On the Concrete

[Intro]
I'm gonna tell you guys a story real quick
Something that I thought you might find interesting
Sometimes in life, we look for something, for a real long time
But it turns out to be right beneath your nose

[Hook](x2)
Now I saw a smile and the pain from his eyes go
As he stretched his arms skyward, barely awake
And all of his life's pain forever from inside drained
Down on the concrete right there where he lived

(Alright one more time, let's build it)

[Verse 1]
The night of June 3rd out in the dark
I was jogging along this old road, south of the park
I came across a man; old, cold, lonely, and ill
With nothing left in his bottle but he was holding it still
Normally well I'd just toss him a buck to help him and go
But for some strange reason something compelled me to slow
He looked up and I asked him if he believed in God or in Hell
He responded if there truly was a God, he could probably tell
Cause up to now, he hasn't seen much proof of that likes
He told me of a son he used to have who used to ride bikes
But then he got into this gang of desolate thugs
He wore mugs and mugged, then he started messing with drugs
He got high and sold crack with a pocket of cash
Mr. Tough guy acting all cocky and brash
Until finally his son found himself there in the track
Of a bullet from a gat, coming through the air at his back
I said that's funny, I knew someone just like that
He got bullied when he was young and never did fight back
He figured cause he was so small, he couldn't win in a fight
And his parents didn't care if he came in the end of the night
So he just stayed gone, and he wound up in jail
He didn't even have a friend to call to round up his bail
Until he met this dude in for the same reason as he
Who told him "I can really help you, just believe me and see"
They kept in touch after the court days, probation and such
He taught him how to think and not be complacent as much
He started changing, his boy said he needed to choose
For the first time, he contemplated leaving them dudes
Until the evening I was chilling on the lawn with my folks
I saw him and his friend walking as the Honda approached
They missed his friend but hit him in his heart and his head
I ran up while he held him in his arms as he bled
And that's when...

[Hook]

[Verse 2]
Now he only responded with the bitterness he'd sown so dense
So I left and called my homie's friend cause we had grown close since
I invited him jogging with me through the park and like us
They sat and talked about the past and how hard his life was
Except my friend is something different, he stayed with him there
And brought comfort to his shadows of shame and despair
He showed him a depth of compassion that he never had seen
He cried and under the stars, together they dreamed
It wasn't but a month later that it happened at all
I'd melt down by that man on his back by a wall
He pulled gently my shirt collar, drew me in near
Then whispered an old raspy "thank you" in my ear
I looked up, the last sun beam struggled and died
Then felt the soft rain drizzle from the rumbling sky
Upon a man on his back upon the end of his days
From whom they said hope was absent and redemption had strayed
A life full of poor choices and his pension is paid
Now he's better off dead, he only gets in the way
But...

[Hook](x4)

[Outro]
As he stretched his arms skyward
As he stretched his arms skyward, barely awake
(x2)

There's a difference between what we know, and what there is
Even when we think we gotta handle something, they're all so different
I hope you ????, I really hope that you understand me
And I hope that you enjoyed yourselves, I really hope that you enjoyed yourselves
But you know we gotta do it one more time for the ??? here we go
Everybody sing it loud now, yeah!!!