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The Way It Works

by Chris Mullen

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1.
The Dirt Benieth The Mustard Tree Tell me what I've done to come to this I swear that I've seen better days I'm gripping sand between my knuckles as it slips away And blends back into the beach again 'Cause there's a war I fight but I do not claim I fight it's demons on my own And I'm ashamed of the casualties I've left along the way These vicories won't make me strong How many times must I forgive myself the same mistakes Must I do it seven times? 'Cause I heard my own words bouncing back from the mouth of my oldest son I saw my anger in his eyes Oh wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from the body of this death If there's no forgiveness in this life for the things I've done I'll owe my life to pay the debt Somedays I get it right Somedays I feel so strong Somedays I get it right But today... today I got it wrong Today I got it wrong Too many times I've played the role of a clanging cymbal Though I speak with tounges of man But all the words that I can spew with a breath of air Can't substitute for loving hands And there's a vicory, I know, that I am yet to taste I've got some mountains left to move I've been digging around in the dirt benieth the mustard tree Feeling like a fool Somedays I get it right Somedays I feel so strong Somedays I get it right... right But today... today I got it wrong But today... today I got it wrong Today I got it wrong
2.
The Confident Stitch To think out loud is exactly what I need A needle pulling thread through my memories Tie it all together with a confident stitch Take the fabric of these thoughts and make everything fit Like a glove A little peace would be enough Tell me how I got to twenty-eight I got ten years older in a single day And I don't regret a bit of this life we've made That doesn't mean that it's always gonna be the same You'd think by now I'd know how to hold my tongue Instead I'm on the backside of this smoking gun again But life is a mixture of what you do and what's been done And you can't go back so just set your eyes on the rising sun
3.
The Way It Works I woke up this morning and I drove to work And I cursed this life for the way it works Spending all my time working this old job Just to get back to what I love And I made a couple dollars and I paid the bills But it always gets me thinking about the way it feels To see you growing small in my rear view And it doesn't make sense at all Look at your life is it a life to live Or is it work, sleep, and fighting with the kids Sometimes it makes me think that we should grab the boys Leave it all and just skip town If it's the house that holds you back Well then I'll burn it down If it's the dog then I'll drop her outside of town If its the car then tonight I gonna roll it off a cliff If there's a time for peace and a time for war Then there's a time for me to walk out the door Stick my finger out the window as I drive away Straight home to your pretty face Pack up the boys and we'll hit the road We could be to the beach in a day or so When you think about it, it doesn't make much sense But it makes a lot of sense to me I guess that what I'm saying is it's such a crime We spend our lives trying to make a dime In the end we just want more time with the ones we love But we never seem to question we just walk the line In the end maybe it's just a waste of time I don't want to spend my life building walls on sinking sand
4.
That Ain't Love He can hear their voices bouncing down the hallway to his bedroom door And daddy started sleeping on the couch Cut down to size by his mothers eyes the day that she walked out He still keeps her picture on the shelf And that stuff, It ain't love Though they'll tell you that it is It's just little children fighting grown up wars And if you gotta see love to be love It seems like we're on a sinking ship But if there ain't love, then what's worth fighting for She can make excuses for the way he treats her, the way he beats her He's just like her daddy anyway And every guy she's know only proves that love's a fantast Just someone to help you pay the bills But that stuff, It ain't love Though they'll tell you that it is It's just little children fighting grown up wars And if you gotta see love to be love It seems like we're on a sinking ship But if there ain't love, then what's worth fighting for And that stuff, it ain't love No matter what you hear 'Cause there's a wound that I know that love was meant to heal And if you gotta know love to show love It starts with giving everything You gotta lose your life if you ever want to live
5.
Wait And See 03:38
Wait and See She says “Baby it's okay” “You know it's not your fault” She says she's tired of thinking I just watch as her tears fall And part of me feels like there's gotta be an answer If I could just think it through The other part of me is making up excuses So I could look good to you Oh girl, I know that everything will work out for you and me I'm certain, but I can't tell you what the miracle will be I'm working, but everything keeps on slipping away from me But I'm certain that something good is coming, wait and see Keep thinking someday I'll make it Then the money won't be so tough You know it's not that I'm greedy I know we've always had enough I just hate to see you worry about the numbers It gets me thinking I've failed You say you're fine, but I can tell you're lying There's nothing but bills in the mail Oh girl, I know that everything will work out for you and me I'm certain, but I can't tell you what the miracle will be I'm working, but everything keeps on slipping away from me But I'm certain that something good is coming, wait and see Oh girl, I know that everything will work out for you and me I'm certain, but I can't tell you what the miracle will be It's working, this crazy thing we keep calling “you and me” And I'm certain that something good is coming, wait and see
6.
On This Cheap Guitar I'm getting home from a job that pays the bills It ain't much but we're doing fine You are doing dishes in the kitchen sink God, you're beautiful when you smile I pick up the six-string just to let you know I'm happy just to be with you There's laundry on the bed as I'm hooking up the microphone The kids are sleeping in the other room I write you a love song on this cheap guitar I lay the tracks down one by one I know it ain't the lifestyle of a shooting star But we're still young, we're still in love, and we're having fun I'll take you out every chance I get I'll take you in when we can't find a babysitter I'll take you with me everywhere I go To any place, in any kind of weather I'll take the good times and I'll take the bad I'll take your hand for worse or better I'm not much, but I love you and I hope you know I've got no regrets, I'm still in love, and I'm having fun The boys are wild and the neighbors crazy The cars don't run all of the time I know I haven't fixed the leak in the bathroom ceiling At least I'm yours and I know your mine

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released April 13, 2012

All music and lyrics by Chris Mullen.
Photography by Marisa Miller Photography.

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Chris Mullen Montrose, Colorado

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