**Verse 1** I used to wear my armor Before they'd see me bend— I'd brace for their rejection Before they'd turn and go. Knowin' this little girl was watchin' For the next shoe to drop, I learned to keep my silence Behind my wall, I throbbed. **Pre-Chorus** Sometimes it was in the smoke, Sometimes it was in my hardness, Sometimes it was in my silence Bottled inside like TNT. **Chorus** I've been safe since nineteen ninety, Long enough to feel and heal. Love stayed longer than my wounds, Roots reach now where rocks won't grow. My heart still cracks when kindness comes, A salve on wounds etched so deep, Today I let the good words reach… Slowly I sit in truth like home. **Verse 2** We raised three hearts on questions, Showed them wrong can learn to mend, Showed them asking's a strength, A skill that doesn't end. I didn't chase the perfect, I built another way — Saying sorry, sayin' thank you, Touchin' hearts another day. **Bridge** Today I heard that old voice snarl, Sharp and certain, dressed in blame, Then another voice beside it Whispered back, "not needed, not today." So I held what I could manage, Closed my eyes and took a rest. Maybe healing is admitting I'm one among the rest. **Final Chorus** I've been safe since nineteen ninety, Long enough to breathe it in. The child who lived in that darkness Has a light now, bright within. Your love still stops my heart, Healing my old defaults , And every time I trudge the path, Another piece of me comes home. **Outro** No fanfare, No trumpet, Just one more day The frightened child Believed the grown-up When I said, "I've got you."
