Well, hello, you

Hello to the man I meet at dawn,
Hat in my hand, though the night is gone.
Each day begins with a different name,
A different face in a different frame.

Out in the street, I can laugh, I can shine,
Play the fool or walk the line.
Tie on a smile, wear it neat and thin,
While the real old story stays tucked within.

For under the collar, behind the eyes,
Lives the only one who never lies.
He does not dance for the crowd outside,
He keeps his peace, and he keeps my pride.

I’ve been a stranger at my own door,
A man with plenty, still wanting more.
I’ve raised my glass to the world’s applause,
Then sat alone with my private thoughts.

And when the last band fades away,
And midnight softens into gray,
I look in the mirror, a little worn through,
Tip my hat and say, “Well, hello, you.”

Hello to the dream I could not defend,
Hello to the fool, hello to the friend.
Hello to the heart that still comes through,
After all this running, still beating true.

So here’s to the masks that came and went,
To the nights misspent, to the money spent.
Let them all wander, let them all fall,
The man inside outlives them all.

And if tomorrow asks once more
For another voice, another role, another door,
I’ll wear the part, like all men do,
But save my truest self for you.

If “you” means the man no crowd ever knew,
The one in the silence I still come to.
Then morning can find me the same way it ran,
Saying hello, once again, to the man.



Vintage pop:
https://youtu.be/D3WNtReRKnI