Found You In The Afterglow

[Verse 1]
I looked for your face in strangers
Every smile, every crowded room
Carried your name in my pocket
Like a letter I never could prove
Then one day your eyes met mine
Same shade, same tiny spark
Years of questions in a heartbeat
Two quiet candles in the dark
[Chorus]
I found you in the afterglow
Of all the years I didn’t know
But love showed up, said “here we are” (here we are)
Late, but still written in the stars
Every second that we get
Is a gift I won’t forget
Mom, I’ll hold your hand through every stormy weather
Love always, love forever
[Verse 2]
Coffee cups on the kitchen table
Stories spilling over the rim
You laughing at my crooked fingers
Saying, “Yeah, you got those from him”
Old photos, folded and faded
You naming every face and place
I watched your whole life in snapshots
While time drew lines across your face
[Chorus]
I found you in the afterglow
Of all the years I didn’t know
But love showed up, said “here we are” (here we are)
Late, but still written in the stars
Every second that we get
Is a gift I won’t forget
Mom, I’ll hold your hand through every stormy weather
Love always, love forever
[Bridge]
If this is the last long drive
The last soft light in your eyes
I’ll still hear your voice in my heartbeat
Every hello in our goodbye
So rest your head, I’m right here
Every breath, I’ll count it dear
I’ll carry you in every choice I make
You’re in each step, you’re in each year
[Chorus]
I found you in the afterglow
Of all the years I didn’t know
But love showed up, said “here we are” (here we are)
Late, but still written in the stars
Every tear and every smile
Makes these borrowed moments wild
Mom, I’ll hold your hand through every fading ember
Love always, love forever
[Outro]
Cherish each memory
Let this be the one that stays
Me by your side, whispering
“I love you
Always”

Gentle acoustic ballad with male vocals, soft piano under warm fingerpicked guitar. Verses stay intimate and close-mic; chorus swells with light strings and airy harmonies. Subtle brushed percussion enters halfway to lift the emotion, then everything strips back on the final lines for a tender, almost whispered ending., tribute