the house on willow street

I pass the old fence line again, chipped white paint and summer rain The mailbox leans like it remembers every letter, every name I hear echoes on the porch boards, little feet and lullabies A shadow of the girl I was still flickers in the fireflies And I don’t know why it hits me now But the wind keeps calling me somehow In the house on Willow Street Love was loud, the pain was sweet Walls held every tear I hid, the secrets that I couldn’t speak But I grew up, and I broke free Still, the place reminds me Oh, the house on Willow Street Keeps holding on, keeps holding on There’s a photo on the stairwell—crooked frame, our crooked smiles Mom’s perfume is still in the hall like she never left the aisles I hear laughter from the kitchen, Sunday mornings, syrup heat The world felt safe inside that doorway when life outside was incomplete Now I’m standing in a stranger’s skin Trying to find my way back in To the house on Willow Street Where love was loud, the pain was sweet Where every crack in plaster told the story of who I’d be And though I changed, and though I leave It’s still the one who raised me Oh, the house on Willow Street Keeps holding on, keeps holding on Maybe healing isn’t running Maybe healing’s turning ’round Facing ghosts and letting memories Grow instead of pulling down If I close my eyes, I feel her Right behind me, steady, warm Saying, “Baby, you were stronger Long before you were ever born” In the house on Willow Street I found roots beneath my feet Even when the storms came in, it sheltered every part of me Now I stand, and now I see I’m everything she hoped I’d be Oh, the house on Willow Street Keeps holding on [soft static, the beep sounds.] “Hi, Sky… It’s Mom. I… I was thinking about you again. You were so tiny when they placed you in my arms, and I remember promising I’d love you enough for the whole world." "And you—you grew into everything I dreamed you’d be. Kind. Brilliant. Brave in ways I never was. Skylar, I hope you know how proud I am of you. I hope you know that every step you’ve taken, even the ones that hurt… I was cheering for you." "You made my life brighter just by being in it. And no matter where you go, or how far you fly… You will always be my little girl from Willow Street." "I love you, sweetheart. I always have.” [voicemail ends.]