'Just' implies it's little
'Just' implies it's small
'Just' suggests it's really
Nothing very much at all
Just a joke, just one bad day
And just a drop of rain
"It's just a cut, a tiny scratch
So why are you in pain?"
"It's just a little game"
And "can you talk for just a minute?"
But 'just' can be the thing
That pushes something to its limit
'Cause drops of rain are more than 'just'
When there are millions more
When every drop keeps inching water
Closer to your door
A cut is always more than 'just'
When you're already bleeding;
When every scratch reminds you
That you're further now from healing
A minute's never just a minute
When you're running late
And when expecting news
But all that you can do is wait
It's not just one bad day
When it has been a month or two
And it's not just a joke
When you find out the joke's on you
'Cause 'just' sounds oh-so-little
So it often serves to shrink,
To lessen what we feel,
What we experience and think
But if we're not familiar
With another person's feelings;
If we can't say for sure
If they are hurting or they're healing
If we don't know the nature
Of the things that have drawn blood
If we assume they're swimming
Whilst they're drowning in the flood
If we do not know how much time
Somebody else has got
Or how deep all their wounds might run
From all the things they've lost
It might be wise to listen
Whilst they're crying through the rain
And not dismiss their bleeding
When they're talking through their pain
And it might be wise to recognise
That 'just' for us is small
Whilst it might be 'just' the thing
That pushes them so far,
they fall
*****
Becky Hemsley 2025
