Bye Mom – English Lyrics

• By: Chris Janson

Lyrics & Translation

Delve into Chris Janson's 'Bye Mom,' a poignant country ballad that beautifully captures the universal journey of a child's relationship with their mother. Through its heartfelt lyrics and tender melody, you can explore expressions of familial love, loss, and the bittersweet passage of time, offering a rich vocabulary for emotions and life stages in English.

[English]

Bye mom

That's what I said at five years old

The first day of school

Already then I thought I was way too cool

I thought I had it figured out

And I didn't know a thing

Bye mom

Don't worry 'bout me, I'll see you at

Three at the bus stop

And I know that you'll be right there to pick me up

In the old truck

I know that's just the way it is

When you think you grown but you're still a kid

And you don't know you're somebody

That somebody loves more than themselves

And there's a beauty in the innocence

Of not knowing that the time they've spent

Is more than one could ask for

And that's a special kind of love

And it's only there for a lifetime, then it's gone

And it's bye mom

You can drop me off down the block

Around the corner square

Oh, my bud is waiting for me just over there

I'll see you later on

Bye mom

It's a cap and a gown in a brand new town

Eight hours away

Don't cry, I'll be okay

I know that's just the way it is

When you think you grown but you're still a kid

And you don't know you're somebody

That somebody loves more than themselves

And there's a beauty in the innocence

Of not knowing that the time they've spent

Is more than one could ask for

And that's a special kind of love

And it's only there for a lifetime, then it's gone

And it's bye mom

...

And bye mom, I sang a million

Mornings at the Brine Street baptist church

And bye mom, I waited hours and hours

'Til she got off of work

And bye mom, I stood and cried and

Laid a rose onto her grave

And bye mom, were the last words

That I spoke before we sang Amazing Grace

I know that's just the way it is

When you're all grown up but you're still a kid

And you realize you're somebody

That somebody loves more than themselves

And there's a beauty in the innocence

Of not knowing that the time they've spent

Is more than one could ask for

And that's a special kind of love

And it's only there for a lifetime, then it's gone

It's only there for a lifetime, then it's gone

And it's bye mom

Yeah, bye mom

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
mom /mɒm/ A1	noun - mother
school /skuːl/ A1	noun - an institution for educating children
bus /bʌs/ A1	noun - a large motor vehicle carrying passengers
truck /trʌk/ A1	noun - a large, heavy motor vehicle used for transporting goods
kid /kɪd/ A2	noun - a child or young person
love /lʌv/ A1	noun - an intense feeling of affection verb - to feel deep affection for someone
time /taɪm/ A1	noun - the indefinite continued progress of existence and events in the past, present, and future regarded as a whole
block /blɒk/ A2	noun - a large solid piece of material
town /taʊn/ A1	noun - an urban area that has a name, defined boundaries, and local government, and that is generally larger than a village and smaller than a city
cry /kraɪ/ A2	verb - shed tears
work /wɜːrk/ A1	noun - activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a purpose or result verb - be engaged in physical or mental activity in order to achieve a purpose or result
grave /ɡreɪv/ B1	noun - a hole dug in the ground to receive a coffin or corpse
rose /roʊz/ A2	noun - a flower with a thorny stem
beauty /ˈbjuːti/ B1	noun - a combination of qualities, such as shape, colour, or form, that pleases the aesthetic senses, especially the sight
innocence /ˈɪnəsəns/ B2	noun - the state of being innocent of crime or wrongdoing

Key Grammar Structures

• Bye mom

  ➔ Imperative form

  ➔ The phrase "Bye mom" is an example of the imperative form, used to give a command or instruction.

• I thought I had it figured out

  ➔ Past perfect tense

  ➔ The phrase "I thought I had it figured out" uses the past perfect tense to indicate an action completed before another past action.

• I know that's just the way it is

  ➔ Present simple tense

  ➔ The phrase "I know that's just the way it is" uses the present simple tense to express a general truth or fact.

• That somebody loves more than themselves

  ➔ Comparative structure

  ➔ The phrase "loves more than themselves" uses a comparative structure to show the relationship between love and self.

• It's only there for a lifetime, then it's gone

  ➔ Future simple tense

  ➔ The phrase "it's only there for a lifetime" uses the future simple tense to indicate a temporary state.

• I stood and cried and laid a rose onto her grave

  ➔ Past simple tense

  ➔ The phrase "I stood and cried and laid a rose onto her grave" uses the past simple tense to describe completed actions in the past.