Salt and Graphite

[Intro]
[Verse]
The porch swing moans in the breeze
Salt air through the cedar trees
The key turns slow in the lock
Time stops on the kitchen clock
Dust dancing in the hall
Shadows leaning on the wall
[Verse]
I find the doorframe by the stairs
Past the ghosts of empty chairs
Graphite marks against the pine
Every year a jagged line
Dated back to eighty-nine
Dad’s handwriting, neat and fine
[Pre-Chorus]
The floorboards hum a low refrain
Echoes of the coastal rain
I’m standing where I used to be
Looking out across the sea
[Chorus]
He told me stories of the deep
Secrets that the currents keep
Silver scales and tangled twine
His rough hand resting over mine
Quiet words and steady eyes
Beneath those heavy, grey-blue skies
[Post-Chorus]
Just a boy and his old man
Catching what we can
Salt and graphite on the wall
Watching the evening fall
[Verse]
Worn out boots beside the mat
His favorite tattered canvas hat
The scent of tobacco and brine
Lingers like a ghost on the vine
He didn’t say much, just "wait"
Checking the hook and the bait
[Chorus]
He told me stories of the deep
Secrets that the currents keep
Silver scales and tangled twine
His rough hand resting over mine
Quiet words and steady eyes
Beneath those heavy, grey-blue skies
[Bridge]
The tide comes in, the tide goes out
That’s what life is all about
The marks on the wall stay the same
Even when you lose the name
I’m taller now than he ever was
Just because, just because
[Instrumental]
[Chorus]
He told me stories of the deep
Secrets that the currents keep
Silver scales and tangled twine
His rough hand resting over mine
Quiet words and steady eyes
Beneath those heavy, grey-blue skies
[Post-Chorus]
Just a boy and his old man
Catching what we can
Salt and graphite on the wall
Watching the evening fall
[Outro]