*Verse 1*
Dawn came through the cracks in the garage door
You were already bleeding into the grain
Chisels in your fists like weapons
Carving tables while the bills ate your name
No money. No rest. No doctor’s note.
Just “one more cut” and “hold this for me, kid”
*Pre-Chorus*
The house groaned with every winter
The roof leaked but you never did
You gave us splinters instead of silver
And called it rich
*Chorus*
Dad, you worked ‘til your hands went numb
‘Til your back was bent like the oak you’d come
They took the workshop. They took the home.
But they can’t take what you carved in me
Calluses on my hands.
Fire in my blood.
If this world breaks you down
I’ll stand where you stood.
*Verse 2*
I watched you cough sawdust into your sleeve
Smile anyway when the lights got cut
“Don’t worry, baby. We’ve got each other.”
While your fingers shook holding the saw shut
Fame never knocked. Health never stayed.
But your laugh was loud enough to fill the whole block
*Pre-Chorus*
The bank took the benches, the clamps, the light
But they didn’t take the way you taught me to fight
*Chorus*
Dad, you worked ‘til your hands went numb
‘Til your back was bent like the oak you’d come
They took the workshop. They took the home.
But they can’t take what you carved in me
Calluses on my hands.
Fire in my blood.
If this world breaks you down
I’ll stand where you stood.
*Bridge - breakdown, slower, raw*
And I know you’re tired.
I know you’re breaking.
I see it in the way you sit down slow.
But listen to me:
You didn’t build us a house.
You built us unbreakable.
Every scar on that table
Is a lesson that I know.
*Final Chorus - uplifting, bigger, drums and gang vocals*
So let them take the walls!
We’re still standing tall!
You gave us tools, not gold
And that’s worth more than all!
Dad, your hands made me strong
Your broken back made me brave
We lost the workshop
But we didn’t lose what you gave!
Calluses on our hands!
Fire in our blood!
If this world breaks us down
We’ll build again from the dust!
*Outro - quiet, then one last hit*
Sawdust in my lungs.
Your name on my tongue.
We’re poor in money, dad.
But rich in where we’re from.
