[Verse 1 – intimate, hushed, restrained] The river's voice is far behind me, Yet still your words are in my ears. We cannot have all that we want. How strange that truth should hurt to hear. The room is just as I remember, The books, the dust, the moonlit night; Yet all I see is you beside me, Your face beneath the silver light. [Pre-Chorus – gentle rise, aching] I had three thousand years of answers, The weight of every broken trust; But you looked up at me with wonder, And all my courage turned to dust. [Chorus – soaring, tender, yearning] There is a life I cannot give you, A door I dare not open wide; A thousand mornings I could love you, A thousand nights against your side. And for one breath beside the water, I saw the world that might have been— Not as it was, nor as I dreamed it, But one where I could let you in. [Verse 2 – bittersweet, reflective] I've carried grief through ages passing, And given all my losses names; But you are here, alive and loving, And I must grieve you just the same. I loved the way you stood before me, So certain of the self you'd made; You chose to keep the marks you carried, And I could not choose you and stay. [Pre-Chorus – building, conflicted] I meant to give you all my secrets, To let the last deception fall; [Sudden surge of incredulous self-reproach] Instead I spoke of ancient slavers, [Quiet, ashamed, deflated] And could not name myself at all. [Chorus – fuller, aching] There is a life I cannot give you, A door I dare not open wide; A thousand mornings I could love you, A thousand nights against your side. And for one breath beside the water, I saw the world that might have been— Not as it was, nor as I dreamed it, But one where I could let you in. [Verse 3 – fragile, intimate] Perhaps by now you've reached your chambers, And found no comfort waiting there; Perhaps you still can feel my fingers, Or hear the words I couldn't share. I know the path between our doorways, How little distance lies between; Yet if I crossed it in the darkness, I know I'd never want to leave. [Bridge – exposed, trembling] [Ascending vocal phrase] You asked me why... [Brief instrumental breath, one measure] [Violins enter with a bittersweet, intensifying pulse] [Vocal melody peaks on "heard", descends slightly, remains unresolved] I heard the river. [Brief instrumental response, one measure] [Melody resumes, intimate and aching] I watched the hurt rise in your eyes. You thought the marks had come between us; I could not bear to tell you why. I left before my heart betrayed me, Before your hand could find my own; For had you asked me once to stay there, I fear I'd have forsaken all I'd sworn. [Final Chorus – bittersweet crescendo, emotionally open] There is a life I cannot give you, Though every part of me would stay; A thousand mornings I must bury For all the years I took away. And if the world could heal without me, If all my debts could be forgiven, I would not ask the stars for glory— Only a life with you to live in. [Outro – soft, resigned, fading] We cannot have all that we want. Your words return, and still remain. I know the road that I must take, And wish I did not know the way.
