They seemed so triumphant at the time, the lyrics to country music star Mindy McCready's hope-filled title track to her most recent album, "I'm Still Here."
"On a cold dark cloud, with nowhere to fall but down, like a single, naked, unrelenting tear ... I'm still here."
Now, those words sound like a cry for help.
On Sunday afternoon, McCready, whose turbulent personal life overshadowed her music, was found dead on the front porch of her Arkansas home, the victim, authorities said, of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
She was 37.
McCready also appears to have shot and killed a dog that belonged to her late boyfriend, record producer David Wilson, before shooting herself, Cleburne County Sheriff Marty Moss said Monday.
Moss added that it appeared McCready was home alone.
McCready leaves behind two sons, 6-year-old Zander and 10-month-old Zayne.
"Zayne and Zander are loved, cared for and comfortable with foster families at this time," her representative told CNN in a statement.
The boys are in foster homes, the representative told CNN.
Just a month earlier, police had paid another visit to the house in Heber Springs.
On that day, they found Wilson, the infant's father, dead on the porch.
It has been reported that he also committed suicide by shooting himself, but Arkansas authorities say it's still an open investigation.
"We're currently still gathering information in regards to Mr. Wilson's case and Ms. McCready's case," Moss said. "When we're able to lay all that out there, we will do so at that time."
Just a few weeks ago, a sobbing McCready appeared on NBC's "Today" show and denied she had anything to do with Wilson's death.
"Oh, my God, no. Oh, my God, no," she said. "He was my life. We were each other's life."
After Wilson's death, McCready took a turn for the worse. Her father pushed for her to be committed to a mental institution.
The father of her oldest son, Billy McKnight, tried to regain custody of Zander.
Court papers say "McKnight is concerned about McCready's psychological state" and "has grave concerns for the welfare and safety" of Zander.
Spiraling downward
Born Malinda McCready, she burst onto the music scene in 1996 with her debut album, "Ten Thousand Angels."
It sold more than 2 million copies. Her chart-topping hit "Guys Do It All The Time" followed that same year.
In all, she put 14 songs and six of her albums on the Billboard country charts.
But through it all, she was spiraling downward; the final fall was painful and precipitous.
She struggled, often publicly, with addiction and mental illness.
In 2004, McCready was placed on three years' probation after she pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining the painkiller OxyContin at a pharmacy.
The next year, she was arrested in Nashville for drunken driving, and was allegedly beaten and choked by ex-boyfriend Billy McKnight, who was charged with attempted murder.
"Yes, things have been going bad," she told CNN in 2005. "I think it's God's way of getting my attention, saying, 'You better wake up, girl. I have important stuff for you to do in life,' and I've definitely been preoccupied or sidetracked doing the wrong things."
Before 2005 ended, McCready had suffered two drug overdoses, was arrested on drug charges, was pregnant with McKnight's child and, authorities say, attempted suicide.
She attempted suicide again in 2008, authorities say, and overdosed again on drugs in 2010 before joining the cast of VH1's "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew." The reality show chronicles the lives of celebrities as they're treated for alcohol and drug addiction.
Celebrity rehab
Dr. Drew Pinsky said he contacted McCready last month after her boyfriend's death.
"When I heard she was struggling, I did reach out to her and urged her to go to take care of herself, get in a facility if she felt she needed," said Pinsky, who hosts a program on CNN's sister network HLN.
"Her biggest fear was the stigma of doing so and what people would think if she, God forbid, took care of herself. And this to me is the most distressing part of this story. She is a lovely woman, we have lost her, and it didn't have to go down like this."
On one episode of the show, McCready performed "I'm Still Here," dedicating it to the other cast members, who included Dennis Rodman, Heidi Fleiss and Mackenzie Phillips.
"When I was writing this song, I was in jail," the singer said tearfully. "I never knew it, but I was writing for all of you."
Custody battle
In recent years, McCready had waged a public battle for custody of her elder son, Zander, whose father is McKnight.
In 2011, she took the boy from her mother, who had legal custody, and fled with him to her home in Arkansas, saying she had concerns over his safety.
A judge ordered authorities to pick up the boy and, days later, authorities found the boy and McCready in a closet at her home.
