[Verse 1] I learned to wake before the house did Coffee in the dark keys in my hand Another day another list another promise I would understand There was food on the table a roof overhead Someone always calling someone needing something next And I liked being needed God, I really did It made me feel like I finally knew what a man was meant to be [Pre-Chorus] So I carried the weight I carried it well Never asked if anybody could tell [Chorus] I built myself for everyone A pair of hands a place to run The one who stays the one who knows the one who carries what nobody shows I gave them time I gave them strength I gave them everything I had I built a life for everyone I loved And forgot to leave a place for myself [Verse 2] There were birthdays I almost missed Dinner getting cold while I answered one more call Little voices from another room “Dad, are you coming?” “Yeah” but not yet Not at all I thought providing meant I was present Thought being strong was the same as being there And every night when the house went quiet I'd sit alone with a silence I didn't know how to share [Pre-Chorus] Everybody knew who they needed me to be I just stopped knowing what was left of me [Chorus] I built myself for everyone A pair of hands a place to run The one who stays the one who knows the one who carries what nobody shows I gave them time I gave them strength I gave them everything I had I built a life for everyone I loved And forgot to leave a place for myself [Bridge] If the phone stops ringing If nobody needs me tonight If the doors are locked and every room is quiet Who am I then? Without the work Without the problems Without someone asking me to fix them Who am I when there's nothing left to carry? [Break] I know their fears I know their dreams I know what keeps them awake at night But somewhere along the way I stopped asking what keeps me alive [Final Chorus] I built myself for everyone Until there wasn't much of me left I became the shelter the answer the reason The man who never needed help I gave them time I gave them strength And I'd probably do it all again But I built a life for everyone I loved And somewhere in those walls I lost the man I was before them [Outro] The house is quiet now And for the first time I can hear myself I just don't recognize the voice.
