My Sons Bring Me Home

Lyrics

[Intro] The boots are by the back door, dust still in the seams Two little voices call my name and pull me from the dream [Verse 1] I came home on a Thursday with a duffel and a grin Signed the papers, hugged my woman, told the neighbors I was in But the house gets too quiet when the hallway loses sound I count the locks at midnight, check the windows, walk around There’s a desert in my eyelids, there’s a convoy in my chest Every sudden crack of thunder puts the past back to the test I can smell the heated engine, taste the sand along my tongue Then my oldest says, “Dad, look,” and I remember where I’m from [Pre-Chorus] I’m standing in the kitchen, but I’m miles away A hand on my shoulder brings me back to today [Chorus] My sons bring me home, when my mind won’t stay Two small hands find the soldier and lead him away I still hear that war when the whole house sleeps But they call me their father, and the ground holds me deep My sons bring me home, out of smoke, out of flame They don’t know the battle, but they know my name [Verse 2] I keep the old field jacket folded under the bed Not because I miss the fighting, just to quiet what it said My youngest draws a picture: three figures in the sun He gives me crooked paper wings and says, “Dad, you’re number one” I laugh until it trembles, turn my face so they can’t see How a crayon on a coffee table can unlock a man like me The news rolls in the background, another town, another fight I reach to turn it off before it steals the night [Rap Verse] I’m back on American soil, but the map is in my head Every room has an exit, every promise has a thread I learned to sleep in fragments, learned to answer without sound Learned the difference between a safe place and a place that’s safe right now Then a baseball hits the flowerpot, and I hear that little yell “Dad, come throw it back to me”—that’s the signal, that’s the bell No medal on the dresser ever carried what they do They pull me from the battlefield with nothing but “I love you” [Chorus] My sons bring me home, when my mind won’t stay Two small hands find the soldier and lead him away I still hear that war when the whole house sleeps But they call me their father, and the ground holds me deep My sons bring me home, out of smoke, out of flame They don’t know the battle, but they know my name [Bridge] If I go quiet, sit beside me If I wake shaking, don’t ask why Put your hand inside my hand, boys Give this old heart somewhere to lie [Guitar Solo] [Final Chorus] My sons bring me home, when my mind won’t stay Two bright voices find the soldier and lead him away I still hear that war, but it doesn’t own me There’s a porch light, two boys, and the man I’m learning to be My sons bring me home, out of smoke, out of flame They don’t know the battle, but they know my name They call me their father, and I come home again [Outro] The boots are by the back door, dust fading in the seams Two little voices call my name, and I wake up from the dream