I met her in a church on a Sunday evening

not late on Saturday night

She sang Ave Maria

a little flat and out of time

but that's what drew me to her

so that's alright

As she placed a nickle in the basket

that I held before her

I asked her to be my wife



And there's one cardboard heart

for every time you said 'I love you'

A painted star for every secret that we shared

A dried lima bean and small plastic birds

because you cared



I hear their talk and I watch them swap

their old black and whites

Bitter and beaten

they talk of life's cheatin'

like old boxers comparing scars



All I remember is a smile at the top of every working morning

and a shoulder always willing and able

and all those nights that we'd spend just sitting

and talking around our kitchen table



And there's one cardboard heart

for every time you said 'I love you'

A painted star for every secret that we shared

A dried lima bean and small plastic birds

because you cared



Five rooms made stronger by the breaking and the healing

of the two hearts they protected within

Now one heart left aching

just piecing and painting

these walls with the memories of all that is real



And there's one cardboard heart

for every time you said 'I love you'

A painted star for every secret that we shared

A dried lima bean and small plastic birds

because you cared



And there's one cardboard heart

for every time you said 'I love you'

A painted star for every secret that we shared

A dried lima bean and small plastic birds

because you cared