[Intro – slow, reflective]
Echoes of yesterday… faint but clear
Memories drift… shadows near
The sun on your back… the sweat on your hands
Everything we were… still lingers in these lands
[Verse 1 – measured, steady]
He taught me… how to cast that line… under the burning sun
Red neck… old work truck… days begun… and gone
He laughed… when the sink still leaked… wrench warm in my hand
Said… slow down… don’t force it… son… fix what you can
Dust in the air… sweat on skin… worn jeans on worn legs
Steady hands… steady heart… more than words could peg
A rock on mama’s side… quiet… and strong
Now I stand here… wondering… where we went wrong
[Chorus – slightly longer notes, held on key words]
Pawpaw… don’t remember… but I hold it all
Late night talks… quiet rooms… footsteps in the hall
He looks into my eyes… like he’s seen me before
Pawpaw… don’t remember… but I need him more
[Verse 2 – soft, almost conversational]
Different days… different rooms… same lost stare
Time moves on… it don’t play fair
You pause… searching… trying to place
How the hell… you ended up… in this space
I tell you softly… who I am… you try to understand
Every blink a struggle… every moment… in demand
Smiles borrowed… seconds rearranged
One flash of knowing… then it slips away… changed
[Chorus – same pacing as first, maybe slightly stronger]
Pawpaw… don’t remember… but I hold it all
Late night talks… quiet rooms… footsteps in the hall
He looks into my eyes… like he’s seen me before
Pawpaw… don’t remember… but I need him more
[Bridge – weighty, deliberate]
You used to know… every corner… every truth… every way
Now I’m the one… guiding you… through the day
You taught me patience… to keep my footing firm
Now I hold the line… when your world… twists and turns
Your voice cracks… your eyes searching mine
I memorize the man… piece by piece… line by line
[Verse 3 – intimate, almost whispered]
I remember the tilt of your head… when you laughed
The way you’d shake your hands… to wipe off the past
The quiet pride… in your step… the stubborn tilt of your chin
Even as the memory faded… your heart… never gave in
I trace the moments… we carved in sweat and dust
Every lesson… every word… every quiet trust
And though the man… in front of me… drifts away each day
I carry him here… he never… truly fades
[Chorus – final, slow, held on key words]
Pawpaw… don’t remember… but I hold it all
Every laugh… every fight… every whispered call
He looks into my eyes… like he’s seen me before
Pawpaw… don’t remember… but I need him more
[Outro – long, drawn out, reflective]
Echoes of yesterday… faint but clear
I carry the weight… of every year
If your mind won’t stay… mine will do
I’ll remember enough… for the both of us… too
Pawpaw… always you
Rooster901
