Small Town Heart
Small Town Heart is an original track
There's a version of me that still smells hay in a summer breeze and knows exactly what that means — land, family, a strong work ethic, honest values, and a way of life that doesn't need explaining to the right people.
Small Town Heart is about growing up on a farm with my twin brother — the kind of childhood that's harder to explain than to remember. It's about the values that get baked into you when you're raised that way: show up, work hard, look out for the people next to you. It's about what happens when that kid grows up, moves to the suburbs, and spends his days in front of a computer screen — and realizes the distance between those two worlds is bigger than any map can show.
The town changed. The work changed. The heart didn't.
Lyrics
"Small Town Heart"
Verse 1:
Grew up in a small town, seven hundred strong
Empty cupboards, broken home, but we carried on
Mom ran the market, Dad ran from his pain
Me and my twin brother learned to break the chain
From skipping school to hunting until dark
Small town boys just trying to make their mark
Chorus:
From that old Ford pickup to this suburban life
From the grain and cattle to a world of bits and bytes
But I carry those lessons deep inside
Small town heart, that's my guide
Verse 2:
Behind the wheel at ten, learning how to be a man
Spinning wrenches, cutting meat, and working with my hands
Learning without class time, getting it done
Every scar and callus was a life lesson, another battle won
That flathead engine and the three on the tree
Taught me more than school about who I'm meant to be
Chorus:
From that old Ford pickup to this suburban life
From the grain and cattle to a world of bits and bytes
But I carry those lessons deep inside
Small town heart, that's my guide
Verse 3:
Met my girl at work, building love on solid ground
Found my way with computers, but I won't forget the sound
Of roosters in the morning, harvest time in fall
Swore I'd be the father that I never had at all
Teaching kids to fish and hunt, passing down what's true
Faith and family first, that's what small towns do
Bridge:
Now the nest is empty, kids have found their way
But there's little Elsie, brightening every day
From always hungry to plenty, from broken to whole
That small town boy still lives inside my soul
Verse 4:
Traffic jams and the rat race, they wear me down
But I found my peace of mind in this suburban town
Working through the night, I believe in working hard
Small town values in my bones, they'll never leave my heart
The boy changes to a man, but you can't take away
The lessons that you learn when raised the small town way
Final Chorus:
From that old Ford pickup to this suburban life
From the grain and cattle to a world of bits and bytes
But I carry those lessons deep inside
Small town heart, that's my guide
Small town heart, that's my guide
