IF YOU REMEMBER ME

[Verse 1 — Tahzeeb]
Tahzeeb, do you remember when our world was just us two?
When every dream I ever dreamed began and ended with you?
I held your hand through changing years, through sunshine and through rain,
And somewhere on that road of love, we learned to live with pain.
You tell me that you love me, and God knows I want to believe,
But there's a difference between the words you say and the love that I receive.
I've cried a thousand silent tears, I've tried a thousand ways,
To find the hearts we used to have in our younger, brighter days.
[Pre-Chorus]
And maybe I was never perfect, maybe I was hard to hold,
Maybe sickness changed the man you knew before we both grew old.
But I never stopped loving you, not for a single day,
And sometimes loving someone means finding a different way.
[Chorus]
If you remember me, remember how I tried,
Remember all the love I held, the tears I kept inside.
Don't remember just the sickness, don't remember just the pain,
Remember I would choose you if I lived this life again.
And if our roads should separate, wherever we may be,
There'll always be a part of you forever here in me.
I may have to let our old dreams go, though it tears my heart in two,
But Tahzeeb, all the years we shared will always matter too.
[Verse 2 — Rania, My Princess]
My little Rania, my princess, you call me your Dada,
And there's no sweeter sound I've heard, no love that takes me farther.
You make your little bracelets for the people that you choose,
And Dada's wrist is waiting still for one that's made by you.
I laugh about those bracelets, though sometimes it makes me sad,
That such a little thing could mean the world to your old dad.
But sweetheart, you don't owe me gifts, you don't owe me a thing,
You gave me something greater just by being my everything.
And years from now, when you're all grown, with a life that's all your own,
I hope you know your Dada's love is something you've always known.
If we ever meet after time has changed the way I look,
I'll still remember every smile, each chapter of your book.
[Chorus — Softly]
If you remember me, remember how I smiled,
Every time you called me Dada, my precious little child.
And whether or not that bracelet comes, my love will never end,
You'll always be my princess, my daughter and my friend.
[Verse 3 — My Eldest Son]
My eldest son, my gentleman, the finest man I know,
I watched you find your strength and watched your kindness grow.
You're walking toward a doctor's life, with healing in your hands,
But long before you wear that coat, you're already a great man.
When my world became so empty, when the people disappeared,
When I could barely find my strength, you were the one still near.
I knew that I could call you, and somehow you'd be there,
And son, I'll never find the words to thank you for that care.
But please don't carry all my pain, you have your dreams to chase,
You don't have to save your father to deserve his warm embrace.
I hope the world is kind to you, the way you've been to me,
And I hope you become the doctor and the man you're meant to be.
[Verse 4 — My Second Son]
My second son, my brilliant boy, with video games to play,
The brightest mind I've ever seen, who'd rather rest all day.
I tease you for your laziness, but there's so much more I see,
A heart that shows up for its friends, a mind that amazes me.
There was a time I needed you and wished that you were near,
And I won't hide that I was hurt, or pretend I shed no tears.
But love is not a scoreboard, and a father doesn't choose,
Which child deserves his tenderness, or whose love he could lose.
I want to see you graduate, I want to see you shine,
To see you wear that doctor's coat would be a dream of mine.
And every time you need me, for something big or small,
I'll do my best to answer, son, whenever you call.
[Bridge — The Truth About Tahzeeb]
Tahzeeb, you were the woman who gave my heart a home,
The deepest love I ever knew since the mother I had known.
You're still the most beautiful woman these tired eyes can see,
And part of me still wonders what you ever saw in me.
I can give you what I've earned, the comfort money brings,
But I cannot buy back health or all the little things.
I see the doctors waiting, I see the years ahead,
And I worry that your dreams will drown in the things I dread.
But maybe I was wrong to think that I must choose for you,
That illness makes me less a man, or makes my love less true.
You deserve a life of laughter, of freedom, joy, and light,
And I deserve some kindness too, even on my hardest nights.
If we cannot find our way back, we can still be honest, kind,
And protect the love our children carry, whatever we leave behind.