Proof of Life | The Boy I Left Behind

When I was growing up, I kept a diary. It was somewhere I could put down all the things I was feeling but couldn't necessarily say out loud, particularly during a difficult period in my parents' marriage. Writing things down was a way of dealing with the anguish and, in some ways, letting it go. When my parents got back together and we left Blayney, I buried my diary in an old coffee tin before we moved. I think, at the time, it was my way of saying goodbye to everything that had happened and believing we were starting a new chapter. I've often wondered what became of that diary. Did the tin rust away? Did the words survive? And what would I think if I could read them now? Would I cringe at the thoughts of a thirteen-year-old boy, or recognise something of myself that I've long since forgotten? Sometimes I wish I could walk down that old driveway, knock on the door and tell the people living there that I left something behind. Proof of Life grew out of those thoughts. It's not so much a song about nostalgia as it is about the person we once were, and the small pieces of ourselves we leave behind. Did anyone else keep a diary when they were young? And do you ever wonder what you'd make of those words today? Lyrics and creative direction by Todd Hahn. Vocals and production created using AI tools. #ProofOfLife #TheThirdVerse #OriginalMusic #Songwriting