It’s only for a moment you were mine to hold.
The plans that heaven has for you will all too soon unfold.
So many different prayers I’ll pray for all that you might do.
But most of all I want to know that you’re walking in the truth.

And if I never told you
I want you to know
That as I watch you grow…
I pray that God would fill your heart with dreams
And that faith gives you the courage to dare to do great things.

I’m here for you whatever this life brings
So let my love give you roots
And help you find your wings

May passion be the wind that leads you through your days
And may conviction keep you strong and guide you on your way
May there be many moments that make your life so sweet.
Oh but more than memories….

It’s not living if you don’t reach for the sky.
I’ll have tears as you take off….
But I’ll cheer as you fly….

I pray that God would fill your heart with dreams
And that faith gives you the courage to dare to do great things.
I’m here for you whatever this life brings
So let my love give you roots
And help you find your wings.

Yesterday a child came out to wonder, 
Caught a dragonfly inside a jar. 
Fearful when the sky is full of thunder, 
And tearful at the falling of a star. 

And the seasons, they go 'round and 'round, 
And the painted ponies go up and down. 
We're captive on the carousel of time. 
We can't return, we can only look behind 
From where we came, 
And go 'round and 'round and 'round in the circle game. 

Then the child moved ten times round the seasons, 
Skated over ten clear frozen streams. 
Words like "when you're older" must appease him,
And promises of "someday" make his dreams. 

And the seasons, they go 'round and 'round, 
And the painted ponies go up and down. 
We're captive on the carousel of time. 
We can't return, we can only look behind 
From where we came, 
And go 'round and 'round and 'round in the circle game. 

Sixteen springs and sixteen summers gone now, 
Cartwheels turn to car wheels through the town. 
And they tell him, "Take your time, it won't be long now,
'Till you drag your feet to slow the circle down." 

And the seasons, they go 'round and 'round,
And the painted ponies go up and down. 
We're captive on the carousel of time. 
We can't return, we can only look behind 
From where we came, 
And go 'round and 'round and 'round in the circle game. 

So the years spin by and now the boy is twenty. 
Though his dreams have lost some grandeur coming true,
There'll be new dreams, maybe better dreams, and plenty 
Before the last revolving year is through. 

And the seasons, they go 'round and 'round, 
And the painted ponies go up and down. 
We're captive on the carousel of time. 
We can't return, we can only look behind 
From where we came, 
And go 'round and 'round and 'round in the circle game.

Listen, hear the sound
The child awakes
Wander all around
The child awakes
Now in his life he never must be lost
No thoughts must deceive him
In life he must trust

With the eyes of a child
You must come out and see
That your world's spinning 'round
And through life you will be
A small part
Of a hope
 Of a love
That exists
In the eyes of a child you will see

Earth falls far away
New life awakes
Time it has no day
New life awakes
Here is your dream and now how does it feel?
No words will go with you
And now what is real?

With the eyes of a child
You must come out and see
That your world's spinning 'round
And through life you will be
 A small part
Of a hope
Of a love
That exists
In the eyes of a child you will see

 Well I think it's fine, building jumbo planes 
Or taking a ride on a cosmic train. 
 Switch on summer from a slot machine. 
Get what you want to if you want,
 'cause you can get anything. 

    I know we've come a long way, 
We're changing day to day, 
 But tell me, where do the children play? 

 Well, you roll on roads over fresh green grass
 For your lorryloads pumping petrol gas. 
 And you make them long, and you make them tough 
 But they just go on and on, and it seems you can't get off. 

 Oh, I know we've come a long way, 
We're changing day to day, 
 But tell me, where do the children play? 

 When you crack the sky, scrapers fill the air. 
Will you keep on building higher 
'til there's no more room up there? 
Will you make us laugh, will you make us cry? 
Will you tell us when to live, will you tell us when to die? 

I know we've come a long way, 
We're changing day to day, 
 But tell me, where do the children play?

