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Heart Like A Flower Lyrics and Stories about the children and the songs |
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Heart Like A Flower words and music by Edlisha Crayton and Dana Cooper Edlisha was a girl who entered state custody after she had been abandoned by all those she knew and loved. "My heart is like a flower," she wrote in a poem. "Sometimes people step on it and crush the petals". There’s a bird in a cage Singing sweet and sad and brave Set her free, let her fly To her mother, the blue open sky There’s a child in the night Calling out for love and light Lift them up in your arms Keep them safe in this world of harm Chorus My heart’s a frightened flower Beaten down by wind and showers I’m afraid to give my heart away Like a wilted bouquet Like a wilted bouquet There’s a tear in my eye Holding back ashamed and shy A river lost inside of me Longing for the friendly sea Chorus My heart is like a flower Growing wild in sunshine and shower How I want to give my heart away Like a bright red bouquet Like a bright red bouquet Bridge My soul is thirsting My petals bending down A gentle rain soaks the ground Now there’s a bird up in that tree Singing proud her symphony She gives me hope to rise above Soaring high on her song of love Chorus My heart is like a flower Growing strong in sunshine and shower Now I’m gonna to give my heart away Like a bright red bouquet Like a bright red bouquet
~ ~ ~ He Needed Love words and music by Scott Boland Finally, as an adult, and after years of therapy, James was able to confront the neglectful mother who left him at home night after night with an abusive stepfather. He was able to tell her how much "he needed love" when he was a boy and she was unreachable. So we’re face to face again First time in so many years I know that you don’t know me Still lost in your old fears But I remember, I was your only son So young and tender, but you couldn’t hold me Chorus But he needed love, he wanted love, and he needed you Yeah, he wanted love, he needed love, and he wanted you Yeah, he needed love, he wanted love, and he needed you So now you know It was another lifetime ago, we were together And all I wanted was for us to be forever So now you remember, I was the love you needed But you surrendered, I still can’t believe it Chorus ‘Cause he needed love, he wanted love, and he needed you He wanted love, he needed love, and he wanted you Yeah, he needed love, he wanted love, and he needed you Now you know, I guess you know now That I needed you, that I needed you
~ ~ ~ Just Like Her words and music by Denise Reyna, Carol Priour and Tony Young Denise came to Hill Country Youth Ranch at age 12 after several years of being a "street kid". Her mother, a junkie, would leave Denise and her older sister alone, sometimes for long periods of time, to fend for themselves. Denise wrote that her mother was "a child", and that she and her sister "were the broken toys she left behind." Now a young mother herself, Denise has forgiven her own mother. Still she vows that she will raise her daughter differently – that she will never be "Just Like Her". She’ll tell you he’s just like her prince That she dreamed of years ago When he said that he needed her She knew she’d never tell him "no They all say, "She’s just like her mother See the sadness in their eyes" She’ll smile and say "it’s nothing" She’s grown so good at lies
Chorus Just like her to forget his fist And to hear his words instead Like her heart to forget her head Just like her She’s scared and bruised, oh tired but true And she knows his fury is a fire She’ll still always take him back It seems this pain is her desire. Sister has her hair, I’ve got eyes There are some things I just can’t shake But if a monster like that comes for me I pray to God I’ll be awake Chorus Gonna need your help Lord To make me see Gonna need your help I don’t wanna be Just like her Just like her, I love the spring Like her I love the sun I love her too, but I don’t want to be Someone who’ll never see Dear God, don’t let me be Just like her I’ll never be I’ll never be just like her Gonna need your help Lord To make me see Gonna need your help I don’t wanna be Just like her
