The Other Guy's Story Ain't Yours

(For the practice of empathy and restraint.)

Verse 1:
Every stranger you pass on the street
Carries a war you’ll never meet.
They wear their smiles like patched-up sails,
Drifting through their private gales.

Chorus:
The other guy’s story ain’t yours to tell,
Don’t guess his heaven, don’t name his hell.
If mercy’s a muscle, then use it, friend—
We’re all half-broken, trying to mend.

Verse 2:
The loud may shout to drown their fear,
The quiet hide what none should hear.
If truth be flame, then mind your spark—
Some souls burn easy in the dark.

Chorus (repeat)
The other guy’s story ain’t yours to spin,
You can’t see the storm he’s standing in.
Hold your tongue till the kindness starts—
Wisdom begins where judgment parts.

Bridge:
You can’t fix pain with pointed words,
You can’t find peace in winning.
Empathy’s an art, absurd—
A losing game that keeps on giving.

Final Refrain:
The other guy’s story ain’t yours, my friend,
Walk beside him, not ahead.
If love’s our creed and pride our sin,
Then listen first—begin again.