I got sent home from school one day with a shiner on my eye Cause fighting was against the rules and it didn't matter why When dad got home I told that story just like I'd rehearsed Then stood there almost trembling and waited for the worst He (I, they) said let me tell you a secret about a father's love A secret that my daddy said was just between us You see daddy's don't just love their children every now and then It's a love without end, amen It's a love without end, amen (Chords same as above) When I became a father in the spring of '81 There was no doubt that stubborn boy was just like my father's son And when I thought my patience had been tested to the end I took my daddy's secret and I passed it on to him Last night I dreamed I died and stood outside those pearly gates When suddenly I realized there must be some mistake If they knew half the things I've done they'll never let me in Then a somewhere from the other side and I heard these words again