(Verse 1)
Thirteen and trembling, a fragile heart in the night,
First love turned to thunder, every day a harder fight.
Beatings on the silence, words that cut like steel,
Three years I hid in shadows, alone with wounds that wouldn't heal.
(Pre-Chorus)
Skateboard grit on pavement, spray paint nights and whispered oaths,
We ate on folded boxes, read by streetlamp ghosts.
I learned to laugh through bruises, learned to fold my pain away,
'Til I found the little courage to stand up and walk away.
(Chorus — Call & Response)
Lead: Hallelujah — new light!
Choir: Hallelujah!
Lead: From the dark I rise, from the hurt I find my fight,
Choir: Hallelujah!
Lead: Hallelujah — new light!
Choir: Hallelujah!
Lead: From the scrape of skateboard nights to the bell of a new school life,
Choir: Hallelujah — new light!
(Verse 2)
Sixteen came with memory, another love that mirrored pain,
Same bitter echoes, same closed door, the storm that knew my name.
I said enough, I chose myself, I wouldn’t breathe that air,
Packed a year of quiet tending, learning how to care.
(Pre-Chorus 2)
New-school bell that morning, halls I walked with guarded eyes,
Wanted to be alone, protect my small surprise.
Then Tuesday came at sunrise, a voice that changed the day,
"Tuesday, October 8th, 7 A.M., you said hello" — you stayed.
(Chorus — Call & Response)
Lead: Hallelujah — new light!
Choir: Hallelujah!
Lead: From three years I hid to a heartbeat I could finally write,
Choir: Hallelujah!
Lead: Hallelujah — new light!
Choir: Hallelujah!
Lead: Spray paint nights to morning talks beneath the open sky,
Choir: Hallelujah — new light!
(Bridge)
A trans boy’s gentle words at dawn, he spoke and didn’t pretend,
He listened to my stories, my broken nights, each bitter end.
We shared the scars and promises, the ways we both had learned to bend,
Months of friendship like warm chapel light, then January’s truth began —
"January 3rd, 2025" — that kiss, that promise to attend.
(Short Gospel Break)
Leader: Oh — we rose!
Group: We rose!
Leader: From ashes to a voice!
Group: We rose!
(Chorus — Full Choir)
Lead: Hallelujah — new light!
Full Choir: Hallelujah!
Lead: From the dark I rise, healed in the sight of morning bright,
Full Choir: Hallelujah!
Lead: Hallelujah — new light!
Full Choir: Hallelujah!
Lead: From skateboard grit and spray paint nights to a hand that holds me tight,
Full Choir: Hallelujah — new light!
(Outro / Tag — Gospel Choir & Solo)
Solo: Now she walks with strength and grace, the past behind, a steady pace,
Choir: Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Solo: With friends who kept the midnight watch, with laughter on the rooftop space,
Choir: Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Solo: A story stitched from broken threads, from storms survived to mornings new,
Choir: Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Solo + Choir: New light, new love — we sing, we rise, we bless this road you choose.
(Final Tag — Choir repeats softly)
Choir: Hallelujah — new light!
Choir (soft): Hallelujah — new light...
