They were my men, they were my friends
We shared breakfast in bunks, demons in trucks
And pictures of our wife and kids
It was a beautiful day, almost didn't feel like hell
We were laughing and cracking jokes
In the trail of smoke before the sky fell
We missed a right turn at the wrong time
We were on Afghan dirt, it was an American mind
The day I laid my gun down
Yeah
Yeah
Picked up the weight of making it out
We were in a bad place then
I'm in a bad place now
Cause they prepared us for war but not for
The day I laid my gun down
Yeah
Yeah
I woke up back home with my mind there
If I move on, forget that they're gone
Tell me how that's fair
They gave me twelve pins in my leg
And a purple heart to wear
And every kind of pill
But they can't kill the nightmare
Even when I'm asleep
Even when I'm asleep
I'm livin' it
Different boots on my feet
Yeah, but I've been fighting since
The day I laid my gun down
Picked up the weight of making it out
We were in a bad place then
I'm still in a bad place now
Cause they prepared us for war but not for
The day I laid my gun down













Cause they prepared us for war but not for
The day I laid my gun down
The day I laid my gun down

Yeah
Tears in my eyes
I was ready to ride that hollow point
Forty-five
When my son walked in
Asked me, Dad, want to play outside
And I said, Dad, I want to play outside
Damn, that's the day I laid my gun down
Oh, and picked up the weight of making it out
We were in a bad place then, but I'm in a safe place now
They prepared us for, but not for
The day I laid my gun down
The day I laid my gun down
The day I laid my gun down