The Way We Used To Be

[Verse 1]
We used to talk till the sky turned gray
Now the mornings feel heavy and hollow
Coffee cups line up
But the words drift away
I reach for a past I can’t follow
[Chorus]
I miss the way we used to be
All the little things that held us together
There’s a ghost in the hallway
Sitting with me
Whispering
“Nothing stays the same forever”
[Verse 2]
You still laugh
But it lands in a different place
There’s a distance hiding in your shoulder
Photographs framed
But they blur in their case
Every smile feels a little bit older
[Chorus]
I miss the way we used to be
All the little things that held us together
There’s a ghost in the hallway
Sitting with me
Whispering
“Nothing stays the same forever”
[Bridge]
I lay a hand on the life we lost (softly now)
Name every dream we had by heart
Grief is a garden that grows from the cost
Of loving a world that falls apart
[Chorus]
I miss the way we used to be
All the little things that held us together
I’m learning to breathe with the change in me
While a voice in my chest says
“Surrender”
[Outro]
So I bless what was
And I set it free
Hold the hurt like a fading ember
It’ll never go back to the way it used to be
But I’ll keep its warmth to remember

Warm indie-folk ballad with alto female vocals, fingerpicked acoustic guitar and soft piano voicings; verses stay intimate and close-mic’d, gentle brush kit and subtle upright bass easing in on the first chorus. Swelling pads and light vocal harmonies bloom in later choruses for emotional lift, then everything falls back to just voice and guitar on the final lines, leaving a tender, resonant hush., gentle