He kept his words like wrenches lined up on the basement wall Said a good man stands his ground and never lets his courage fall I was hands and knees and splinters, dropping every heavy load He just shook his head and muttered I was never built to hold (“never built to hold…”) I learned to hide the hurt behind a careful steady grin Like a fence that looks unbroken but is rusting from within I was the son he never trusted to carry the weight of the day Every time the world turned heavy he would look the other way So I loved like something borrowed, kept my distance, held my breath Waiting for the ones who knew me to expect a smaller step (“smaller step… smaller step…”) If love is just believing someone’s strong enough to stand Then every time you reached for me I pulled away my hand Learning how to see myself the way he always did As a half-completed story that should’ve stayed a kid (“never enough… never enough…”) I watched my friends build families like houses on the edge of town They drove off in rusted pickups, but they stayed and settled down I kept windows barely open, kept my suitcase by the door Every time a heart leaned closer, I would say they needed more (“you deserve more…”) His voice lived like a verdict hanging over every choice Saying I was not the kind of man who ever found his voice I was the one who taught myself to leave before I broke Told them I was born a drifter like it all was some old joke But underneath the practiced lines and easy, tilted grin Was a kid that kept on losing before he could begin (“losing before you begin…”) One night I found him sleeping in his chair with TV low Lines across his face like roads from all the things I’ll never know I wished that I could wake him just to hear he’d been mistaken But I knew he’d only measure every promise I’d forsaken (“every promise… every promise…”) So I carried that opinion like a ring I couldn’t wear Every time someone said “I need you,” I pretended not to care Turned my heart into a workshop full of unfinished designs Never stayed to see if anything could stand the test of time (“never stayed… never stayed…”) I was the son he never trusted to stand when things went wrong Now I’m the man who teaches love that it shouldn’t lean too strong But I’m tired of being certain that I’m bound to let you down Tired of turning kindness into reasons to leave town (“don’t leave town…”) If faith is just the courage to believe what might be real Then let me learn to hold you without waiting for repeal Let me be a different story than the one he always told Someone who can stand beside you when our days grow old (“stand beside you… ohhhh…”)
