Papa said don’t trust a good year too much Luck shows up loud, then leaves you to clean it up That year the fields came in heavy Rain fell when it ought to fall Rows stood straight without asking Corn bright enough to stall We cut it down in October Filled the bins clean to the top Felt like maybe the land had decided To give back more than it took The old ones don’t cheer at a full barn They just count, then count again ’Cause a harvest ain’t proof of tomorrow It’s just today saying when You can drink the whole harvest Turn the good year into smoke Or leave some grain in the cellar For a season you don’t know What you pour won’t come back to you Once it’s crossed that line Next year don’t start with celebrating It starts with what you set aside I watched men get rich on a season Spend fast like the ground wouldn’t change Every bottle felt like a victory Every pour felt safely earned But winter don’t bargain or listen And luck don’t explain when it leaves You only learn what mattered saving When the soil won’t give what it used to give Granddad kept seed in the cellar Never spoke of it much at all Said hunger don’t come in shouting It comes quiet, like early frost They drank the whole harvest Swore the land would always give Said a run like that forgives you For the way you choose to live But winter don’t care what you earned once Or how good it felt at the time Staying fed ain’t about the harvest It’s about what you don’t drink dry I used to think saving meant fear Thought risk was the cost of a name But the ones who make it through dry years Know when not to play the game Now I measure more than I celebrate Watch the dirt, not the noise Some nights I miss the sound of winning Miss how sure I felt making choices But come spring when the thaw runs shallow And the field still knows my hands I’m here to plant without begging That’s something I understand I won’t drink the whole harvest I know what a good year’s worth It ain’t proof I was smarter Just that luck came through first So I’ll leave some grain for tomorrow Let the still stay quiet tonight If I ever get rich again It’ll be because I stayed alive Whiskey warms you for a night Seed keeps you breathing through the years
