PatrickCarmean.com
Lyrics
He knows that house before the first cup pours
Curled up underneath the kitchen table
One eye open, always willing and able
Knows who drops bacon, who says “not today”
Who leaves half a biscuit when they walk away
Makes his rounds through the apparatus bay
Checks every rig like he owns the place
Knows every locker, every coat on the wall
And which set of footsteps belongs to us all
He knows every voice, every shift, every name
Every diesel rumble, every sound in the bay
He knows every rig, every boot, every name
Every crew that rolls when the station tones ring
When the bay doors rise and the red lights run
He watches his family leave one by one
Then he stays with the house while the whole crew’s gone
Keeping watch till the rigs come home
We go out there when the world needs us
He’s the piece of home that waits for us
He hears those tones before somebody moves
Head comes up and he’s watching the crew
Knows when it’s supper, knows when it’s real
Knows by the room when the call changed the feel
Rigs roll out and the laughter is gone
That big old station gets quiet before long
He takes his place where he can see that drive
Waiting for headlights to bring us back inside
He knows every voice, every shift, every name
And he knows when the house just don’t feel the same
He knows every rig, every boot, every name
Every crew that rolls when the station tones ring
When the bay doors rise and the red lights run
He watches his family leave one by one
Then he stays with the house while the whole crew’s gone
Keeping watch till the rigs come home
We go out there when the world needs us
He’s the piece of home that waits for us
Some nights we’re back before the coffee gets cold
Some nights that road feels a hundred miles long
Some calls wash off, some ride back in
Some leave a little more weight on your skin
But when that diesel turns onto our street
He’s already up and back on his feet
No questions asked about where we’ve been
Just a tail at the door saying, “You’re home again”
He knows every rig, every boot, every name
Every scar on the crew, though he don’t know the pain
When the bay doors rise and the red lights run
He watches his family leave one by one
And he stays with the house till the long run’s done
Till those headlights turn that corner one by one
We go out there when the world needs us
He’s the piece of home that waits for us
Every firehouse has a heart of its own
And he’s always there when the rigs come home