The Warmest Light

When the night falls I lift my eyes to heaven

Looking for your light

Mama

I walk these empty roads

Hoping your voice might touch the quiet night

I still remember your chair by the window

And how you’d wait for me with tired hands

But I was young and foolish

Thinking I had all the time in the world

Mama, I was blind

Didn’t see the pain hiding behind your smile

You coughed and said, “It’s nothing, son”

But I should have stayed with you a little while

I chased the world and left you waiting

You warmed my meal when it got cold

Lord knows now I’d give my soul

To sit beside you as you grow old

Mama, can you hear us from that gentle star above?

We’re calling out your name tonight

With every broken piece of love

Forgive us for every day we stayed away

For every tear we couldn’t see

When the night falls

Your memory is all we have left to breathe

I remember one winter evening

You asked me to stay ’cause you felt weak

But I said “tomorrow, Mama”

Oh God, how the guilt still burns my cheeks

You waited with a quiet sadness

Trying to hide your trembling hands

And now each time the cold wind blows

I feel the echo of your last stand

I came home late one night

And found your prayer shawl lying on a chair

You’d fallen asleep waiting for me

Your breath soft like a fading prayer

I took your kindness for granted

Thought you’d always be around

But the truth hits hard at midnight

Silence is the loudest sound

Mama, forgive the roads we walked alone

Forgive the times we weren’t there

Your love was a roof above our hearts

And now the sky feels bare

When the night falls

We search the stars to find your face

Praying you’re somewhere listening

Wrapped in God’s embrace

If time could turn its wheels again

We’d hold your hands and never roam

We’d tell you that we loved you more

Than all the dust on all the roads we’ve known

Mama, if angels hear these country boys

Let them carry our apologies

Let them whisper to your gentle soul

That we’ve learned what family truly means

And when the night falls

We close our eyes and softly call

Mama

Mama

You’re still the warmest light of all