I Ain’t Laying Down

VERSE 1
I been broke so long the hunger felt like part of me, Cold nights on a torn up couch, prayin’ for a little peace. Folks walked past like I was dirt they didn’t wanna see, But I held on to the smallest spark of who I’m s’posed to be.

I learned pain don’t kill you quick, it carves you into shape, Turns a boy into a man who ain’t got nothin’ left to fake. And every time I hit the ground, I tasted rust and rain, But I stood up with a busted smile like “life, swing again.”

CHORUS
I came from nothin’, but nothin’ never scared me none,
I bled through every hard year just to see another one.
They said I’d die a lost cause, just another name unwound, But I’m still here, scarred and stubborn —
I ain’t layin’ down.

VERSE 2
I’ve seen friends drown in bottles tryin’ to quiet down the noise, Seen good hearts turn to shadows, seen men lose their inner voice. I walked roads where every sign said “turn back while you can,” But I kept goin’ ‘cause the hurt was how I learned to stand.

Some nights I wished the dark would take me, end the fight inside, But somethin’ in me whispered, “boy, you ain’t done with this life.” So I stitched my broken pieces with the thread of second chances, Now I’m standin’ on the ashes of the man I used to battle.

VERSE 3
I’ve been bruised by every promise that I swore I’d never break, Lost myself in quiet moments where the truth felt like a weight. I’ve sat lonely in the kitchen with a bottle on the chair, Tellin’ God I ain’t a bad man — just a man who’s damn near scared.

These hands been shakin’ from the memories I tried to drown, And these boots been walkin’ roads that should’ve laid me in the ground. But even when the darkness whispered I was better off gone, Somethin’ small inside me muttered, “son, you gotta carry on.”

CHORUS
I came from nothin’, but nothin’ never scared me none,
I bled through every hard year just to see another one.
They said I’d die a lost cause, just another name unwound, But I’m still here, scarred and stubborn —
I ain’t layin’ down.

VERSE 4
I’ve torn myself to pieces just to feel a little numb,
Chasin’ shadows in the bottle ‘til the whole damn room would hum. I’ve lit cigarettes at midnight just to watch the ember fade, Like a mirror of the fire in me I let slip away. I’ve woken up with poison still burnin’ in my veins, Tellin’ lies to my reflection just to make it through the day. And I’ve stood on shaky legs swearin’ I’d finally turn around, But the truth is, when you’re broken, self-destruction feels like home ground.

BRIDGE
I ain’t lookin’ for redemption, I ain’t claimin’ I’ve been saved, But I’ve walked out of some shadows most men never could escape. And if tomorrow finds me standin’ with my boots still on the ground, Then the boy who came from nothin’ finally made his father proud.

Country - Blues Outlaw Thunder, Heavy Stomp