The Last to Say - ATMOSPHERE

As far back as he cares to remember

He used to see his old man lose the temper

And mama’s pretty face would catch it all

On a regular basis the nest would fall

But he was always safe from dad’s rage

Cause mama sacrificed in his place

Two-dozen years of the blood, sweat, tears

Avoid the mirror, losing her hair from the fear

She never left him, she stayed inside

He beat her ass up until the day that he died

In fact, the biggest beating was the day that he died

Cause now it’s too late for her to make a new life

She gets to mourn for the touch of a punch

Won’t ever admit that she ain’t clutchin it much

Someday she’ll die, it still won’t be done

The anger lives on through their son

Cause he saw, he caught it all

A childhood of watching ma and pa get raw

It’s too bad for him, nah, that’s half the truth

Cause you back with him now and he’s smackin you

What happened to you?

You don’t have a clue

Did your mama used to suffer accidents too?

I never knew that you would stand for abuse

I guess I just assumed that you would pack up and move

Think about when you left him last time

Said out loud that you would never forgive past crimes

Sunglasses, so dark, scarf around the neck to cover the choke marks

And since you gotta justify returnin'

You convinced yourself that he’s just a hurt person

You wanna blame that cross he bears

But his pop’s not there when he tosses you down stairs

Let me be the last to say

Please don’t stay

Let me be the last to say

You won’t be okay

Please put your shoes on and step into that warm weather

Go get yourself a more better forever

Gotta put it down, you gotta leave it

And don’t ever come back again, you gotta mean it

Just tear it all apart and build new

Cause if you don’t kill him, he’s gonna kill you

You can’t hold hands when they make fists

And I ain’t the first to say this

But let me be the last to say

Please don’t stay

Let me be the last to say

You won’t be okay

Let me be the last to say

Please don’t stay