The Tallest Man in the Room

Verse 1

The drywall’s got a memory of a fist that wasn’t yours

And the kitchen linoleum is worn down by the tours

Of a man who paced the midnight like a cage he couldn't break

I was three feet tall and dreaming, sleeping through the ache.

You were fighting lions in the basement of your head

While I was counting glow-stick stars above my bed.

Chorus

But you were there for the whistle, you were there for the light

With a ghost in your pocket and a hell of a fight.

You smelled like the cedar and the cheap glass you broke

A giant who dwindled in a cloud of white smoke.

Yeah, the medicine won, and the bottle stayed full

But you never missed a Sunday, and that’s the hardest pull.

Verse 2

I remember the shivering in the front row of the bleachers

You were hiding your eyes from the moms and the teachers.

I thought it was the winter, thought the cold had made you thin

I didn’t know the chemistry was dissolving your skin.

You gave me the best of what was left on the bone

While you were starving in a desert, entirely alone.

Bridge

Now I’m standing at the height that you used to be

Looking for the versions of you that I couldn't see.

Is it a tragedy or a triumph, I can’t quite decide

That you showed up for me while you were burning inside?

The soil is heavy, but the habit was worse

I’m carrying the blessing, but I’m fearing the curse.

Chorus

'Cause you were there for the whistle, you were there for the light

With a ghost in your pocket and a hell of a fight.

You smelled like the cedar and the cheap glass you broke

A giant who dwindled in a cloud of white smoke.

Yeah, the medicine won, and the bottle stayed full

But you never missed a Sunday, and that’s the hardest pull.

Outro

I’m still three feet tall when I look at your name.

I’m sorry the spark didn’t like the flame.

Yeah, I’m sorry the spark didn’t like the flame.

Keep a seat for me, Dad.

I’ll be there for the whistle.