Lyrics: Words and Music

1.  I'm Gonna Swim

I thought my ship was comin' in then I began to wonder when.
Now I'm thinkin' maybe it got lost somewhere upon the sea.
Might be drifting in the wind, on a tide that won't come in.
Anyhow it's all come down to me.
I could be wrong, I've been wrong before.
So I'm gonna swim out to my ship, give a little tug, gonna pull it in.
I don't need the tide, I won't need the wind,
I'm gonna swim out to my ship gonna bring it in.
I'm gonna swim out to my ship gonna bring it in.
Sittin' here waitin' for the tide to turn  I had the chance and the time to learn
a thing or two about ships and dreams and countin' on the wind.
Dreams fade and winds die down, ships get lost and never found.
Anyhow it's all come down to me.
I could be wrong, I've been wrong before.
Good things come to those who wait and I have done my time.
I'm gonna leave these empty shores and find that ship of mine.

2. A Rocking Chair and a Memory

He sits on the front porch of a nursing home.
People say it’s sad to see him there alone.
He’s all wrapped up, then he rocks for a while,
And then he smiles.
A rocking chair, and a memory
don’t look like much, but it’s all he needs.
His whole world has come to be
a rocking chair and a memory.
He wears a sweater, it’s all tattered and torn.
Ain’t nothin’ new near as warm.
He’s all wapped up, then he rocks for a while,
And then he smiles.
He reads the note there by his bed,
Last thing she wrote, last thing she said,
“When you think of me every once in a while, smile.”

3.The Kid in Me

Every time I see you a great big goofy grin
spreads itself right clear across my face.
Funny how this world can be brand new again
even though I know it's still the same old place.
What used to bother me, what I thought was wrong
I don't remember since you came along.
I found the kid in me, I'm like I used to be,
feeling young and free, I found the kid in me.
You helped me see how good like can be so sweet,
And I do believe I found the kid in me.
Just thinking 'bout you can turn my day around.
And everything looks better than before.
It may look like my feet are on the ground,
but I 'm really dancing ten feet off this floor.

4. When I Hear Her Sing

Sweet as the water that runs in the creek,
Warm like the sunshine kissing my cheek,
Pretty as the dogwood's bloom in the spring,
It's like fallin' in love when I hear her sing.
La, la, la, la, la....
Soft as the moss that grows on the rocks,
Graceful and free like the flight of a hawk.
Fresh as the morning after the rain,
It's like falling in love when I hear her sing.
Whenever I hear her, I see it clearer
how beautiful this world can be.
Can't help believing when she's singing,
Feels like she's singing for me, for me.

5. I Need a Small Town

Somedays when I wake up
I’m thinking I should take up
Another place of residence
Where I can hang my hat.
The city’s closing in on me,
It’s hard to think, I can barely breathe.
I need another place
And this ain’t where it’s at.
I need a small town
where I can slow things down.
Take a walk around,
Put my feet upon the ground.
Don’t need no fast lane,
Drive a man insane.
I got plans to make
Before my great escape- I can’t wait.
I need a small town in the biggest kind of way.
Everywhere I go there
Are people I don’t know there.
This city’s full of strangers
Ain’t nobody smiling back.
I think I’m gonna lose my mind,
Go crazy if I just don’t find
A friendly face and this ain’t where it’s at.
Well, now the city ain’t all bad.
There’s a lot of good things in it.
But I’d trade ‘em all for a country mile
in a New York minute.

6. Family Matters

He called his daddy crazy.
He turned and walked away.
His father stood in silence
and thought about the day
he called his old man crazy,
and the things he learned since then.
If the seed is firmly planted
it will stand against the wind.
Family matters sometimes feel so wrong.
In our darkest hour it’s love that keeps us strong.
And it’s the hard side of the mountain
where the strongest timber grows.
Family matters, this I know.
Her mother tries to give her
Wisdom from the heart.
But she just will not listen
and it tears them both apart.
Like her mother years before her
she watched her daughter leave.
With the faith of angels
a mother still believes.
There’s a picture on the mantle.
There’s a smile on every face.
Family all together gathered in one place.
But the camera cannot capture
what the heart can only see.
And it’s the roots in the rocky soil
that raise up the family tree.

7. Together Again

She turns down the bed and turns out the light,
Whispers the same prayer she prays every night.
“Thank you for letting me know him awhile.”
She falls to sleep with a smile.
Closer he holds her and softly they kiss.
Heaven could only be better than this.
Dreams are the reason she keeps believing
True love never will end,
And they’ll be together again.

8. Family, Faith and Friends

It was late one night and I just couldn’t sleep,
I tried my best but I just couldn’t keep
The world from spinning ‘round inside my head.
I got tired of fightin’ all I thought was wrong,
So I got up and turned my TV on,
Heard an old man talking and this is what he said,
“Could be I’ve been lucky, could be I’ve been blessed.
Maybe there’s no difference; all I know is this:
Family keeps you going knowing they’re always there.
Faith gives you hope when you think you ain’t got a prayer.
Ain’t no load too heavy with the help of a friendly hand.
Now this world can make you crazy if you let it.
But you got three things on your side, don’t forget it.
Family, faith, friends.
Well I turned out the light and I got back in bed.
And I thought about what that old man said.
He didn’t say nothin’ that I didn’t already know.
But sometimes it’s good to hear again
About the power of family, faith, and friends,
And how it is we’re not alone.

9. Old Out of Tune Guitar

He sits on a bench at the courthouse square.
Nearly everyday you can find him there
Strumming the strings on an
Old out of tune guitar.
His body's broken, he can barely walk.
He nods a little 'cause he just can't talk
Still he strums the strings on an
Old out of tune guitar.
And if you listen in the usual way,
You'll never hear the songs he plays,
Just an old broken down guitar.
You can only hear his music
With your heart.
He's got a rusty old coffee can,
People pass by and put a dollar in.
He nods a little, they smile and then walk away.
And the lucky ones know what they've given him-
Ain't near as much as what he's given them
With that old out of tune guitar he can't play.

10. Higher ground

When the clouds in the sky
Hang heavy and low,
When they follow you
Wherever you go,
When the flood waters rise
And the rain’s pourin’ down,
May you know the grace of higher ground.
Higher ground, higher ground,
May you know the grace of higher ground.
When the road you must walk
Is rocky and steep.
When the river you cross
Is cold, dark and deep.
When the weight of the world
Is pullin’you down.
May you know the grace of higher ground.

11. You Have Been My Friend

It might be tomorrow
Or many years from now.
Nobody’s knows where or when.
Nobody knows how.
One day it all will be over.
Finally this road’s gonna end.
Before it does I want you to know
You have been my friend.
You stood beside me when times-they were rough.
About as rough as times could be.
And when empty skies were all I could see,
You saw a light in me.
Now this world will keep on turning
Long after we’ve had our spin.
Here in this song forever we’ll live on,
You and me,my friend.
So I thank you sincerely
And I’ll tell you once again.
In my life I want you to know
You have been my friend.
In my life I’m proud I can say
You have been my friend.