~ ~ ~ In Front of God and Everybody words and music by Kennard Flores and John Bishop Kennard will never forget the day, when as a young boy in elementary school, his mother willingly gave up custody of him in court . . . "right in front of God and everybody!" There had been years of abuse and neglect. Still, he always wished that she would finally give up the drugs and alcohol and make a home for him and his nine siblings. You told the court Right in front of God and everybody "I will not keep him I can’t take care of him" Just like that, you were gone Mama, don’t you know that God heard that? Don’t you care that God heard that? I believe children are a gift from God He gave you ten kids And you pushed us all aside Just like that, you were gone Just like that, you were gone You sang to me Mama When I was small But you lost your song that day When you chose to go the wrong way You told the court Right in front of God and everybody "I will not keep him I can’t take care of him" And just like that, you were gone |
Dark Horse words and music by Dustin Stewart, Carol Priour, Tony Young and Scott Boland Dustin was only four when his mother, tired of the constant beatings and verbal abuse she and her two sons endured, took her boys and a few belongings and left her angry, alcoholic husband. On Dustin’s fifth birthday, his father arrived at the birthday party with a gun. In a drunken rage he killed Dustin’s mother right in front of him. Dustin lost both parents that day - his father went to prison. After years of foster homes, and struggling with his father’s legacy of violence, Dustin, at 19, robbed a store at gunpoint. In his letters from prison to a friend, he vowed that he would no longer ride his father’s "Dark Horse". Chorus One night, some day, I’ll find a way No more dark horse, no I will not ride Moonlight falls on the floor of my cell I see a ghost in the shadows, it’s hard to tell Is it my old man with a backhand Comin’ down on his child and his wife I’ve been livin’ in another world over the edge Faint memory, looking back at the ledge Where I first slipped, the life was ripped away From the mother that gave me life I’ve been fightin’ with the demons Locked deep inside ‘Cause the old man, see he was born to ride On a dark horse, and of course He passed his hunger on to me Chorus Mama had to run, see she had no choice She cried and screamed till she had no voice So she got away for another day Then he climbed up on his horse He was no cowboy He was just a nowboy lost in his own toys But he stalked us, and he found us And he treated us just like prey Tried to fight it back, tried not to give in But there’s a part of me You see it’s just like him The one that killed her The one that spilled her soul On the day the sun went away Chorus Ashes to ashes, and dust to dust That’s all that’s left of what once was us Of my family, it was a tragedy How can the dark horse look so fine So when we’re born nobody chooses Some get love and some get bruises From the first day to the last day Gotta find a way to stay with love So I got nothin’ but time Just to sit and wonder Why father killed mother While the rollin’ thunder Looked down on us In our thorny crowns And a dark horse ridin’ into town Chorus I gotta find a way to stay with Love ~ ~ ~ I Used to Dream words and music by Carol Priour and Mike Cross No matter how severe the degree of abuse or neglect they have endured, it is the dream of most children living apart from their parents that a parent will someday come and get them. For some, there finally comes a point of accepting that a parent will never be able to love them the way a child deserves to be loved. I used to dream that she’d come back for me In a long white limousine I have a mama that loves me too I tell my friends just like you I used to dream she’d come to take me away And then she’d wipe away my tears And I’d forget about the lonely years But dreams like that they never last Now all I want from her is just a prayer She’d pray the Lord my soul to keep And if she wonders what’s become of me Some night, somewhere While she’s combing her hair I hope she’ll say a prayer for me Just for a moment, if she looks inside She’ll find me waiting for her there Still and quiet, I wish her well I hope for me she’ll say a prayer I used to dream that she’d come back for me In a long white limousine I have a mama that loves me too I tell my friends just like you Now all I want from her is just a prayer She’d pray the Lord my soul to keep And if she wonders what’s become of me Some night, somewhere While she’s combing her hair I hope she’ll say a prayer for me I hope she’ll say a prayer for me ~ ~ ~ Take a Moment words and music by Leroy Boren and Dedra LaBarge Leroy grew up trying to dodge physical and emotional slings from angry alcoholic parents. As a preadolescent boy, Leroy developed a strong Christian faith, and he attributes his survival to that faith. Leroy always prayed that his parents would "Take a Moment" to look at all the beauty that God has created. Did you ever just look around. Take a moment and see. There are clear blue skies, and a whole lot of beauty. Take a moment to hear the sounds