Long before I knew the life That was coming down the road, I watched four little hearts I loved Carry more than they should hold. Their father still belonged to them, His family did too, And I never wanted loving me To mean they had to choose. So I left the door wide open, Though sometimes it was hard, Never made their love for someone else A measure of their hearts. They could go and they could love them, They could come back home and love me, And maybe they were learning Love grows larger when it's free. I thought the gift was theirs alone— The freedom just to love, To never have to ration out Who they could be thinking of. But somewhere in those growing years, They learned that love makes room— No one has to lose their place When someone new comes through. I couldn't see the years ahead Or know the life I'd live— I never knew my future self Would benefit from the gift I gave. Then years went by, and there you were, A love I couldn't see Back when I made those quiet choices For the children next to me. And when they saw how much I loved you, How happy I was with you They didn't need to guard their places Or wonder if they still belonged too. They simply made a place for you, As though they'd always known A heart can add another chair And still remain a home. They loved you first because I loved you, Because my joy was theirs— Then somewhere on the road between us, Their own love met you there. I thought the gift was theirs alone— The freedom just to love, To never have to ration out Who they could be thinking of. But somewhere in those growing years, They learned that love makes room— No one has to lose their place When someone new comes through. I couldn't see the years ahead Or know the life I'd live— I never knew my future self Would benefit from the gift I gave. Isn't it strange how grace keeps moving Far beyond the day it's shown? How seeds we plant in someone else's garden Can bloom years later in our own? I wasn't meaning to build my tomorrow, I was just doing what felt right— Never knowing one small kindness Could reach so far beyond my sight. And maybe every time I showed them Love for one takes none away, I was teaching without knowing How they'd welcome you someday. There was room for their father. There was room for his name. There was room for all the people Who had loved them just the same. There was room for their mother. And when my new life began— There was room inside their hearts For one more good and loving man. I thought the gift was theirs alone— But somehow it came home, In four hearts that understood Love only grows with room. And when the life I couldn't picture Finally came to be, The freedom I had given them Came gently back to me. I couldn't see you coming then, Couldn't know the road we'd live— But decades before I needed it, I'd given myself this gift. I only lived what I had learned— That love is never scarce, There's always more than enough to give, More room inside our hearts. And I knew one simple thing was true, Though sometimes it was hard: You can never have too many people Who will love your children's hearts. I didn't know that years from then That love would circle through— The room I'd made for others then Would make a place for you. And I didn't know the door I left So carefully open then Would someday open wide enough To let my future in. I made room for all the people Who would love my children through— And years later, they made room For the man who loved me too.
