The Life of a Song

When a song is written, do you think it knows what it will become? Does it know it is so much more then the notes and lyrics on a page, more than the recording? Does it know that it will take on more meaning than perhaps the composers, lyricists and recording artists ever dreamed it would? As odd as it sounds, I think a song knows. A song has a life of it's own, a life that goes far beyond the page it is printed on or the disc it is recorded on, beyond the radio stations that play it and the mp3s of it that millions of people download each day. A song is, to me, much like a person, a character if you will, one that plays an important part in the story of so many lives. Now. I realize that to many people this might all sound a bit crazy, like I am making a song out to be so much more than it is. You might be thinking, "wow this girl is nuts" or a song is just something fun to listen to and sing along with in the car," but I promise you, if you give this theory of mine a chance, you will come to see and truly appreciate all that a song can be.

If you have ever found yourself at a true loss for words, whether it be do describe a situation, what you are feeling, or perhaps even advice you wish you could give, I guarantee that there is a song out there that can say it for you, almost perfectly perhaps, and often times better than you might have been able to say it yourself, had you not been at such a loss to begin with. My mom, and many friends, have told me on numerous occasions that I can find the perfect song for the moment, for anything; I totally take that as a compliment! I think there is so much more to choosing a song for someone, for a certain moment or occasion, than just looking at the title. One should not be limited by the titles, but rather look deeper, into the lyrics of the verses or the bridge. Don't stop at the songs belonging to the one genre you are most comfortable with or happen to like the most; go further and explore other genres and artists. There are so many undiscovered treasures out there, just waiting for the right moment to be found and brought to light, used for the perfect moment, perfect occasion, perfect person.

If you think about it, most of us can think of songs we would consider the "soundtrack" to our lives. These are often songs that make us remember a certain occasion, certain people, a certain snapshot in time. Perhaps they are sweet and lyrical, a love song from a long-ago wonderful relationship, or maybe they are those silly songs you sang with your friends as you drove through town with the windows down one summer, or sang at a karaoke bar in college. When I stop to think about it, I can very easily imagine a soundtrack playing along with the scenes of my everyday life, just like a movie, complete with rises and falls, dramatic, highly intense music for those dramatic, stressful, anxious, angry and crazy moments, and the slower, softer sounds of the peaceful moments, the happy laughter, the days and moments that merrily roll along, coated in sunshine and rainbows, and yes, everything in between. Sometimes, as I go about my day, I can hear the music, ever so quietly, molding itself to my life, to the situations and emotions at hand. Some songs seem to come back, fitting multiple situations and moments or just reappearing when I think back and remember something or someone specific. As one country song says, "the song remembers when." And, I truly believe that....

As for those songs that reoccur, and perhaps some of the ones that just seem to stick with us, no matter how long ago something or someone happened in our lives, I am very aware of these, more so perhaps than I wish I was sometimes. When I am sad, depressed, angry, lost, I lose myself in these songs, both the good and the bad. For some reason those songs are reoccurring characters in the story of my life, not always main ones, but lovable and/or memorable favorites or villains that pop back into the storyline when you least expect it. I would like to think they come back to me as much as I bring them back, will them back with my desire to play them just one more time, yes, just one more time, at least for that hour, just one more time, truly....

Here are a few lines that have come to fit me and my life, becoming an integral part of my soundtrack:

"I'm just a girl," "What do you say to taking chances," It's my life, it's now or never," "Lean on me when you're not strong, I'll be your friend," "Thank you for loving me," "Real life and real love doesn't have have to be perfect," "That's what friends are for," "I want to dance with somebody, with somebody who loves me," It's always better when we're together," Girls just wanna have fun, just wanna," "Giving you my heart's a real fine place to start," "If you're going through hell, keep on going, don't slow down, if you're scared don't show it," "Mess up my bed with me, kick off the covers i'm waiting," "I've done it all and seen it all, but I can't find a feeling like that," "You raise me up to more than I can be," "Here I go restless heart, another lovely misadventure in the dark," "You are the dancing queen," I love you just the way you are," "I've got a good old friend here with me tonight and guess I'm doing alright," "So when they ask how far love goes, when my job's done, you'll be the one who knows," "Love remembers," "I ain't settlin' for just gettin' by, had enough so-so for the rest of my life," "I gotta have roots before branches to know who I am before I know who I wanna be," "I live for little moments like that," "You say it best when you say nothing at all," "I'm a bitch, I'm a lover, I'm a child, I'm a mother, I'm a sinner, I'm a saint," "You find out who your friends are," "Who says you can't go home," "Take my breath away," "You're hot then you're cold, you're yes then you're no," "Remember the face

of the girl who had made you her own, and how you left her alone," "somewhere out there is somebody," "I am"... I cried "I am"... said I, and I am lost and I can't even say why," "You were always on my mind," "Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection, the lovers, the dreamers, and me," "I'm always your last call," "Someday my prince will come," "Your lucky coat, the first day of fall,when you wake up laughin' just because... that's how I feel when I'm with you," "Shut up, just shut up," "Sing it anyway," "I am woman hear me roar," "It's so complicated, I'm so frustrated" "All my friends said I started shootin' doubles when you walked in," "It feels just like it should," "Don't forget to remember me," "I hate that I love you," "Baby slide over, I'm taking that wheel," "Even when I'd forgotten all about us, the song remembers when," "Friends are friends forever," "All of these lines across my face, tell you the story of who I am, so many stories of where I've been and how I got to where I am...."

More and more songs become part of our lives each and every day. We hear new ones on the radio as we drive to and from work; we watch our favorite TV shows and don't even realize how the characters on the show aren't the only ones making their way into our lives, but the songs these shows use have found us, too. Just like people, songs have a story, actually many stories - there are the ones they tell through their lyrics, the ones that are woven in the notes of the melody and harmony, the chords and the rests, and the stories that they become a part of , our human stories, our lives. Perhaps next time you hear one of those songs that takes you back or makes you stop and think and remember, one that awakens your senses and makes you aware for reasons you may or may not know, consider this, that song, just like you, has a story, has a life. What could be better than to try and be more like a song. Crazy? Not at all. Simple? Perhaps. If we try to be more in tune with what is going on around us, try to flow with the ebb and tide of human life and existence, imagine the possibilities. How many lives could we touch? How many moments could we be a part of? How much comfort, joy, laughter, fun, etc, etc, etc could we bring to others? As the song says so beautifully:

A song lives forever and never ever dies
Sings enemies together and touches so many lives
Words and melody will always be long after we're gone...
Oh, how I wish I could live the life of a song

I could mend the broke and wounded, I could prove that love is real
And take someone from China to a Carolina cotton field
I could comfort every soldier, hum all the homeless home
I could change the world if I was just a song

(from The Life of a Song by Joey + Rory)