What The Words Meant

The first time I heard it

Didn't know what it was

I listened to it over and over

I couldn't get enough

I knew every syllable

And the space in between

And I wondered

What my own song would be

I thought I understood what the words meant

I thought I knew the meaning behind

I memorized the sounds and the rhythms

And wondered about the stories inside

I thought I understood what the words meant

I thought that they were written for me

A message spelled out in a language

That only those who've been there

Been there can read

The first time I heard it

Didn't know what it was

It was foreign and angry and brilliant

I couldn't get enough

But the story behind it

You revealed it to me

And I realized

You had lived through what I had never seen

I never understood what the words meant

I never knew the meaning behind

I memorized the sounds and the rhythms

But didn't know the stories inside

I never understood what the words meant

The words were never written for me

A message spelled out in a language

That only those who've been there

Been there can read

I wish I didn't know what the words meant

Or understand the meaning behind

I memorized the sounds and the rhythms

And now I know the stories inside

I wish I didn't know the words meant

That they were never written for me

A message spelled out in a language

That only those who've been there

Been there can read

Been there

Been there can read

Been there

Been there can read