Songs for Esther

Verse 1

Somebody lit every candle for you paper confetti caught in the light you laughed so hard the bench shook and you made this whole street feel right

Pre-chorus

Hear that bassline creeping in the room is leaning toward you now feel it build to something

Chorus

Esther, get up, this one's for you spin till the whole park cheers nobody lights a room like Esther we've waited on you for years

Verse 2

Wax drips slow across green wood melting soft beneath the flame you never asked for any of this but we came here just for your name

Pre-chorus

Hear that bassline creeping in the room is leaning toward you now feel it build to something

Chorus

Esther, get up, this one's for you spin till the whole park cheers nobody lights a room like Esther we've waited on you for years

Bridge

Every colour on that bench is yours every song tonight is too so dance like nobody's leaving because nobody wants to lose you

Chorus

Esther, get up, this one's for you spin till the whole park cheers nobody lights a room like Esther we've waited on you for years

Outro

The candles gutter, the paper settles but you're still the brightest thing here

Verse 1

Fingers pressed against the window every smudge a little sign you turned boring roads to wonder Esther, that was always your design

Chorus

Esther, light the candles now Esther, let the room shout loud nobody fills a car like you do happy birthday, take your bow

Verse 2

I keep count of all your marks left proof that you were sitting here every print says someone mattered someone made the whole ride clear

Pre-chorus

Another year of you in motion another year we're glad you're near so grab the wheel and let it start

Chorus

Esther, light the candles now Esther, let the room shout loud nobody fills a car like you do happy birthday, take your bow

Bridge

Billboards blur but you don't fade the loudest thing in every frame we're cheering now, so hear it plain

Chorus

Esther, light the candles now Esther, let the room shout loud nobody fills a car like you do happy birthday, take your bow

Outro

Long after we drive home tonight your handprints stay pressed in the light

Verse 1

Streamers hung on crooked goals Grey sky pressing overhead But something in you lifts the field You turn the dullest day to red

Pre-chorus

Mud on our boots, hearts running fast Every year you make it last So bring the noise, the day's not done

Chorus

Esther, Esther, kick it high Nobody shines the way you do Under this grey autumn sky We're all here celebrating you

Verse 2

The banner's torn, it still won't quit Just like the way you hold a room You laugh and every shoulder loosens You chase away the coming gloom

Chorus

Esther, Esther, kick it high Nobody shines the way you do Under this grey autumn sky We're all here celebrating you

Bridge

No trophy needed, no shiny crest You're the reason we're all dressed Standing in this muddy park Glad to know you, bright in the dark

Chorus

Esther, Esther, kick it high Nobody shines the way you do Under this grey autumn sky We're all here celebrating you

Outro

The streamers still hang crooked, true But everything looks better lit by you

Verse 1

Two boots by yours on the sand Both of us caked in the mud Nothing about it was planned Still it runs deep as a flood

Pre-chorus

I keep the plain days too The walk, the cold, the grey Because they all led to

Chorus

Esther, you steady my chest This isn't the loud kind of love Just you, and the ground we've pressed Fits like a hand in a glove

Verse 2

You laughed at the state of your feet Called the whole shoreline a mess I've kept things far less sweet This one I still want to bless

Pre-chorus

I keep the plain days too The walk, the cold, the grey Because they all led to

Chorus

Esther, you steady my chest This isn't the loud kind of love Just you, and the ground we've pressed Fits like a hand in a glove

Bridge

No one needs to see this to know it Not every love has to shout it We left our mark and just walked on That was enough, I don't doubt it

Chorus

Esther, you steady my chest This isn't the loud kind of love Just you, and the ground we've pressed Fits like a hand in a glove

Outro

The tide will take the boot prints But not what walked here with you

Verse 1

The wind pulls hard at the line You laugh and pass me a peg Nothing about this is grand But I feel steadier when you're mine

Pre-chorus

Ordinary days, that's all we get Nothing to prove and nowhere to rush So why does my breath catch

Chorus

Esther, you make the plain days good Some kind of calm I never quite got You steady me more than you know Esther, I'd choose this if I could

Verse 2

The sheets keep pulling at your hands You hold them fast against the gust Small work, done without a fuss I watch you like it's something grand

Bridge

No need for anything louder than this Just you, and the wind, and my hand near yours

Chorus

Esther, you make the plain days good Some kind of calm I never quite got You steady me more than you know Esther, I'd choose this if I could

Outro

The line still holds what the wind can't take And I'm still here, glad for your sake

Verse 1

Rain is drawing on the glass Traffic lights start to pass Colours melt and lose their line Still I know your hand in mine

