# IF I COME HOME DIFFERENT [Intro] If I come home different Will you let me be? I am still your son Even if I struggle to speak [Verse 1] I used to laugh loud in the middle of the night Used to sleep easy with the porch light bright Now a truck backfires and my whole body locks I can hear every footstep, I keep watching the clock I learned how to stand when my knees wanted down How to make no sound when the fear came around I learned how to carry the weight of a friend And how to keep walking when the road wouldn't end But nobody trained me for coming back home For a crowded room making me feel alone For the people who love me asking what's wrong When I can't find the words I've been holding so long [Pre Chorus] I don't need you to fix me I don't need you to pretend Just sit here beside me And stay until the silence ends [Chorus] IF I COME HOME DIFFERENT, DON'T TURN AWAY I AM STILL THAT KID WHO LEFT ONE DAY I MAY NEED SOME TIME, I MAY FIGHT SOME FEARS I MAY WAKE UP SHAKING IN THE MIDDLE OF TEARS I DON'T NEED A MEDAL TO PROVE I'M STRONG I NEED A SAFE PLACE WHERE I STILL BELONG IF I COME HOME BROKEN IN WAYS YOU CAN'T SEE PLEASE DON'T GIVE UP ON THE PERSON IN ME [Verse 2] I see my old friends and they ask about the fight I give them the short version and say I'm alright They want a wild story, something fierce and loud But I remember a brother who never came out I remember his laugh and the jokes that he made How he talked about fishing and the plans that we'd laid I carry his memory in things that I do And sometimes I wonder if I brought enough through Don't call me a hero and leave me outside Don't praise my service then ignore what's inside Help me find work, help my family stand Keep the promises made when you asked for my hand And to every old soldier who's fighting alone You don't have to earn the right to come home There's no shame in the tears, no weakness in pain You deserve to find peace without hiding your name [Pre Chorus] I don't need you to fix me I don't need you to pretend Just sit here beside me And stay until the silence ends [Chorus] IF I COME HOME DIFFERENT, DON'T TURN AWAY I AM STILL THAT KID WHO LEFT ONE DAY I MAY NEED SOME TIME, I MAY FIGHT SOME FEARS I MAY WAKE UP SHAKING IN THE MIDDLE OF TEARS I DON'T NEED A MEDAL TO PROVE I'M STRONG I NEED A SAFE PLACE WHERE I STILL BELONG IF I COME HOME BROKEN IN WAYS YOU CAN'T SEE PLEASE DON'T GIVE UP ON THE PERSON IN ME [Bridge] To the mother who hears him pace To the wife who gives him space To the father who can't explain Why his child doesn't feel the same You don't have to know every scar You don't have to reach every dark Keep a hand there, keep love near Let him know he's safe right here [Breakdown] I AM STILL HERE! I AM STILL HERE! NOT EVERY WOUND DISAPPEARS! I AM STILL HERE! I AM STILL HERE! HELP ME LIVE BEYOND THOSE YEARS! [Final Chorus] IF I COME HOME DIFFERENT, STILL SAY MY NAME DON'T MAKE ME HIDE WHAT I CANNOT EXPLAIN I MAY NEED SOME TIME, I MAY FIGHT SOME FEARS BUT I AM MORE THAN THE WORST OF MY YEARS I DON'T NEED A SPEECH, I DON'T NEED A SHOW I NEED SOMEONE BESIDE ME WHO WON'T LET GO IF I COME HOME HURTING, LET ME BELIEVE THERE IS STILL A LIFE I CAN BUILD AND RECEIVE [Outro] If I come home different Leave the porch light on I am still your son I am still someone I am still here
