I Was There Daddy

Those little shoes by the doorway. Lord, I remember them well. You used to line them up so neatly While I was trapped inside myself. Pink ribbons down on the staircase. You'd fix them over and over. I should've walked through that hallway And told you you were my world. I learned to stay quiet in shadows, So I wouldn't ask for too much. 'Cause every time reached for you, I was reaching for someone I loved. I was there, daddy. Waiting on me every night. My little girl by the window, Holding on to a fading light. I didn't need all your money. I didn't need you to be strong. I just needed you beside me, But you were already gone. Mm, you were there, baby. Mm. Mm. I found your love in strangers, In voices that sounded like truth. Every "baby, I got you" was just me Searching for you. You were searching for a father In every hand that held you close. And every time they walked away, It broke me more than you'll ever know. Now every memory keeps whispering The words I should've said. I spent so many years surviving While your childhood slipped away. You were there, baby. I but you were never in sight. I was learning how to be strong In a world that didn't feel right. I didn't need your perfection. I didn't need you to try. I just needed you to hold me Before I learned how to hide. And I hear you now in the wind. Yeah. If I could turn back time. I see you in the pain, in the distance You ran. And maybe you didn't know how. Maybe you were just lost too. But I was a child Still reaching for you. Those little shoes by the doorway. I was there, daddy. Mm, you were there. I was there. If I could turn back time, I'd never miss Those there. Mm, I'd hold you every morning. I was there, daddy. Waiting on you, waiting on you. Mm, wipe away your tears. I was there, Those little shoes by the doorway.