When everyone around him blissfully ignored the lies
Despite the truth flashing like a siren glaring in their eyes
When they told him to keep quiet ‘cause some freedoms aren’t worth the fight
That 11th of December was the very day he died
They refused to wake up and for a moment he wanted back in his bed
They called him “little boy” and dismissively patted him on the head
When they carried on like nothing was wrong his faith in them was crucified
That 11th of December was the very day he died
He decided then and there to take the trophies in his room
And to melt the gold to decorate the effigy in his tomb
To commemorate his escape from their prison of greed
By sitting down and writing his own eulogy
“Here in the place lies what’s left of a man
Who spent forty years toeing a line in the sand
Until one day he finally chose a side
December the 11th was the very day he died
They say he suffocated on a foolish dream
But inside that casket he could finally breathe
Through freedom of death his soul was revived
December the 11th was the day he came alive”
They gathered in black suits to give their grandstanding goodbyes
He watched from above and couldn’t help but to roll his eyes
As they lowered him into the ground the elders all shook their heads
Disappointed he forsook their path and the gold to which it led
And the town gossips all reveled in the tall tales and lies
About the pretty wife and children they thought he left behind
And the apprentices couldn’t see why suddenly changed gears, screaming
“Jesus Christ, could he have not waited four more years?”
Here in the place lies what’s left of a man
Who spent forty years toeing a line in the sand
Until one day he finally chose a side
December the 11th was the very day he died
They say he suffocated on a foolish dream
But inside that casket he could finally breathe
Through the freedom of death his soul was revived
December the 11th was the day he came alive
And he’d like to think if they’d seen tears in his eyes
As reflections of the truth then they’d apologize
For trying to use his youth to cut him down to size
‘Cause the America they live in is an America that’s losing
But now he sees the gift they gave him through their disdain
Forged his determination with red, white, and blue flames
From that day forward he refused the stay in the game
Unless the America he lived in was the America of his choosing
When they went to leave him flowers oh how shocked they were to see
What they thought was resting peacefully was never resting in peace
Now everyone is talking about that man
Who fooled them into thinking he had run out of plans
But then like a phoenix he rose again
December the 11th was the day they thought he died
Decades in darkness, now he clearly sees
Exactly who he was always meant to be
Fighting unapologetically for all that is free
December the 11th was the day he came alive
No longer making excuses for where he went wrong
‘Cause every misguided step led him right to writing this song
Lighting his torch with the voice of a million strong
And burning down every inch of the America that’s losing
Don’t mistake for sadness what you see in his eyes
It’s the enormity of his having realized
He is now where all along he was meant to lie
‘Cause the America he lives in is the America of his choosing
