Rosie lies awake in bed
holding a picture of her dad
the very last time she held his hand
was four on Monday morning
there’s a crumpled paper and a ballpoint pen
she wants to say, here lies a man
who found what he was looking for
in the time that he was given

she looks back at what she’s written and shakes her head
what will people think if she reads them what it says?
it says,

my dad would often lose his keys
he was always chasing a different dream
if I’m gonna paint him, I’m gonna paint him true
he had a wandering soul and twinkling eyes
it’s amazing to me that at fifty-five
he was still the little kid I always knew
oh, my dad was someone else
and I wish all of you could’ve known him like I do

Rosie’s phone begins to ring
her stepmom needs some help with things
there’s a thousand photos to sort through
and a tripod up for the taking
so Rosie comes over and finds that pic
from summer '06 as the clouds rolled in
her mom was screaming, her dad was on top of the car
with the lightning blazing

it's the coolest picture her eyes have ever seen
makes her think about the words she’s scared to read
saying,

my dad would often lose his keys
he was always chasing a different dream
if I’m gonna paint him, I’m gonna paint him true
he had a wandering soul and twinkling eyes
it’s amazing to me that at fifty-five
he was still the little kid I always knew
oh, my dad was someone else
and I wish all of you could’ve known him like I do

t minus ten, she finds her seat
dressed in black, everyone she greets
says, Rose, your smile looks so much like his
when he was twenty-four like you

now she steps up there and leans into the mic
she says, my dad was someone else, and let me tell you why

yes, my dad would often lose his keys
he was just so busy teaching me
to keep an open mind and an eye out for the truth
he read me picture books when I was three
and the thought of him gone just wrecks me
because he’s the kindest man I ever knew
oh, my dad was someone else
and I wish all of you could’ve known him like I do

yes, my dad was someone else
and I wish all of you could’ve known him like I do