paper heart parade

Lyrics

heard the birds outside my window sing
Like they still believed in everything.
Meanwhile I was staring at the wall,
Trying not to feel at all.
Morning light poured across my room,
But every sunrise feels too soon.
The world wakes up and moves ahead,
While I negotiate with my head.
There’s dishes stacked beside the sink,
Clothes on the floor I’m scared to clean.
Not because it’s hard to do—
Just hard to care enough to move.
And lately every little thing
Feels heavier than it should’ve been.
Even breathing takes a toll
When sadness settles in your bones.
So I walk these streets with headphones on,
Trying to disappear in songs.
People pass me every day
Without a clue I’m fading away.
Pre-Chorus
And I know—
Nobody can hear silent breaking.
I smile small
Cause real emotions scare people lately.
Chorus
So I keep dancing in a paper heart parade,
Waving at the crowd while my colors slowly fade.
Everybody says the music sounds beautiful tonight—
Funny, cause these lyrics came from sleepless nights.
And I sing
Like my chest isn’t collapsing inward.
Move fast
Cause stopping only makes it hurt worse.
If happiness is real,
Then why’s it never stayed?
I’m just another ghost
In a paper heart parade.
Verse 2
I miss who I was at seventeen,
Before life became survival routines.
Before every mirror looked so cold,
Before I got scared of growing old.
Back then the sky looked wider somehow,
Dreams felt close enough to touch.
Now every year slips through my hands
Like water I can’t hold onto much.
Friends don’t call the way they used to.
Conversations feel see-through.
Everyone’s busy saving themselves,
So pain gets hidden on dusty shelves.
And maybe that’s adulthood too—
Learning nobody rescues you.
You just carry your ache around
Without making a single sound.
I bought flowers for my room last week,
Thought maybe beauty helps you breathe.
But even roses eventually die,
Just slower and prettier than I might.
Pre-Chorus
And I know—
People love songs about sadness
Until the singer means it.
Chorus
So I keep dancing in a paper heart parade,
Smiling through the tears I trained myself to hide away.
Everybody thinks I’m doing better these days—
Truth is I just learned how to mask the pain.
And I sing
Like my soul still carries hope somewhere.
Move quick
Cause silence fills me with despair.
If happiness is real,
Then why’d it drift away?
I’m just another ghost
In a paper heart parade.
Bridge
There’s glitter on the kitchen floor
From a party months before.
I never cleaned it up completely—
Guess sadness likes reminders.
Sometimes I sit in the dark at night
Watching cars pass under streetlights.
Thinking about all the people inside them,
Wondering if they hurt like I do.
Or maybe they’re okay.
Maybe some people actually sleep peacefully.
Maybe some hearts don’t constantly ache
From carrying too much memory.
I wouldn’t know.
Cause every song I write sounds tired.
Every dream burns out too fast.
Every version of me I loved
Feels buried in the past.
And it’s exhausting
Missing yourself this much.
Final Chorus
So I keep dancing in a paper heart parade,
Watching all my brightest parts slowly separate.
Everybody singing like this song can save them tonight—
While I’m barely surviving inside.
And I sing
Even when my voice begins shaking.
Stand tall
Even when the loneliness breaks me.
If happiness was real,
Why couldn’t I make it stay?
I’m just another ghost
In a paper heart parade.
Outro
The birds still sing outside my window.
I wish I knew how to join them again.