This song is about my father, but I’ve realized it also describes me a lot as a father.

My sons were always told they are loved, and hugged before bed. I didn't share all of my fathers inablity to directly express emotion.

But the goal was still the same: to teach and equip for survival in an uncaring world. The older we get, the less the world cares, it’s just the way it works.

"Built In Silence"

He never said it.

Not out loud.

No soft words.

No sacred vows.

Just up before,

The break of day.

Giving his life,

Away.

You called it distance.

You called it cold.

But some kinds of love,

Don't get told.

He was building you armor,

You wanted a friend.

Taking the weight,

So you wouldn't bend.

Every hard line,

Every "no",

Was "I love you",

He couldn't show.

Steel in his eyes.

Fire in his chest.

Fighting a world,

That don't forgive weakness.

He took the role,

You didn't choose.

So you'd have less,

To lose.

You felt the pressure.

You felt the strain.

But iron don't harden,

Without the flame.

He was building you armor,

You wanted a friend.

Taking the weight,

So you wouldn't bend.

Every hard line,

Every "no",

Was "I love you",

He couldn't show.

Then time hits hard.

You understand.

Holding a life,

In your own hands.

He was building you armor,

Never for praise.

Losing himself,

In a thousand ways.

Not in words,

Not in show.

But everything,

You didn't know.

Love built quiet,

Stands alone.

A father's truth,

In what he's done.