[Verse 1]
Boots by the door
Still flinch when the ice cream truck rolls past
That pop in the distance
Body already thinks it's the blast
I’m back in the dust
Sand in my teeth, sweat, diesel, and blood
Wake up in sheets
Same pattern as the pattern of the mud
Yeah, I was trained to run toward it
Now my brain replays, can’t ignore it
Whole day fine, then
One smell, one sound, I’m back in the storm, it
[fast flow]
Heart rate racing in a Walmart line
Palms start shaking like a fault line
Kids just laughing, I’m scanning signs
Exit routes, angles, walls, sightlines
[Pre-Chorus]
I used to think I was broken
Shame in my veins like poison
But a brother said, "Keep going
You came back, that’s chosen"
[Chorus]
Carry me through the flashbacks
Lift me when I hit the ground
Let the brass shout, let the choir sing
’Til the gunshots turn to sound
Carry me through the long nights
When I shake in this empty room
If I can breathe through the battle inside
There’s a sunrise breaking through
[Verse 2]
[pulled-back, slow]
Dog tags in a drawer
Next to a folded flag, unused meds
Mom calls, “You okay?”
I say, “Yeah,” but the war’s in my head
Therapist asks, “Where’s the pain?”
I say, “Everywhere the quiet is”
Silence feels like crosshairs
So I fill it up with noise and tricks
[fast flow]
Count to four on the inhale
Six on the way back out, don’t derail
Name five things I can see
Four I can feel, keep feet on the ground, detail
Three that I hear, two I can smell
One thing I can tell myself: “You’re here”
Not over there, not under fire
Just fluorescent lights and plastic chairs
[Pre-Chorus]
I wrote my fear on paper
Burned it in a coffee can
Watched the smoke climb like a prayer
Said, “I’m more than what I’ve seen, I am”
[Chorus]
Carry me through the flashbacks
Lift me when I hit the ground
Let the brass shout, let the choir sing
’Til the gunshots turn to sound
Carry me through the long nights
When I shake in this empty room
If I can breathe through the battle inside
There’s a sunrise breaking through
[Bridge]
[half-time, choir swells]
I ain’t weak for these tears
I ain’t soft for these scars
I survived every night
Under strange, unfamiliar stars
Now it’s coffee and traffic
But the weight still bends my spine
So I stand up in the mirror
Say, “Soldier, fall in line”
[fast flow, drums and bass hit]
Left, right, left through the panic attacks
Step by step, I keep taking it back
Every trigger that used to own me
Now just tells me where I’m at
If my hands start to tremble
I plant my feet, breathe and stay
I made it home from the war out there
Now I’m fighting for my home in here today
[Chorus]
Carry me through the flashbacks
Lift me when I hit the ground
Let the brass shout, let the choir sing
’Til the gunshots turn to sound
Carry me through the long nights
When I shake in this empty room
If I can breathe through the battle inside
There’s a sunrise breaking through