Fix Your Own World First

[Intro] [Low Pulsing Bass — Sparse Guitar — Restrained Drums] [Gradual Build, No Big Opening] [Verse 1] [Dry, Controlled MALE Vocal — Slightly Cynical, Never Cartoonish] He's got a thousand ways to save us, Every problem neatly solved. Daddy paid his rent through college, Now he's worried for us all. Got a plan for everybody, What we owe and what we're worth. Funny how it's always someone Else who's paying to save Earth. Maybe I'm just less ambitious. Maybe I don't dream that wide. I'm still trying to keep the demons In my own damn head in line. [Pre-Chorus] [Music Pulls Back — Vocal Turns Inward] 'Cause it's easy fixing strangers When you never look inside. Harder staring in the mirror At the shit you cannot hide. [Chorus] [Full Band Opens — Strong Melodic Lift, Not Shouted] FIX YOUR OWN WORLD FIRST. Start with the one behind your eyes. Get your own damn house in order Before you go rebuilding mine. Take care of the ones who need you. Give your family what they're worth. You wanna carry all of mankind? FIX YOUR OWN WORLD FIRST. [Instrumental Turn] [Main Guitar Motif — Bass Pushes Forward] [Verse 2] [Warmer Vocal — Cynicism Drops Away] My world ain't eight billion people. It ain't every fight on Earth. It's my family at the table. That's where I measure what I'm worth. It's two boys sleeping down the hallway. It's making sure they know I'm there. It's keeping food inside the kitchen When there's barely cash to spare. And I'm not saying don't have compassion. I'm not saying turn away. But my children don't come second To some cause a world away. I can't carry every sorrow. Hell, I'm learning what I can. I'm responsible for being Someone they can fucking depend on. [Pre-Chorus 2] [Drums Build — Vocal More Urgent] I can scream about the whole world. I can tell you what is wrong. But if I lose myself and family, What the hell did I solve? [Chorus] [Fuller Than First — Restrained MALE Harmonies on Final Line] FIX YOUR OWN WORLD FIRST. Start with the one behind your eyes. Get your own damn house in order Before you go rebuilding mine. Take care of the ones who need you. Give your family what they're worth. You wanna carry all of mankind? FIX YOUR OWN WORLD FIRST. [Verse 3] [Arrangement Drops Hard — Close Vocal, Exposed] [No Swagger — Criticism Turns Completely Inward] I've got battles nobody sees me Fighting underneath my skin. Old defenses, anger, worry, Wars I haven't learned to win. There are nights my head gets crowded. There are days I lose my way. There are parts of me I'm working on That won't be fixed today. So who the fuck am I to tell you I can cure what breaks mankind, When I'm still trying to make some peace With what goes on inside my mind? Maybe changing something massive Starts a little closer in. Maybe saving everybody Isn't where I should begin. [Bridge] [Heartbeat-Like Kick — Rising Bass — Instruments Enter One by One] Fix the man inside the mirror. Fix the father. Fix the home. Learn to carry what is yours Before you carry what you don't. Be there when your children need you. Love the family that you made. Face the demons you've been dodging. Own the choices you have made. [Build — Vocal Begins to Crack] And when I've finally got that handled— If that fucking day arrives— Maybe then I'll have some wisdom For somebody else's life. [Brief Drop — Nearly Bare] Until then I know my mission. And it isn't saving Earth. [Full Band Impact] I'VE GOT PEOPLE WHO DEPEND ON ME. [Held Beat] I'LL FIX MY OWN WORLD FIRST. [Final Chorus] [Largest Arrangement — Soaring, Earned, Not Triumphant] FIX YOUR OWN WORLD FIRST. Start with the one behind your eyes. Get your own damn house in order Before you go rebuilding mine. Take care of the ones who need you. Give your family what they're worth. You wanna carry all of mankind? FIX YOUR OWN WORLD FIRST. [Final Chorus Extension] [Higher Vocal Intensity — Harmonies Widen] I can't fix every broken country. I can't heal every human hurt. I'm still working on the man I am And giving my boys what they deserve. Maybe that won't save the planet. Maybe that's not my job on Earth. [Instruments Begin Dropping Away] But my family will know I showed up. [Half-Time — Vocal Nearly Alone] I'LL FIX MY OWN WORLD FIRST. [Outro] [Return to Intro Motif — Worn, Quiet Vocal] I've still got demons in my head. I've still got plenty left to learn. So before I tell the world how it should live... [Long Pause] I'll fix my own world first. [Instrumental Outro — Main Motif Fades]