Every time I see a woman on a billboard sign
I think about you
 Saying "drink this beer and you'll be mine"
 I think about you
   When an actress on the movie screen
 Plays Lolita in some old man's dreams
It doesn't matter who she is
I think about you

When I see a pretty woman walking down the street
  I think about you
Men look her up and down like she's some kind of treat
I think about you
She wouldn't dare talk to a stranger
Always has to be aware of the danger
It doesn't matter who she is
I think about you

 You... eight years old
  Big blue eyes and a heart of gold
When I look at this world, I think about
You... and I can't help but see
 That every woman used to be
Somebody's little girl... I think about you

 Every time I hear people say it's never gonna change
 I think about you
  Like it's some kind of joke, some kinds of game
 I think about you

 When I see a woman on the news
 Who didn't ask to be abandoned or abused
It doesn't matter who she is
  I think about you
You... eight years old
  Big blue eyes and a heart of gold
 

The only ground I ever owned 
was sticking to my shoes.
Now I look at my front porch
and this panoramic view.
I can sit and watch the fields fill up
With rays of glowing sun,
Or watch the moon lay on the fences
Like that's where it was hung.

My blessings are in front of me.
It's not about the land.
I'll never beat the view
From my front porch looking in.

There's a carrot top 
Who can barely walk
With a sippy cup of milk.
A little blue eyed blonde
With shoes on wrong
'Cause she likes to dress herself
And the most beautiful girl is
Holding both of them

The view I love the most
Is my front porch looking in
I've traveled here and everywhere
Following my job
I've seen the paintings from the air
Brushed by the hand of God
      The mountains and the canyons 
Reach from sea to shining sea
But I can't wait to get back home
To the one He made for me

It's anywhere I'll ever go 
And everywhere I've been
Nothing takes my breath away
Like my front porch looking in
I see what beautiful is about
When I'm looking in,
Not when I'm looking out

 I knew this kid, his name was Michael
He was only four years old
We sat on a rock and started talkin'
And he told me things I didn't know
He said yesterday he was an Indian
And how he played with buffalo
Well, I got a sense that he had been there
   And he made me really wanna go

I remember waiting all year for December
  Thought God was crying when it rained
And that the stars were fireflies
Dreams were real and big as life
It was forever everyday

I was tucking in my little girl
She held my hand and we said a prayer
 I prayed, "Bless Grandma with the angels."
    And she said, "Hey Mom, she's standing over there."
Well, I couldn't see her but I don't doubt it
 Maybe 'cause I'm older and less wise

What if Heaven’s all around us
But only seen through children’s eyes? 
  They say when you're old you're a child again
But do we have to wait 'till then?

I remember waiting all year for December
  Thought God was crying when it rained
And that the stars were fireflies
Dreams were real and big as life
It was forever everyday

Forever
I knew this kid his name was Michael

If children live with criticism, 
they learn to condemn.
If children live with hostility, 
they learn to fight.
If children live with fear, 
they learn to be apprehensive.
If children live with pity,
they learn to feel sorry for themselves.
If children live with ridicule, 
they learn to feel shy.
If children live with jealousy, 
they learn to feel envy.
If children live with shame, 
they learn to feel guilty.
If children live with encouragement, 
they learn confidence.
If children live with tolerance, 
they learn patience.
If children live with praise, 
they learn appreciation.
If children live with acceptance, 
they learn to love.
If children live with approval, 
they learn to like themselves.
If children live with recognition, 
they learn it is good to have a goal.
If children live with sharing, 
they learn generosity.
If children live with honesty, 
they learn truthfulness.
If children live with fairness,
they learn justice.
If children live with kindness and consideration, 
they learn respect.
If children live with security, 
they learn to have faith in themselves 
and in those around them.
If children live with friendliness, 
they learn the world is a nice place in which to live.

I remember looking up 
To look up to him.
And I remember,
Most of the time 
He wasn't there.
I'd be waiting at the door 
When he got home at night.
He'd pass me by 
To go pass out in his chair.

