were never mine to keep [Verse 4] Now my children have their children And they don’t need me much They’ve got their own lives to discover Their own roads to wander down Sometimes I see my younger self When I look into their eyes And I want to tell him everything But I know he wouldn’t listen [Bridge] Maybe nothing’s meant to last forever Maybe that’s the point Maybe every goodbye Makes the hello worth more Maybe we’re not losing anything When the seasons change Maybe we’re just learning How to love without a claim [Final Chorus] Those were the things I thought would last The things I thought I’d always have But the years kept moving forward And the future became the past And everything I tried to hold Slipped quietly through my hands But the love I gave and received Was something time could never steal [Outro] So here’s to all the things that didn’t last The houses, roads and years The people who came and went And all the laughter through the tears I thought I’d lost them when they disappeared But now I understand The things I thought would last Are still here In who I am