(Intro)
There’s a little boy crying behind the gym
Trying hard not to let the other kids see him
Holding his breath so the tears don’t show
Little painted puppet boy nobody knows
Wishing on stars from the back of a car
Mama says someday they won’t be this hard
But every cruel word and every hard shove
Turns a little more of his small heart to wood
(Verse 1)
Hand-me-down sneakers, thrift store jeans
Trying to wash up in a gas station sink
Kids in the hallway got sharp little smiles
Cutting him down just to pass the time
They laugh at the way that his old clothes fit
Laugh when he blushes and stammers a bit
Pretty little girls roll their eyes and grin
While he stands there wishing he could crawl out his skin
So he carries their books
Does whatever they say
Lets them pull all his strings
Just to feel okay
(Pre-Chorus)
And every time somebody asks if he’s alright
He says, “Yeah I’m fine” while another ring grows inside
(Hook / Chorus)
Poor playground Pinocchio
Wishing so hard to be a real boy
Praying every night somebody might finally understand
While his little wooden heart keeps hardening again
But what he never saw through all the pain and shame
Was he was already real in all the ways that mattered anyway
Because even made of splinters, bark, and scars from love destroyed
His wooden heart still held more love than theirs ever could, little boy
(Verse 2)
Backseat bedroom underneath parking lot lights
Listening to Mama cry softly at night
He tells her, “Mama, everything’s okay”
Even when his own heart’s fading away
At school they dare him to bark like a dog
Anything cruel just to get a laugh
Then one girl smiles and he starts to shake
Trips on his own words trying to speak her name
Wood don’t bruise
Wood gets quiet when the world gets mean
(Bridge)
Funny thing is if they knew his nights
Knew how hard he fought just to survive
He never would’ve treated them this way
Not for a second, not a single day
They looked like real children standing there in the sun
But the lonely puppet boy they pushed around
Had the only truly human heart they’d found
(Final Chorus)
Poor playground Pinocchio
Spent his whole life begging heaven to be real
Never knowing kindness was the proof inside him all along
And every lie of “I’m okay” made his small heart more wood
But even carved from hurt and loneliness and dreams destroyed
That little wooden heart still loved deeper than theirs ever could, little boy
(Outro)
So if you see a child laughing while his eyes look sad
Be careful with his fragile heart
You don’t know how close to breaking that poor boy already is
And somewhere tonight beneath the stars above
Poor playground Pinocchio is still learning
That being real was always about being able to love
ElCeviche
