I told you I was hurting, you told me where you hurt. I said I’d had a hard day, you told me yours was worse. I tried to tell you something I’d been carrying inside, but before I reached the ending you were talking about your life. And maybe you were trying to tell me I’m not alone, but sometimes when I’m breaking I don’t need another story of your own. [Pre-Chorus] You don’t have to fix me. You don’t have to know what to say. You don’t have to find a bigger pain to make mine fade away. [Chorus] Just listen. Let me finish what I came to say. Don’t turn my tears into a mirror and make them about your pain. Just listen. You don’t have to understand it all. Sometimes love is sitting quietly beside somebody when they fall. My pain doesn’t need to compete with yours. I’m not asking you to save me. Just open your heart... and listen. [Verse 2] I said, “I couldn’t sleep last night.” You said, “I haven’t slept for three.” I said, “My body’s hurting.” You said, “You should feel what’s wrong with me.” And suddenly my little wound felt foolish in the room, so I swallowed all the words I had finally wanted to give to you. But pain is not a contest. There’s no medal at the end. You don’t have to hurt more than I do to prove that you’re my friend. [Pre-Chorus] Maybe all I needed was a hand, a little time. Someone who could hear my truth without replacing it with theirs. [Chorus] Just listen. Let me finish what I came to say. Don’t turn my tears into a mirror and make them about your pain. Just listen. You don’t have to understand it all. Sometimes love is sitting quietly beside somebody when they fall. My pain doesn’t need to compete with yours. I’m not asking you to save me. Just open your heart... and listen. [Bridge] There will be time for your story. I promise I’ll listen too. I’ll ask you how you’re feeling. I’ll make room for what hurts you. But right now I’m standing here with something heavy in my hands. Please don’t take it from me just to tell me yours weighs more. Don’t compare it. Don’t correct it. Don’t explain it away. Sometimes the kindest words are the ones you never have to say. [Final Chorus] Just listen. Stay with me a little while. Let me cry without reminding me of every reason I should smile. Just listen. Let my feelings have their place. You don’t need the perfect answer, I just need to see it in your face: “I hear you. I’m here. You don’t have to hide from me.” That can mean more than a thousand words, more than advice could ever be. My pain doesn’t need to compete with yours. And yours will never need to compete with mine. Maybe we could love each other better... if sometimes we stopped talking... and listened. [Outro] When someone gives you their heart, don’t hand them back your story. Hold it gently. Give them time. And listen.
