I didn't know how important you were 'til the sorrow
I always believed there'd be another tomorrow

I lost you to something insidious and small
it took you so quickly I wasn't ready to fall

Always before you were there with strong arms
with strength unmatched to keep me from harm

Always before you knew what to say
to keep me from crying at the end of my day

Always before if I needed a shoulder
you were there for me--even when I grew older

Now so many people have to fill your shoes
there's no single person that I could chose

Some are my friends, to one I am wife,
but a girl needs her Daddy all of her life

There's nobody like you, there could never be
someone to fill the gap left in me

There were no strong hands to catch me at all
and when I hit bottom I was hemmed in by walls

The end came when I couldn't be with you to care
It came when you needed me most to be there

I wanted to hold you when they told me the news
I wanted to see you, to be sure it was true

That wasn't to be, I'd never hold you again
And that's when I went just a little insane

It started so slow when you became ill
and the insanity grew beyond bounds of my will

The fear and the loss were bottled inside
No way to vent them, no where to hide

For two years I was lost, crazy and wild
Until I saw my own sorrow in the face of my child

I came so close to destorying it all
Because I couldn't handle how far I had to fall

The love for you Daddy, unconditional, complete
I have to give over to the living, the sweet

I finally learned it's not all about me
or how much I've lost or that people can't see

It's about where I go with the pain I've felt
It's about who I love and how deep and how well

It's about giving myself to those who been there
with me all the way no matter the fear

It's about knowing that the love the support that was you
can be me to them and them too me too

If I share with them, care for them, bring them in
to what's inside me and where my mind's been

You live still in my heart, I dream of you often
I dunno, but I left something of me in that coffin

But what's left is enough, it can stand it can thrive
Dear Daddy, help me keep my sanity alive