Lyrics

She was only three years old the day her sister died
But Janie still remembers how her mother cried and cried
She climbed up in her mother's lap and tried to dry her tears
She said, "Don't cry now Mama, cause Janie still is here."
But nothing Janie ever did and nothing she could say
Ever made up for the loss or took the pain away
She grew up in the shadow of her sister's memory
And always felt like second-best was all that she could be

Janie, look into the mirror
Janie, tell me what you see
Never quite as beautiful, never quite as smart
But can you see the beauty in your heart

Walking home from school alone or in her bed at night
Janie used to dream about a different kind of life
A writer or a scientist, an actress and a star
And Mama would be proud to see her Janie go so far
But hard times came to Janie's house when she turned seventeen
So Janie went and found a job and tucked away her dreams
Nine to five and home again as months and years slipped by
Still she'd lie awake at night and hear her mother cry

And Janie, look into the mirror
Janie, tell me what you see
Fading with the winter light, an echo in the wind
Will you ever let your life begin

Packing up her mother's things the week after she died
Janie found an envelope with a note for her inside
Opening the careful folds and reading through her tears
Janie saw the words she longed to hear for thirty years
"Oh, I hope you know I loved you, even when it didn't show
And the sacrifices that you made, don't think I didn't know
But grief can be an anchor that chains you to the past
Let it go and live your own life, 'cause it all goes by so fast."

So Janie, look beyond your mirror
Janie, there's so much more to see
Open up your dreams again, step out in the light
Find the flame within you burning bright

Oh, I hope you know I loved you