The Beatles' "Let It Be" is a song I can turn to when I am faced with difficult situations. It reminds me to step back from the problem at hand and to look at the bigger picture. Paul McCartney wrote this song about seeing his deceased mother (Mary) in times of trouble, who reminds him to "let it be". This serves as an index to me because my dad always tells me to "control what I can control", which I feel is directed toward a similar purpose. I should only act on and worry over problems that I am capable of fixing, and I should leave the unsolvable problems be. The advice from this song and my father reminds me to not be overly stressed over one issue, but to appreciate everything else going well. Eventually, these issues will sort themselves out.
The Temper Trap's "Sweet Disposition" is one of those songs that should only be listened to at a loud volume. This song reminds me to appreciate each moment of life where I act freely and to capture the innocence of youth: a time to act without over thinking. As we grow older, our responsibilities increase with the addition of a spouse, career, and family. This song reminds me to enjoy life while I am young and all the little moments that bring out the most emotion and make me feel the most alive.
Brad Paisley's "Letter To Me" brings me back to my high school days. It would be so ideal if the grown and mature version of myself was able to write to the growing and maturing (and current) version of myself. I connected with this song on a different level because I feel like it describes my high school career in a nutshell. I started getting my act together later in my junior and senior year, but freshman and sophomore year it was hard for me to see past Friday night. I struggled to prioritize and balance these priorities. There are a few teachers that I owe much gratitude to for inspiring me to succeed academically and making me a more curious and inquisitive person. I have lived a lucky life where a bad grade, fight with my parents, or a break-up with a boyfriend were my biggest problems. I have come so far these past few years that it would even be helpful if the 18 year-old me could write a letter of advice to 15 year-old me. It is also funny how easy it was for me to view my parents as the bad guys and how hard it was for me to see how badly they wanted to see me do well in all aspects of my life. The beauty of this song is that you cannot go back in time, but you can reflect on all the experiences that you have lived and learned from. Growing up and making these mistakes has helped me to become the person I am today.
Incubus's "Drive" is a song I have listened to since I was a little girl. I frequently listen to this song before I go to sleep. Being the driver of my own car serves as a metaphor for me being the only one in control of my life. Many people follow the crowd solely for the purpose of potentially being accepted by social groups. People often act a certain way for the wrong reasons. It reminds me not to make decisions out of fear or peer pressure and to take life one day at a time. Life is what I make of it.
Jen,
ReplyDeleteWell as you can see from my own music selection for yesterday's blog, I completely concur with your choice of "Let It Be" for the same reasons you stated above. My parents give me the exact same advice as your dad does. Sometimes, life is good and we feel on top of the world. There is nothing we have to worry about fixing because there is nothing that needs to be fixed. But other times, life can be burdensome and we can stress over every last thing. Eventually, though, you have to step back and realize that there are some things beyond our control. There are just some things that cannot be changed. When we "find [ourselves] in times of trouble," we have to learn to "let it be." Let the world do its thing and we do our's.
I am so happy you chose "Sweet Disposition" because that is one of my absolute favorite songs. It always puts me in a good mood and in a positive frame of mind, and it makes me feel a sense of freedom that few songs do. Many times I find myself not necessarily paying attention to the meanings of the lyrics, but just listening to the beat, the instruments, and the emotion of the singer's voice. To be honest, I have no clue what he is saying sometimes. But this song epitomizes every good feeling in the world for me: youth, love, friendship, accomplishment, freedom. (Also, I have this memory of driving a car-full of my friends to the beach for a spring break road trip. That entire week was cold and blustery, but we had no where else to go. I made a mixtape with this song, and I will never forget how the boys were trying to harmonize and hit those high notes while the rest of us just laughed.)
I like your choice of "Letter to Me." I love the story Brad Paisley tells, plus my name gets thrown into one of those verses so that's pretty cool. (No one ever puts "Bridget" in a song. There is not a whole lot else that rhymes with it besides "midget" it seems, so that might explain it.) It perfectly describes how sometimes it is difficult to take off the blinders shielding us from seeing the bigger picture. It is easy to fixate on all that is going wrong, and if we could only remind our past selves that things will eventually get better, maybe we would not have been so anxious about the problems that seem so small now.
"Drive" is a really good song as well. It reminds us that this is our life to live, and we should be living it the way we want to. We should not be focused on what others are doing or what others are thinking of us. Like you said, we are the ones in control of our lives. I have felt like an oddball pretty much all my life, but I am perfectly fine with it. If people judge me, then there is nothing I can do about it. I have some really good friends now, but they are back at home getting ready for their last year of high school. Everyone in my class knew me for being nice and happy, but after having a fallout with a friend, I had few intimate relationships with kids in my class. I was no longer a part of the group of friends I had. And this was not the first time I was ostracized from a friend group. While that hurt and would sometimes make me reconsider what I was doing, watching how they acted made me realize that I did not want to be like them. I have learned to do what I think is right, even if people do not agree with me. Sometimes it is okay to just be alone.
Wonderful blog, Jen!
-Bridget
Whoops. People told me I wrote to much. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteHey Jen! I really identify with your choice of Let It Be, it is such a good song for that question. I think as we grow up we really have to learn to let things go and be our own person through whatever is happening.
ReplyDeleteHey Jen!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your response to and interpretation of "Let It Be." I think your dad's advice to control what you can control is really great. It's true, though, because so often in life it seems we try to micromanage our lives, but in the end there's really only so much we can do.
When you were talking about "Sweet Disposition," I could really tell that you felt what you said. Youth is something that we'd like to hold onto, but time does keep moving forward. It's nice that you have a good view on enjoying life while you're young.
As for "Letter to Me," I also think that it would be really cool to write a letter to my past self or to have my future self write one to me. That would be very useful for navigating the way through life. I really enjoyed reading your thoughts on this song. Lastly, I think that the message that you got out of "Drive" is a very positive one. Peer pressure can be difficult to stand up against, so I am glad to read that you realize that you need to follow your own path.
Nice writing!
~Abbey