Bend by the Mill

[Intro]
You said the river runs east
I said it bends by the mill
We stood there guarding our maps
While the water kept moving still

[Verse 1]
You grew up counting every dollar
I learned to spend before it’s gone
You learned to keep your answers ready
I learned to wait and carry on
I called your caution something colder
You called my questions picking fights
We named each other from a distance
And missed the reasons in our lives

[Pre-Chorus]
So tell me where the hurt began
I’ll set my verdict down
I may not see it as you do
But I can hear you now

[Chorus]
I don’t have to share your view
To make some room for where you’re coming from
I can ask before I accuse
And leave a little space for what I haven’t learned
We’re more than one mistaken sentence
More than one bad afternoon
I’ll try to understand you
Before I turn away from you

[Verse 2]
You keep your coat beside the doorway
You never know who might need warmth
I thought you planned to leave the table
You said you’d learned to watch the storm
I heard a joke and missed the warning
You heard my quiet as contempt
We carry whole unspoken histories
Into every word that’s left unsaid

[Pre-Chorus]
So tell me what I didn’t catch
I’ll listen past my pride
The truth can hold another truth
And neither has to hide

[Chorus]
I don’t have to share your view
To make some room for where you’re coming from
I can ask before I accuse
And leave a little space for what I haven’t learned
We’re more than one mistaken sentence
More than one bad afternoon
I’ll try to understand you
Before I turn away from you

[Bridge]
Not every wound is mine to measure
Not every fear looks like my own
A softer question isn’t surrender
It’s how we keep a door unclosed
If I was sharp, I’ll say I’m sorry
If you were scared, you can say so
We can set the stones down slowly
And let the next small sentence grow

[Group Chant]
Hear me out
I’ll hear you out
No one gets reduced to doubt
Hear me out
I’ll hear you out
We can turn this thing around

[Final Chorus]
I don’t have to share your view
To make some room for where you’re coming from
I can ask before I accuse
And leave a little space for what I haven’t learned
We’re more than one mistaken sentence
More than one bad afternoon
I’ll try to understand you
I’ll keep a place beside me for you

[Outro]
You said the river runs east
I watched it bend by the mill
We didn’t settle every question
But we stood there listening still