**[Intro]** *[Soft vinyl crackle. Refrigerator hum. Distant traffic. A clock ticks.]* **[Young Deez, spoken]** Mama worked the night shift. She'd leave before the streetlights came on and get home after I was asleep. But she always left the light on. **[Verse 1]** Mama worked nights, so the house got quiet, Sun went down and I learned not to fight it. She'd leave a plate covered up in the fridge, Little note on the table, “Don't eat the pudding.” Milk in the bottle, sandwich in the bag, Five dollars tucked underneath the dish rag. Then she'd kiss my forehead, straighten my shirt, Say, “Be a good boy.” Like I ever could make that much work. She'd leave words on cards by the side of my bed, Big black letters in the ink that she spread: **[Mama, softly]** A is for apple. B is for brave. C is for courage. **[Young Deez]** I thought she was teaching me to behave. **[Chorus]** A, B, C — mama, can't you see? You gave me more than letters, You gave a little piece of you to me. A, B, C — when the night got long, I'd read those little cards and somehow carry on. A, B, C — I still remember every one. Mama worked the night shift so I could see the morning sun. **[Verse 2]** I learned how to make eggs, learned how to lock doors, Learned which floorboard made that terrible noise. Learned the phone number, learned not to panic, Learned if the furnace made a sound, don't touch it. Homework at the table, dinner at nine, Sometimes I'd hear her keys and check the time. I'd run to the window, see her walking home, Tired on her feet but she'd still call my phone. **[Mama, spoken / voicemail-like]** Hey, baby. It's Mama. Just checking on you. **[Young Deez]** I'm good, Mama. **[Mama]** I know you are. **[Verse 3]** One night I asked her, “Why you work so late?” She said, “Somebody's gotta keep food on the plate.” I said, “When I get big, you won't work no more.” She smiled and said, “We'll see.” Then she kissed me at the door. I didn't understand it when I was that small— Why grown folks get tired, why they still stand tall. I just knew every morning when she came through, there was something in her eyes that said, “I did this for you.” **[Chorus]** A, B, C — mama, can't you see? You gave me more than letters, You gave a little piece of you to me. A, B, C — when the night got long, I'd read those little cards and somehow carry on. A, B, C — I still remember every one. Mama worked the night shift so I could see the morning sun. **[Bridge]** Now I know what those index cards were for. They weren't just words sitting there by the door. She couldn't always be there when the homework got hard, so she left herself behind in a stack of little cards. And every “A,” every “B,” every “C” was Mama saying, *“I'm still here with you, even when you can't see me.”* **[Final Chorus]** A, B, C — mama, can't you see? All those little letters turned into a life for me. A, B, C — when the night got long, I had your words beside me, and I knew I could go on. A, B, C — I still hear your voice. Mama worked the night shift so I could have a choice. **[Outro]** *[Music falls away to refrigerator hum and soft piano.]* **[Young Deez, spoken]** She'd leave those cards on the table every night. And sometimes... I'd leave one back. Just three letters. *[Pause.]* **I love you.** *[Vinyl crackle fades.]*
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