Before I Was Ready

Verse 1 Twenty-three with shaking hands No blueprint, no master plan A boy still learning who to be Now someone’s eyes were watching me Three years in, I thought I knew How to hold what I had to do Then one night the house went quiet And silence hit like a riot I came home And they were gone Pre-Chorus Some lessons don’t knock first They just walk through the door Chorus I became a man Before I was ready Life doesn’t ask If you feel steady I stood alone In an empty room But I didn’t let it Seal my doom You don’t choose What breaks apart But you choose What builds your heart I became a man Before I was ready Verse 2 No anger loud No public blame Just a house That wasn’t the same I could’ve folded I could’ve run But that’s not the story I wanted my son So I worked And I learned And I grew Not perfect But true Pre-Chorus 2 Sometimes strength Is staying upright Chorus (bigger) I became a man Before I was ready Held my ground When life got heavy No perfect lines No perfect plan Just doing the best A grown man can You don’t wait Until you’re whole Sometimes fire Refines the soul I became a man Before I was ready Verse 3 (hope enters) Seven years pass Then love walks in Not to replace But to begin She brought calm She brought light She brought values That felt right Two more daughters Years go by Thirty years And we’re still side by side Bridge (raw) I didn’t grow up all at once I grew through loss and choice I didn’t shout my pain out loud I built it into voice Final Chorus (lift) I became a man Before I was ready Through every fall Through every heavy I didn’t break I didn’t run I stood my ground For my son I became a man Before I was ready