Chasing What's Already Gone

There's a big white house on a leafy street On a summer's day of 1963 Station wagons parked in the drive Dents in the fender and wood on the side There's kids and dogs and instamatic cubes squinting hard in the sun Not just yet, but one day too They'll be chasing what's already gone You grow up tall and you grow up tough Trying to never admit not feeling good enough Until you find your passion and you find your way Just trying to make it unscathed through every day And it seems to happen nearly overnight Life shows you who you've become And there's no more mystery in the fading light You're just chasing what's already gone Like the line that spells the far horizon Moving with you as fast as you can run Half your life you pay it no attention The rest you can't stop wondering What you should have done Instead of chasing what's already gone Saw my father in a dream last night He was smiling and saying "You're gonna be all right" And this morning I stared back at myself Feeling as empty as I've ever felt But I keep on going and I hope I've learned More of what's right than what's wrong It's ashes and roses and time that burns When you're chasing what's already gone Ashes and roses and hearts that break I tried so hard to be strong But maybe my worries were not my first mistake I'm chasing what's already gone