Theres a big white house on a busy street

On a summers day on 1963

Station wagons parked in the drive

Dents in the fender and wood on the side

Theres kids and dogs and instamatic cubes squinting hard in the sun

Not just yet, but one day too

Theyll be chasing whats already gone

You grow tall and you grow up tough

Trying to never admit not feeling good enough

Until you find your passion and you find your way

Just trying to make it unscathed through every day

And it seems to happen nearly overnight

Life shows you who youve become

And theres no more mystery in the fading light

Youre just chasing whats already gone

Like the line that spells the far horizon

Moving with you as fast as you can run

Half your life you pay it no attention

The rest you cant stop wondering

What you should have done

Instead of chasing whats already gone

Saw my father in a dream last night

He was smiling and saying Youre gonna be all right

And this morning I stared back at myself

Feeling as empty as Ive ever felt

But I keep on going and I hope Ive learned

More of whats right than whats wrong

Its ashes and roses and time thats burned

When youre chasing whats already gone

Ashes and roses and hearts that break

I tried so hard to be strong

But maybe my worries were not my first mistake

Im chasing whats already gone