The empty chair

Verse 1

Every birthday came and went, the candles burned away,

We’d glance toward the doorway, hoping you’d show up someday.

The phone stayed quiet year after year, no card, no call, no sign,

We kept asking why you left, while pretending we were fine.

Mom would wipe away our tears and tell us we’d be okay,

But there’s a hole inside a kid when their dad just walks away.

Verse 2

There was an agreement on paper, promises written down,

But paper can’t make a father come around.

We watched other kids with their dads at games and holidays,

Wondering what we did wrong to make you stay away.

The counselors helped us understand what our hearts couldn’t see,

That the choice you made was yours alone—it never was because of me.

Verse 3

Now we’re getting older and the questions hit different now,

The little kids who waited by the window don’t wait around.

Then one day you called Mom up, after all this passing time,

Asking if you’d sign away the rights that should’ve been yours and mine.

It’s hard to lose a father once, but hearing that cuts twice,

Because some wounds don’t need a knife—they’re opened by goodbyes.

Verse 4

But we’re stronger than the silence and the years you weren’t there,

Stronger than the birthdays spent staring at an empty chair.

We’ve got people who love us, who’ve stayed through every storm,

Showing us what family is when family takes another form.

You may have missed our story, but the pages still turn on,

And we’ll keep writing chapters long after you’re gone.

Chorus

We were waiting by the window, now we’re standing on our own,

Building something stronger from the cracks you’ve left behind.

You didn’t break our future, you just lost your place inside,

And we’ll keep moving forward with the ones who chose to stay by our side.