[Intro - soft piano, acoustic guitar] When I was little I'd pick the prettiest leaves And try to save every one. Funny... We grow up And sometimes we still do that. [Verse 1] There's a box somewhere Full of photographs and notes Little pieces of a life I thought I'd always hold Some still make me laugh Some take me somewhere far away But memories don't disappear Just because life has changed I used to think remembering Meant holding everything tight Now I'm learning love can stay Even when you say goodnight [Chorus] You can't keep every leaf That ever touched your hand Can't carry every season Into where you stand Some things are meant to color A little piece of time Then fall away so gently Leaving something good behind You don't lose the memory When you finally let it be You can love what was... But you can't keep every leaf [Verse 2] There were dreams I thought I'd live That took a different road People I once walked beside Who had somewhere else to go I don't have to make them wrong To understand we're through Some chapters end with gratitude Instead of something left to prove Maybe growing isn't gathering Everything along the way Maybe wisdom is deciding What your heart was meant to save [Chorus] You can't keep every leaf That ever touched your hand Can't carry every season Into where you stand Some things are meant to color A little piece of time Then fall away so gently Leaving something good behind You don't lose the memory When you finally let it be You can love what was... But you can't keep every leaf [Bridge - intimate vocal, strings slowly rise] So I'll keep the laughter Keep the lessons Keep the love that made me grow And I'll leave behind the weight I was never meant to hold Thank You, God For every season Even those that had to leave [Final Chorus - full emotional harmonies] You can't keep every leaf But you can keep what mattered The colors may be gone But the story isn't scattered Every season leaves you something Every goodbye helps you see Letting go doesn't erase What something meant to me So I'll treasure where I've been While becoming who I'll be I'll keep the love... And let go of the leaf [Outro - piano, faint wind through trees] Keep the lesson. Keep the love. Let the leaf go.
