Intro (Spoken over soft piano and ambient strings) Most people have never heard of Bertolotti syndrome... Neither had I... Until it changed the way I walked... the way I worked... the way I lived. --- Verse 1 I was built a little different Though nobody could tell Just another child growing up Never knowing me that well Every year the pain grew louder Like a whisper turned to flame Then somebody finally spoke the words... The bone they forgot to name. --- Pre-Chorus Not every scar is visible... Not every battle shows... Some wars are fought in silence... Where only the sufferer knows. --- Chorus Bertolotti... A name so few have heard One small change inside my spine Changed every step on earth Castellvi Type 4 Rare as rare can be Maybe even one more vertebra... An L6 inside of me Still I stand... Though every day is planned Living one step at a time... Just trying to understand. --- Verse 2 Every bend becomes a question Every chair becomes a choice Standing still can steal tomorrow Though today I found my voice Nerves that fire without warning Muscles locking tight again People see me standing smiling... They never see the pain. --- Pre-Chorus Pain doesn't read the clock... It doesn't wait its turn... It teaches you new limits... With every twist and burn. --- Chorus Bertolotti... A name so few have heard One small change inside my spine Changed every step on earth Castellvi Type 4 Rare as rare can be Maybe even one more vertebra... An L6 inside of me Still I stand... Though every day is planned Living one step at a time... Just trying to understand. --- Bridge Then my neck began its story... Another mountain left to climb Compressed nerves and narrowing spaces Borrowing tomorrow's time Yet the spine was never separate It's one river running through When one part bears too much weight The whole body feels it too Still I search for healing Among forests, fields and skies Looking more to nature's wisdom Than another compromise --- Final Chorus If you've never heard Bertolotti... You're not the only one Maybe these words will reach somebody Before their hope is gone Castellvi Type 4 A diagnosis finally seen Not looking for your pity... Just understanding what it means Different... But not defeated. Limited... But not finished. Still I stand... Still I dream... Still I fight... Still I'm me. --- Outro (Spoken) If this song helps one person... Ask one more question... Seek one more opinion... Or finally feel believed... Then every note... Was worth writing.
