Strangers That We Know

The cheerless old man by the window

The wooden brunette on the aisle

The businessman with his briefcase

The mother with a broken smile

I see them every morning

As I go into work again

I recognize every line on their face

Together alone on the train

We wonder what it's like whenever they go home

Are they greeted by a loved one?

Are they sitting all alone?

Do they love my favorites movies?

The museum or a show?

Do they listen to Sinatra?

Or sit worried by the phone?

We see them every day but then we sit there like a stone

With these ordinary strangers that we know.

A new conversation, a wave of the hand

An uncertain smile on the street

We talk on the way of their favorite band

And share coffee that's bitter or sweet

Bitter or sweet, it's the way we can be

When we're right beside John or Jane Doe

But if we'd just put ourselves out there for once

They wouldn't just be strangers that we know

We wonder what it's like whenever they go home

Are they greeted by a loved one?

Are they sitting all alone?

Do they love my favorites movies?

The museum or a show?

Do they jam out to Nirvana?

Or sit scrolling on their phone?

We see them every day but then we sit there like a stone

With these ordinary strangers

We're all in this together

Even though we feel alone

All of us are broken

Sometimes more than people know

Everyone needs someone

With a passion that they share

But no one cares how much you know

Till they know how much you care

So if it's water for the delivery man, on a sweltering hot summers day

Or to help the lady load her bags after shopping for the day

To compliment the girl on her pretty emerald eyes

Or to help somebody's grandfather get his mail inside

There are many little things

That could bring a little pleasure

We might not change the world

But we can always make it better