[Verse 1]
Woke up stateside, Tuesday morning
Still jump when the screen door slams
Got that smoke in my coffee burning
Still don’t sleep without a plan
They were smiling at the airport
Said, “Hey man, you made it home”
But that desert’s in my bloodstream now
Yeah, it don’t leave you alone
[Pre-Chorus]
You can wash your hands clean
But the dirt’s under your skin
Yeah you try to forget it
But it’s where you’ve been
[Chorus]
I got war like sand in my boots
In the laces, in the seams, in the wounds
Kick ‘em off but it won’t shake loose
Every step just drags it back to you
Yeah I walk but it grinds me down
Every mile, every inch of ground
War sticks like sand in my boots
[Verse 2]
I line things up like I’m still in it
Count the distance to every door
Kids laugh but I don’t hear nothin’
Just the echoes of before
See those flashes in the TV static
Turn July into a desert sky
You can hang that uniform in the closet
But you can’t hang what’s inside
[Pre-Chorus]
You can tell me I’m safe now
But I don’t feel that way
‘Cause the fight ain’t over
It just changed its place
[Chorus]
I got war like sand in my boots
In the laces, in the seams, in the wounds
Kick ‘em off but it won’t shake loose
Every step just drags it back to you
Yeah I walk but it grinds me down
Every mile, every inch of ground
War sticks like sand in my boots
[Bridge]
They say time’s gonna heal it
Yeah I’ve heard that before
But time just keeps dragging me
Back to that door
Every bar, every backstreet
Every prayer that I fake
I’m still carrying something
I can’t put away
[Breakdown / Soft Section]
And she’s lying right beside me
But I’m miles away again
Yeah I’m miles away again
With that sand in my boots…
[Final Chorus]
I got war like sand in my boots
Yeah it’s buried in the scars and the truth
Try to outrun it, I can’t cut it loose
Every road just leads me back to you
Yeah I love you but I’m breaking in two
Every step feels like I’m walking it through
War sticks like sand in my boots
KennethScheller