Porch Light Still On

Ma, I remember you asleep inside the bus seat on the way home Uniform still smelling like the bleach from the hospital floor You would hum some old Motown while you counted out the change Never let us see you worried, even when the lights went out again I was too young to say it, too proud to say it right But every time I left the house you'd leave that porch light on at night And the porch light still on Even when I'm gone You kept it burning, Mama Like a prayer that don't need a song I know I put you through it, coming home at four a.m. Police at the front door asking questions 'bout my friends You ain't yell, you just looked at me with tears you wouldn't drop Said, baby, I can lose a lot, but you the one I can't lose, so stop Now I'm grown with a daughter and I'm learning what it cost Every sacrifice you made was a bridge you never crossed And the porch light still on Even when I'm gone You kept it burning, Mama Like a prayer that don't need a song So I bought you a house with a garden in the back Roses by the window and a rocking chair to match And you still call me Sunday just to see if I ate Still the strongest woman standing, never once was she late