VERSE: I remember when I was just a boy And from time to time, I’d get into somethin’ that got my Dad annoyed He would sit me down and make me listen … to every thing he felt I should avoid He said, life’s like a Christmas present from above Sometimes it’s justa pair of socks Sometimes somethin’ that you love But either way, it’s just for you and I guarantee it’ll fit you like a glove But, you know … sometimes it’s difficult to accept the gift that you’re deserving of VERSE: He told me, Each day brings us choices that we all have to make Every choice is like a fork, in the road our lives will take Either path might be the right one Either one could be a really bad mistake Living with those choices can be harder to endure if the reason that you chose ‘em wasn’t altogether pure You might wonder what you were thinkin’ cuz you just can’t remember the allure Someday, you’ll know what I mean when you’re a little more mature VERSE: He said, time is good for hiding things away When you can’t stand to think about ‘em for yet another day But sooner or later, they present you with a bill you’ll have to pay So son, I hope you’re listening to what I said today And that many, many years from now, after I have gone away, you can look back on your choices and feel pretty sure you handled them okay TAG: So take it one choice at a time, son… … and Oh Yeah … Don’t forget to pray.

SONG LYRICS: Lolly and Tony …      was my Mother and Father’s name Working-class heroes,           with no money and no fame They worked their fingers to the bone and raised a family... Gave up their best years to my sister Julie and me.               They met each other during supper    at the Santo Cristo fair Down on Columbia Street,  I can’t believe my Mom was there That night he said to her, you don't know it yet, but someday you'll be my wife I never heard anythin ’ more romantic in my life.   But then Hitler set the world on fire        and Tony joined the fray      I’m sure he didn't want to go, but it’s the price he had to pay      But Lolly's letters   they followed him      and saved his sanity ...      in the war-torn Hell of France and Germany...     Our Mama loved us,  and she taught us how to pray and we recited          all our prayers  every day When each night she said her Rosary I think I could hear her cry Askin’ Jesus to send some Money from the sky   Lolly taught both of us,     to be the best  that  we were able “Don’t drink with your mouth full and get your elbows off the table” “dedo as unhas”/ don’t bite your fingernails              get those “feripas” off your face “If you’re wearing that thing,       you’re not going  anyplace”   But the best advice was some that my Father gave He said, “That face that’s in your mirror when you shave… ..He’s always lookin back at you    and he’ll be watching ‘til you die. So make sure that you can look him in the eye”. Took me quite a while to get all that through my head between  the two of them  an awful lot was being said But as the years pass I can see now,       their truth was always plain They laid it all out    for me to ascertain   Children grow up    start their lives and move away Leaving parents on their own and turning gray She was 69 when   leukemia,             took our Mom away 26 years gone ..   ’n’ I still miss her every day   Tony left us, 8 months later, now he’s with Lolly all the time No more trying to squeeze a dollar from a lonesome little dime the things those people taught me, will never fade away “Now you’re gettin’ smart”  … that’s what my Dad would say     People say “It was a blessing…  The Lord took him in his sleep”  But me, I think we’ll be awake   when we finally make that leap It’s just something that we tell ourself     to whitewash our own pain   ..Cuz-once-you- cross that line,  you don’t come back again        When someone’s broken, you want to fix ‘em… and when you can’t, it makes you cry and the hardest thing  you’ll ever do is watch  someone you love die. Every day you try to hold on,  and just do the best you can to be there for them if they need to hold your hand               (Coda)  I don’t mean stand there like a rock     and never show your pain Sometimes it’s better to let it go        and make your feelings plain But the main thing is just to be there… so they won’t be alone So they don’t have to take that last step … they shouldn’t have to make their last step … Don’t let them take that last step on their own  

When I was young, I tried to be all things to everyone looking in a mirror … always made me want to run But every year another fear was put to pasture Day by day, I became my Fathers son. I survived the slings and arrows of misfortune Learned to laugh away the pain and have some fun and in time, I came to like what I’d become I remember un-requited love for a girl who didn’t know my name Fear of her rejection made me slink away ashamed. Watching from afar I used to wonder… how to fan her passion into flames then feeling like a fool while others woo’ed her I’d never even tried to stake a claim and I knew I only had myself to blame (CHORUS) As the failures of our youth subside We use the answers they provide to build our armor strong enough to last … Shielding the Future from the past Children grow up slower now than they ever did before They’ve all been so protected they can’t even find the door With that iPhone in their face they’ll never see it they all DEPEND ON Google TO BE smart Lose or win, they always got their trophys, but it’s failure that has wisdom to impart so the real world is sure to break their heart At 60 years of age I see things clearer than before The blunders of my childhood I no longer answer for.. Getting older has its drawbacks and its problems .. and dying’s terrifying that’s for sure But when we know our armor is unbroken being younger loses most of its allure and trouble’s not so hard to endure (CHORUS) As the failures of our youth subside We use the answers they provide to build our armor strong enough to last … Shielding the Future from the past Shielding the Future from the past…