And I'd say, "Walk a little straighter, Daddy,
You're swaying side to side.
Your footsteps make me dizzy,
And no matter how I try,
I keep tripping and stumbling-
If you'd look down here, you'd see-
Walk a little straighter, Daddy,
You're leading me."

 He stumbled in the gym on graduation day
 And I couldn't help but feel so ashamed.
 I wasn't surprised a bit when he didn't stay-
 He stumbled out before they called my name.

And I thought, "Walk a little straighter, Daddy,
You're swaying side to side.
It's not just me who's watching,
You've caught everybody's eye.
You're tripping and stumbling,
And even though I've turned eighteen-
Walk a little straighter, Daddy,
You're still leading me."

The old man's still like he always was
But I love him anyway.
If I've learned one thing from him,
It's my kids will never have to say,

"Walk a little straighter, Daddy,
You're swaying side to side.
Your footsteps make me dizzy,
And no matter how I try,
I keep tripping and stumbling.
If you'd look down here, you'd see-
Walk a little straighter, Daddy,
You're leading me."

She walks to school with the lunch she packed
Nobody knows what she's holdin' back
Wearin' the same dress she wore yesterday
She hides the bruises with linen and lace

The teacher wonders but she doesn't ask
It's hard to see the pain behind the mask
Bearing the burden of a secret storm
Sometimes she wishes she was never born

Through the wind and the rain
She stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings
And she flies to a place where she's loved
Concrete angel

Somebody cries in the middle of the night
The neighbors hear, but they turn out the lights
A fragile soul caught in the hands of fate
When morning comes it'll be too late

Through the wind and the rain
She stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings
And she flies to a place where she's loved
Concrete angel

A statue stands in a shaded place
An angel girl with an upturned face
A name is written on a polished rock
A broken heart that the world forgot

Through the wind and the rain
She stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings
And she flies to a place where she's loved
Concrete angel

All he could think about was I'm too young for this.
Got my whole life ahead.
Hell I'm just a kid myself.
How'm I gonna raise one.

All he could see were his dreams goin' up in smoke.
So much for ditchin' this town and hangin' out on the coast.
Oh well, those plans are long gone.

And he said,
There goes my life.
There goes my future, my everything.
Might as well kiss it all good-bye.
There goes my life.......

A couple years of up all night and a few thousand diapers later.
That mistake he thought he made covers up the refrigerator.
Oh yeah..........he loves that little girl.

Momma's waiting to tuck her in,
As she fumbles up those stairs.
She smiles back at him dragging that teddy bear.
Sleep tight, blue eyes and bouncin' curls.

He smiles.....
There goes my life.
There goes my future, my everything.
I love you, daddy good-night.
There goes my life.

She had that Honda loaded down.
With Abercrombie clothes and 15 pairs of shoes and his American Express.
He checked the oil and slammed the hood, said your good to go.
She hugged them both and headed off to the West Coast.

And he cried,
There goes my life.
There goes my future, my everything.
I love you.
Baby good-bye.

There goes my life.
There goes my life.
Baby good-bye.

Dear God, surround me as I speak,
The bridges that I walk across are weak
Frustrations fill the void that I can't solely bear
 Dear God, don't let me fall apart,
 You've held me close to you
I have turned away and searched 
for answers I can't understand

They say that I can move the mountains
And send them falling to the sea
 They say that I can walk on water
 If I would follow and believe
With faith like a child

Sometimes, when I feel miles away
And my eyes can't see your face
I wonder if I've grown to lose 
the recklessness I walked in light of you

 They say that I can move the mountains
And send them falling to the sea
 They say that I can walk on water
 If I would follow and believe
With faith like a child

 (Little Girl:)
"I've got joy like a fountain!"
"Be kind to one another"
"In Jesus Christ Your son"

They say that love can heal the broken
They say that hope can make you see
They say that faith can find a Savior
If you would follow and believe
With faith like a child

They say that I can move the mountains
And send them falling to the sea
 They say that I can walk on water
 If I would follow and believe
With faith like a child