The Words I Never Said

I thought there'd always be a morning, To say the things I meant. I thought love was understood, Didn't need to be expressed. You stood there in the doorway, Waiting for a sign. I gave you rules and discipline, But not enough of, "I'm proud you're mine." I see it clearer now, In the silence that remains. Sometimes strength can look like distance, And love can look like chains. It's the words I never said, That keep me up at night. The "I love you" I swallowed down, The hugs I held too tight. I taught you how to face the world, To stand up tall and brave. But I never told you often enough, You were the best thing That I made. You learned to stop needing me, Long before I knew. I mistook your quiet growing, For something I should push you through. I thought I was preparing you, For storms I couldn't see. But I never saw the storm, Was brewing inside me. Now I walk these rooms alone, With memories in my head. And every echo answers back, Of what I never Said. It's the words I never said, That echo through the years. Not the fights, not the anger, But the missing Reassures. I would trade my stubborn pride, Every lesson, every plan. Just to go back once, And hold you like a man. If you ever doubted, If you ever wondered, You were loved More than you knew. Oh, it's the words I never said, That follow me to sleep. Not because they disappear, But because they're Mine to Keep. And if one day you look back, And question what was true. Know the loudest love I ever had, Was always you.