She Smiles (Callie’s Song)

This was the first song Mickey and I wrote together. It’s a story about my niece Callie. She has Down Syndrome. When I lived in Colorado, my sister and her family used to live about 200 yards away. Callie would want to come see grandma, who lived at my house. From both houses, we could watch her as she made her way across the meadow, past the pond, and down the dirt road all by herself. She is a gift to everyone who meets her and she continually keeps us all from taking ourselves too seriously. “She smiles, and everything is alright.” 

We recorded this at home in a barn we converted into a home studio. We recorded it again at Colorado Sound Studios for the 3rd Time Lucky EP. During the recording Mickey dropped his pick. He kept playing and the end result turned out to be a happy accident. Through the years, I’ve discovered that many times things that happen in the recording studio can’t be duplicated. This was one of those.

Callie grew up with this song. When she graduated from high school, Mickey and I played at her party. When it came time to sing She Smiles, Callie came up and grabbed my microphone. She said, “No Trish, this is my song.” She’s right, it is her song to sing.

Listen to the song here She Smiles (Callie’s Song)

She Smiles (Callie’s Song) Lyrics

She may not seem that special when you see her walk by

But when you meet her she’ll act like she’s known you all her life

She’s not afraid of the future the world is in her hands

And there is love wherever she stands

CHORUS

And she walks, she runs, she laughs, she cries

She’s telling me a story with a gleam in her eyes

Not worried about tomorrow, right now we’re gonna fly

She smiles, and the world is alright

Yeah she smiles and everything is alright

I’m watching out the window, she’s walking down the road

Looking over her shoulder to see if I don’t know

All she sees is her shadow and that suits her just fine

‘Cause the two of them will have a great time

She blows out the candles, another year has gone by

We watch and are amazed how she has touched our lives

All that she says and all the things that she can do

But still her smile makes everything right

Yeah she smiles and the world is alright

©2003 Elk Mountain Music ASCAP Trisha Leone Sandora, Mickey Sandora