birthdays and christmas

Pillow forts, being kids Spending our allowances Before we knew about the government Cul de sac, skinning knees Feel you looking up to me Makes me wanna wander carefully Half past six, dad coming home Mom cooking to Norah Jones "Don't know why I didn't come," plays low Massachusetts suburbia Things that I'm not telling you, Preserve the image of me that you got Nothing's ever where I left it All my friends parents are selling their houses I used to be there to tuck you in Now I call you on birthdays, See you on Christmas It might be hard to hear from me But sometimes Philadelphia is lonely And I'm no saint but you don't know that yet I don't even want you to know lonely's something you can get I don't want you to know that yet Saxophone, Baseball games Head taller while I'm away Running but you're still running in place My North Star, my cornerstone My own place, my student loans Hearing all your highlights through the phone Nothing's ever where I left it All my friends parents are selling their houses I used to be there to tuck you in Now I call you on birthdays, See you on Christmas It might be hard to hear from me But sometimes Philadelphia is lonely And I'm no saint but you don't know that yet I don't even want you to know lonely's something you can get I don't want you to know that yet Know I don't call as much as I should, much as I should Mom said to just do what I could, do what I could Something about your voice sounding far away Know the sound of yours will make mine make break, make mine break Look you in the face and I see parts of mine It must be in our blood to never fight, just fly Teach you to be nothing like the boys that make me cry And when I cry you ask me why I don't want you to know that yet