Promise Kept at the County Line

Lyrics

Twenty years ago I swore to a dying friend
I'd carry his guitar back to his mother's land
I got lost in other towns, I got lost in other men
But the promise sat beside me in the passenger seat again

Every mile I put it off
It got heavier to hold

I kept it, I kept it, I drove it all the way
Past the sign that says the county line, in the last light of the day
Some promises take a lifetime, some take a tank of gas
But I kept it, I kept it, and I'm home at last

There's a woman on the porch with her hair gone silver-white
She's got her hand above her eyes against the evening light
I lift the case out slowly like it's made of glass
She says, son, you took your time, and I say yes, ma'am, I know it's passed

But I never let it go
Not through the dark, not through the cold

I kept it, I kept it, I drove it all the way
Past the sign that says the county line, in the last light of the day
Some promises take a lifetime, some take a tank of gas
But I kept it, I kept it, and I'm home at last

She opens up the latch and the strings are still in tune
Or maybe it's the evening, or the whippoorwill, or the moon
She plays one note, just one, and the whole porch holds its breath
And I let twenty years of driving settle into rest

I kept it, I kept it, I drove it all the way
Past the sign that says the county line, in the last light of the day
Some promises take a lifetime, some take a tank of gas
I kept it, I kept it, and I'm home at last

She leaves the porch light burning as I turn the engine on
Home at last