Chorus

Esther, you're the steady part Every blur still finds your heart Esther, when the world goes soft You're the one thing held aloft

Verse 2

Windscreen fogs, the street goes round Nothing sharp, no city sound Shapes dissolve to gold and red But you're clear inside my head

Pre-chorus

Nothing here is standing still Lights keep bending how they will But my heart don't need the frame

Chorus

Esther, you're the steady part Every blur still finds your heart Esther, when the world goes soft You're the one thing held aloft

Bridge

Let the whole world turn to haze Let the colours lose their ways I don't need the picture clean When you're the one thing I have seen

Chorus

Esther, you're the steady part Every blur still finds your heart Esther, when the world goes soft You're the one thing held aloft

Outro

Rain still runs down the pane Only your name stays the same

Verse 1

Wooden chair, keep on rocking soft and low Cradling all the warmth I want you to know Bare old floorboards humming underneath our feet Holding you close while the whole wide world's asleep

Pre-chorus

Every creak is saying you are safe tonight Darkness holds no worry, only quiet light Close your eyes now, let the hush pull you in tight

Chorus

Esther, Esther, rest your head on me Nothing in this night could ever harm or hinder thee Wrapped in warmth as soft as any song can render Sleep now, Esther, small and safe and tender

Verse 2

Shadows soften into shapes of gentle grey Nothing here to fear when morning's far away Slowly the chair keeps its steady, patient beat Rocking out the day until your dreams feel sweet

Pre-chorus

Every creak is saying you are safe tonight Darkness holds no worry, only quiet light Close your eyes now, let the hush pull you in tight

Chorus

Esther, Esther, rest your head on me Nothing in this night could ever harm or hinder thee Wrapped in warmth as soft as any song can render Sleep now, Esther, small and safe and tender

Bridge

Hush now, nothing stirs beyond this quiet room Only love keeps watch here in the gentle gloom

Chorus

Esther, Esther, rest your head on me Nothing in this night could ever harm or hinder thee Wrapped in warmth as soft as any song can render Sleep now, Esther, small and safe and tender

Outro

Let the old chair rock till every worry's gone Sleep now, Esther, safe and warm till dawn

Verse 1

Big soft snowflakes are landing outside on the glass tonight Quiet as breathing, they gather and settle and stay Nothing can touch you while you are held here so tight You are the warmest and safest thing under this roof, in every way

Pre-chorus

The dark outside the window can never come creeping in here Every hush of falling snow is a promise drawing near So let your eyes grow heavy now, there is nothing at all to fear

Chorus

Esther, Esther, close your eyes and rest here The whole wide night is holding still just for you Nothing in the dark outside can ever be sterner Than the love that's wrapped around you, Esther, through and through

Verse 2

Somewhere past the glass the whole world is turning slow and white Every flake is falling gently with no place to be You don't need to know the shape of the coming light Just sleep, and let tomorrow arrive quietly

Chorus

Esther, Esther, close your eyes and rest here The whole wide night is holding still just for you Nothing in the dark outside can ever be sterner Than the love that's wrapped around you, Esther, through and through

Bridge

Every snowflake finds its way down without a single sound And every breath you take tonight is safe and sure and found

Chorus

Esther, Esther, close your eyes and rest here The whole wide night is holding still just for you Nothing in the dark outside can ever be sterner Than the love that's wrapped around you, Esther, through and through

Outro

The snow keeps falling softly on the window, hushed and slow Sleep now, little Esther, you are held wherever you go

Verse 1

The white curtain lifts on the breath of the hall and settles again like it heard itself fall nothing stirs further, the house holds so still Esther, I'm watching you through it all

Pre-chorus

The dark isn't empty, it's soft as a glove hushing the edges of everything above and under the quiet there's only just love

Chorus

Esther, the night has its arms around you close every door that the daylight came through sleep is a river with nowhere to go Esther, I'll stay till the morning breaks through

Verse 2

The hallway breathes slow with its one paper door a whisper of air on the cool wooden floor nothing can reach you, not shadow, not sound only my voice keeping watch evermore

Chorus

Esther, the night has its arms around you close every door that the daylight came through sleep is a river with nowhere to go Esther, I'll stay till the morning breaks through

Bridge

Rest now, the house has grown gentle and slow every small sound has been told it must go you are the calm that the whole night is for

Chorus

Esther, the night has its arms around you close every door that the daylight came through sleep is a river with nowhere to go Esther, I'll stay till the morning breaks through

Outro

The curtain falls still as the hallway grows dim and I will be here when the morning slips in