The Man Who Read Us Stories
Verse
There was a man who read us stories
With dragons, moons, and sailing lights
He tied our shoes and dried our tears
And sent us laughing home at night
He knew the names of every child
And how we feared the thunder sound
But some folks watched with narrowed eyes
Whenever he was near around

Chorus
So one by one the gentle men
Learned distance was the safer road
And children grew with empty space
Where certain kinds of kindness go
Now no one says what has been lost
Or counts the warmth that disappeared
But silence leaves a colder room
When decent hearts are taught to fear

Verse
He left one year without a reason
At least none spoken near to us
The reading rug stayed rolled away
The room felt smaller after dust
The teachers said he found new work
The parents nodded, tight and brief
But I still remember how he smiled
Like kindness came to him with ease

Chorus
And one by one the gentle men
Learned distance was the safer road
And children grew with empty space
Where steady hands once helped them grow
For fear can keep a child from harm
And still push something good away
Until a world that wanted safety
Forgets the price it chose to pay

Bridge
Not every stranger should be trusted
Not every fear should be ignored
But somewhere wisdom lost its balance
And bolted shut a needed door

Final Chorus
So here’s to all the careful souls
Who stayed kind in a cautious age
And all the children who deserved
More loving guides upon the stage
Because a heart becomes much smaller
When warmth itself is treated strange
And every child should grow up knowing
Good men exist and help remain