Raise a Glass

Here’s to the love that once felt safe

Soft at first, a steady flame

Turned to distance, turned to blame

Till I watched you say his name

Here’s to vows we thought would hold

Plans we never got to keep

Warmth that slowly went cold

Promises that learned to sleep

Raise a glass for the life we’ve lived

Sweet beginnings, bitter ends

Toast the good, toast what it cost

Toast the weight we couldn’t bend

Here’s to the souls we leaned upon

Now they’re gone or pulled away

Drink it down and face the night

Here’s to what won’t stay

Here’s to work that treats me fair

Honest pay and earned respect

Good people always there

Long days I don’t get back

Here’s to purpose, pride, and trust

Being needed, being known

Every hour stacking up

Heavy thoughts I take back home

Raise a glass for the life we’ve lived

Sweet beginnings, bitter ends

Toast the good, toast what it cost

Toast the weight we couldn’t bend

Here’s to the souls we leaned upon

Now they’re gone or pulled away

Drink it down and face the night

Here’s to what won’t stay

Here’s to kids who grew too fast

Every laugh, each borrowed day

Little hands we thought would last

Letting go along the way

Here’s to moments we can’t rewind

Bedroom lights, a closing door

Childhood fading in real time

Less of them, and something more

Here’s to brothers side by side

Every day, shoulder to shoulder

Years and miles redraw the lines

Now the stories all feel older

Here’s to visits marked in red

Conversations cut too short

Still alive inside my head

Just not here the way they were

Here’s to life that doesn’t flinch

Keeps on striking, never waits

Every calm is slightly thin

Every win arrives too late

Raise a glass for the love and loss

Every blessing comes with cost

Toast the years, toast the ache

Toast the turns we didn’t take

Here’s to standing when we fall

No disguises left to keep

Drink it slow, then face it all

Here’s to promises we keep

Glass is empty, night stays late

Hands still shaking from the weight

We don’t win, we don’t retreat

We just stand back on our feet