[Verse 1]
Wrapped in Daddy's faded flannel on the Willow Creek porch light,
You breathed like summer thunderstorms and morning coming bright.
A yellow bike with a bent bell, scuffed knees and dirt-streaked hands,
Baby-blue eyes learning the map of our small two-lane lands.
You braided daisy chains for Maggie, chased Ben around the swing,
Soft whistle for the neighborhood, the lullabies you'd sing.
Prom ribbon from Route 9 tucked in the pocket of your coat,
Little keepsakes in a mason jar, every scrap and every note.
[Pre-Chorus]
You learned to hold the quiet, to stand when storms blew through,
Packed our stories in your suitcase like a compass pointing true.
[Chorus]
Carry home with you — a light that never goes out,
Carry home with you — when the night gets hard, call out.
Carry home with you — the porch light waits and stays true,
Carry home with you, and I will carry you too.
[Verse 2]
Morning shifts at Joe's Diner, steam and coffee on the rise,
Textbooks on the passenger seat and dawn behind your eyes.
Aunt to Maggie and to Ben, the soft place when they fall,
You hum the old safe songs and braid small crowns for them all.
Your truck's got faded bumper stickers and a grocery-list of dreams,
You tape a Polaroid to the dash, sun on its silver beams.
Drive-by parades and county fairs, a laugh that stakes its claim,
You keep a little piece of home tucked in every single day.
[Pre-Chorus]
You carry birthday candles, band-aids, secret midnight songs,
You fix torn paper castles and remind the small they're strong.
[Chorus]
Carry home with you — a light that never goes out,
Carry home with you — when the night gets hard, call out.
Carry home with you — the porch light waits and stays true,
Carry home with you, and I will carry you too.
[Bridge]
Remember August thunder, the picnic ruined by the rain?
You climbed up on the tailgate, made blanket forts and lemonade.
Maggie fell asleep on your shoulder, Ben's shoelace found again,
You taught them how to stand back up — you always did, my friend.
This is why the little ones run to you with scraped and hopeful knees,
Because you hand them brave like pennies in a jar — small faith, big deeds.
[Chorus - Final]
Carry home with you — the porch light's waiting on the stoop,
Carry home with you — the smell of coffee and a soup.
Carry home with you — the ribbon, bell, and all you do,
Carry home with you, and I will carry you too.
[Outro]
From Daddy's flannel to your open road, wherever you roam through,
Take the pockets full of hometown stars and carry home with you.
