Feathers on a locked heart

FEATHERS ON A LOCKED HEART

(by Robert Ramage)

Intro (spoken)

I didn’t cage this heart to keep love out.

I caged it to keep it together.

Verse 1 – Pressure

Every word weighed twice its size,

Every feeling put on trial,

Say too much, you’re losing ground,

Say too little, you’re shut down.

I tried to speak, I tried to bend,

Every side said I was wrong again,

So I learned to hold my breath

Just to make it to the end.

Verse 2 – Judgment

They don’t feel what beats in me,

Only judge what they can see,

Call it reckless, call it blind,

Never walked this state of mind.

Every choice I tried to own

Turned into a courtroom tone,

So I stopped defending truth

And started building something strong.

Chorus

This heart’s locked up, not to run,

But to stop it coming undone.

Every crack I had to mend

Put another bar in place again.

These feathers show, I’m not made of stone,

Just careful where I let love roam.

If I look guarded, that’s because

I’m holding on to what still was.

Verse 3 – Fear of Loss

I’ve loved enough to know the cost,

What it takes and what gets lost,

Every promise left behind

Leaves another mark in time.

I won’t pretend I’m bulletproof,

I still ache, I still choose hope,

But I won’t let another fall

Be the thing that breaks it all.

Verse 4 – Responsibility

Everyone needs something from me,

Strength, patience, clarity,

Hold it together, don’t let go,

Be the one who always knows.

So I rebuild with steel and grace,

Put a lock around this place,

Not because I don’t feel love—

Because I feel it every way.

Bridge

I didn’t lose my heart in fear,

I just learned what hurts it here,

If it opens, it opens slow,

Not because it can’t — but because it knows.

The wings remain, they always will,

Not to escape — but to remind me still…

Final Chorus

This heart’s locked up, but it still beats,

Still feels warmth, still feels need.

Every reason built this cage,

Not one wound — but every stage.

These feathers mean I’m not closed off,

Just tired of the fall and cost.

I’m not hiding from the sky—

I’m choosing when and why I fly.

Outro (spoken)

The lock holds the damage in.

The feathers let the truth show.