THE WEIGHT THEY DON'T SEE Written by Brian Ketchum [Verse 1] He clocks in before the sunrise, Coffee cooling in his hand. Another voice comes through the radio, And he's moving before they ask. By daylight he's held a stranger While somebody called his name. By supper he's washed his hands twice, But somehow they feel the same. [Chorus] He carries the weight they don't see, Things that don't come off with the uniform. Names he'll never tell at the supper table, Faces that follow him home. He laughs when the kids start laughing, Says he's tired when somebody asks. Everybody sees the man who answered— Nobody sees what came back. [Verse 2] Some nights he can make things better. Some nights all he can do is stay. Hold a hand beside the highway Till a stranger slips away. He tells them they're not alone there, Then drives home without a sound. Funny how a man can hold somebody up While something in him is breaking down. [Chorus] He carries the weight they don't see, Things that don't come off with the uniform. Prayers that never found an answer Still riding with him home. He sits at the table like he's listening, While his mind's a mile away. Everybody calls him strong enough to carry it— So he carries it another day. [Bridge] She found him sitting in the darkness. Didn't ask him what was wrong. She just sat down there beside him And let him not be strong. [Final Chorus] She sees the weight they don't see, The things he can't leave with the uniform. She knows there are names he can't tell her, And faces that still follow him home. She can't take away the memories. She can't undo what's gone. But for once the man who carries everybody Has somebody to lean on. [Outro] His boots are by the doorway. Tomorrow they'll go back on. But tonight— He doesn't have to carry it alone. But for once the man who carries everybody Has somebody to lean on. [Outro] His boots are by the doorway. Tomorrow they'll go back on. But tonight— He doesn’t have to carry it alone