of love They are so clear See the trees everywhere, the clear blue sky Did you know they were there? If only once you’d listen And you’d see that God He chose you, He chose me To share in this beauty Take a moment to smile Leave your anger alone for a while Rest your arm and your lips For out of that bottle insanity drips If only once you could see inside my dreams You’d find just one left Is that you’d stop hurting me Take a moment to find The strength and love that God provides I looked to Him and there He came He took me in All my fears began to fade away Take a moment to hear Take a moment to smile Take a moment to find The strength and love that God provides ~ ~ ~ Little Sister’s Lullaby words and music by Bonnie Buckley and Jonah Priour In families with parents who are absent, abusive, or refuse to care for their children, quite often an older child instinctively becomes a substitute parent and takes on the task of comforting and caring for the younger ones. As an adult, this older child must face the pain of a lost childhood. Humhmhmm . . . Hushabye, little sister Do not cry It only makes them mad . . . at us Hushabye, little sister I don’t know why they scream And yell and fuss . . . at us And it’s hard not to be afraid When the darkness seems much too dark And it’s hard to trust the hand that hits Or listen when all they do is shout But when you’re very still God hears your heart He knows your pains and fears He’ll answer before you ask So trust in Him, believe in Him He’s always by your side Even when the darkness comes The sun will rise again . . . |
Current Venues ~ ~ ~ Let the Voices Sing words and music by Sarah Kerwin, David Longoria, Mike Cross, Tony Young, Leo Key, Gary Priour There are voices within each of us waiting to proclaim the enormous power of God’s Love. It is our task to learn how to "Let The Voices Sing". When you listen to the raindrops That fall from the sky Do they remind you Of the tears that you cry? When you’re feeling so lonely And you can’t forget the pain, You’re so afraid And you don’t know why But when you listen to the voice That speaks to your heart The burdens you carry Will be taken away If you listen to the voice That comes from your soul You can overcome any fear Chorus Let the voices sing Let the voices sing Listen to the angels sing His message of love Let the voices sing Let the voices sing What a joy they bring us His message of love Power and money Will do you no good. Would you trade them all away? Trade them all away For salvation Let the light break through the darkness See God’s glory shine Through the leaves And through the branches Feel His love, let His glory shine If you listen to the voice That comes from within Your path will be opened And the light will shine in And if you listen to the voice That guides you each day
He will answer your prayers Chorus
~ ~ ~ I Will Carry On words and music by Kennard Flores and Dedra LaBarge It is an important day when an abandoned child, or even an adult who has been abused as a child, faces the future with hope, the awareness that what happened in childhood was not his or her fault, and the conviction in their heart to say that, somehow, with God’s help, "I Will Carry On". Late at night I look out at the sky The stars around me Shining so clear, they shine so bright I think of you and wonder Do you think of me? I find another place Where my heart flies I can be me Through the years I’ve felt alone and so afraid You left me here A child so sad and full of pain
Chorus But even though you’re gone I will sing my song And like a star I will carry on In this world of mine The song is sweet The words all rhyme There’s kindness all around me I am a star Love makes me shine Through the years I felt alone and so afraid You left me here A child so sad and full of pain Chorus But even though you’re gone I will sing my song And like a star I will carry on
~ ~ ~ Hold On words and music by Leticia Chacon, Floyd Yell, Kristen Kolar, Tony Young and Darcy DeSylvia Life without love Life without love will make you cry Like seeing a dove With no place to fly But a voice in the wind Said hold on, don’t be afraid Hold on, don’t be afraid Don’t be afraid Don’t be afraid Nothing can divide us Death can’t Life can’t Angels won’t Hold on All at once I felt a big hole in my heart The place where your love used to be Please turn around, look into my eyes There is sadness I need you to see Said the voice in the wind Don’t be afraid How long can I smile through millions of tears When all I can see is the past? How long can I hide all of my deepest fears? How long will their hold on me last? Hold on Don’t be afraid
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