He Carried Her Memory

It was all that she left him, the night that she left him
So he clung to her memory with all of his might
He carried it with him everywhere he went
Like a soldier who just couldn't give up the fight

He took it to work, and he brought it back home
He took it so hard, couldn't leave it alone
We all called him crazy in our little town
The way that he carried her memory around

He boxed it up when he sold their old house
It rode right beside him there in the front seat
He littered his new place with those same old heartaches
It felt right at home there with her memory

He took it to church with him three times a week
He took it to bed when he laid down to sleep
The weight of remembering just wore him down
The longer he carried her memory around

When she never came back, he gave up on Jesus
And he never darkened another church door
He took up with whiskey, and he took up with women
'Till one night he just couldn't take anymore

He cried, "God forgive me, but I've lost my will"
As he reached for that cold empty piece of blue steel
Then he put another big hole in his heart
The night that he carried her memory too far