Song Six — “River in the Dark” — Samuel “Satch” DuBois

[Verse 1] There’s a river in the dark, where the night runs slow, Where the water holds the moonlight like a secret it won’t show. I used to sit beside it, with my trumpet on my knee, Let the world go quiet ’round me, let the river carry me. [Verse 2] That river taught me patience, taught me how to breathe, How to find a little mercy in the spaces in between. Every ripple had a rhythm, every shadow had a tune, And I learned to play my heart out underneath a silver moon. [Chorus] Oh, river in the dark, you kept me warm when I was cold, You held me like a story that was waiting to be told. And though I’ve crossed an ocean, and I’m far from where you are, I still hear you in the quiet, like a low and distant star. [Verse 3] There was someone there beside me, with her laughter soft and wide, She would dance along the shoreline, barefoot in the rising tide. Said the river knew our secrets, knew the love we couldn’t speak, And the night would glow around her like a promise we could keep. [Bridge] But even gentle waters feel the darkness coming down, And even sweetest memories learn the shadows of a town. Still that river kept on shining, even when the night was long— Taught me light can live in silence, taught me hope can live in song. [Final Chorus] Oh, river in the dark, you’re the place I still call home, You remind me where I’m steady when the world begins to roam. And wherever I am standing, whether near or whether far, I will carry you inside me like a low and faithful star. [Outro] So if the night grows colder, and the world forgets its spark, I’ll remember how you held me— my river in the dark.