Before the First Bell

[Intro — choir] Before the first bell, before the hallway knows our names, we bring the waking day to You. [Verse 1] Blue morning leans on the window glass The kettle keeps time while the streetlights fade I button my coat by the hallway chair Pack bread and an apple, then pause right there Bus brakes whisper at the corner curb A broom draws circles without a word Every small sound in the half-lit blue Turns this ordinary morning to You [Pre-chorus] Before keys turn, before chalk marks the board Before quick feet gather outside every door Set one kind word at the front of the day Make us good listeners in all that we say [Chorus] Before the first bell, before voices rise Give us clear patience and generous eyes We bring You the pencils, the plans, and the noise The worry we hide and the sparks of our joy Before the first bell calls everyone through Let all of our learning make room for what’s true In the hush while the new day is still We offer this morning before the first bell [Verse 2] A cart wheel squeaks down the polished floor One hand props open the heavy blue door Paper is stacked in clean white rows The radiator wakes with a knock down low One face is eager, one guarded and tight One pair of shoulders held worry all night Let every greeting be spacious and kind Let patient attention be easy to find [Bridge — call and response] [Lead] When the sums will not settle [Choir] We will breathe, we will try [Lead] When the hallway grows crowded [Choir] We’ll leave room passing by [Lead] When a sharp word is rising [Choir] We can choose what we say [Lead] When the last bell releases [Choir] May we leave kinder today [Final chorus] Before the first bell, before voices rise Give us clear patience and generous eyes We bring You the questions, the effort, the noise The worry we hide and the sparks of our joy Let all of our learning make room for what’s true We offer this morning, every part, to You [Outro] One breath, one promise, one day. We make room for love before the first bell.