Lay the Better Ground

[Intro]
They drew a fence around the field
And called the empty ground complete
But I can see the orchard there
With room enough for every seed

[Verse 1]
You count the bolts, I count the doors
That no one thought to try
A scrap of chalk, a folded plan
A line against the sky
You say the hill is all we get
I see the valley past
I’ll take the look they give me
And keep building what can last

[Pre-Chorus]
You don’t have to call it foolish
You don’t have to understand
I can hold the picture steady
While I shape it with my hands

[Chorus]
I see a wider world than this
A table with another place
A bridge where there was only distance
A little more room, a little more grace
Let them watch me, let them wonder
I won’t trade the view I found
We can make the thing we’re missing
We can lay the better ground

[Verse 2]
You kept the seed tin from your granddad
Rust along its rim
We split the beans with neighbors
And planted every one of them
A ramp beside the library steps
A garden by the school
Small things turn to common ground
When we make the making rule

[Pre-Chorus]
You don’t have to see it yet
Just leave a little space
I’ll bring the first board over
You can help me set it straight

[Chorus]
I see a wider world than this
A table with another place
A bridge where there was only distance
A little more room, a little more grace
Let them watch me, let them wonder
I won’t trade the view I found
We can make the thing we’re missing
We can lay the better ground

[Bridge]
If they laugh, let it pass through
Like wind through the old barn frame
A dream is not a promise
Till we put our backs to change
You bring the nails, I’ll bring the drawing
We’ll ask the whole block in
The future isn’t waiting somewhere
It starts where we begin

[Final Chorus]
I see a wider world than this
And now you’re standing here with me
A table built from borrowed lumber
A gate that opens easily
Let them watch us, let them wonder
We know what these hands can do
We can make the thing we’re missing
And leave a kinder world for you

[Outro]
One more board, one more seed
One more welcome at the door
What we couldn’t see together
We can make together more