Choice number two for this week’s Song Lyric theme of Gratitude from Helen Espinosa has to be…
Thank U
by Alanis Morissette
Lyrics by Google Play
How ’bout getting off these antibiotics
How ’bout stopping eating when I’m full up
How ’bout them transparent dangling carrots
How ’bout that ever elusive kudo
Thank you India
Thank you terror
Thank you disillusionment
Thank you frailty
Thank you consequence
Thank you thank you silence
How ’bout me not blaming you for everything
How ’bout me enjoying the moment for once
How ’bout how good it feels to finally forgive you
How ’bout grieving it all one at a time
Thank you India
Thank you terror
Thank you disillusionment
Thank you frailty
Thank you consequence
Thank you thank you silence
The moment I let go of it was the moment
I got more than I could handle
The moment I jumped off of it
Was the moment I touched down
How ’bout no longer being masochistic
How ’bout remembering your divinity
How ’bout unabashedly bawling your eyes out How ’bout not equating death with stopping
Thank you India
Thank you providence
Thank you disillusionment
Thank you nothingness
Thank you clarity
Thank you thank you silence
Well, I think this is a great theme for this Thanksgiving week (and not at all “cheesy” Helen)!
I knew my song immediately…well, my first song anyway.
You know when that question shows up “If you could have ONE album to play while stranded on a desert island, which one would it be?” This comes from my choice. Don Henley’s Inside Job. His opus. His Therapy album. His masterpiece.
This song gave me great comfort when a 25 year long business (and friendship) partnership ended. I had to fight hard to not focus just on the loss, and move into gratitude.
I hope the video works. It is the only one I could find of Don Henley actually singing
A lot of things have happened
Since the last time we spoke
Some of them are funny
Some of ’em ain’t no joke
And I trust you will forgive me
If I lay it on the line
I always thought you were a friend of mine
Sometimes I think about you
I wonder how you’re doing now
And what you’re going through
The last time I saw you
We were playing with fire
We were loaded with passion
And a burning desire
For every breath, for every day of living
And this is my Thanksgiving
Now the trouble with you and me, my friend
Is the trouble with this nation
Too many blessings, too little appreciation
And I know that kind of notion¡ªwell, it just ain’t cool
So send me back to Sunday school
Because I’m tired of waiting for reason to arrive
It’s too long we’ve been living
These unexamined lives
I’ve got great expectations
I’ve got family and friends
I’ve got satisfying work
I’ve got a back that bends
For every breath, for every day of living
This is my Thanksgiving
Have you noticed that an angry man
Can only get so far
Until he reconciles the way he thinks things ought to be
With the way things are
Here in this fragmented world, I still believe
In learning how to give love, and how to receive it
And I would not be among those who abuse this privilege Sometimes you get the best light from a burning bridge
And I don’t mind saying that I still love it all
I wallowed in the springtime
Now I’m welcoming the fall
For every moment of joy
Every hour of fear
For every winding road that brought me here
For every breath, for every day of living
This is my Thanksgiving
For everyone who helped me start
And for everything that broke my heart
For every breath, for every day of living
This is my Thanksgiving
I woke up Wednesday morning last week (11/9/16) wondering how in the world I was going to stay on my current path. How could I continue to answer my calling of the last 15 years? I’m on a personal mission to support pluralism, and fight absolutism. This came to me as the harsh lesson from 9/11.
I woke up Wednesday stuck in my absolute certainty that our new president-elect was absolutely the worst possible thing that could have happened to our country and to me!
I went back to my mantra…Ah, the magic of a Chosen Perspective, and remembered that somehow, somewhere I should be able to look at the whole thing from a different perspective…but other than reading a few hopeful posts, I remained completely disheartened.
I am nothing if not determined so I decided to search further for inspiration in making a shift. The politics of it all are lost on me so there was no help there. Next, I decided if this many people, that I share a country with, actually believe enough in Mr. Trump to have voted him into office, I’d better take a closer look at him…apart from the Reality TV version or the angry man debating Mrs. Clinton and I’d better look at those voters from a different perspective.
I watched the interview of Trump on 60 Minutes Sunday night to see what I could learn. I figured he’d be on his best behavior…and I think he actually was, but I still didn’t like him so I was surprised to feel a slight glimmer of something. Not exactly approval or even acceptance. My insides were still planning my version of a revolution. But I did see what I thought might be respect…not me for him but from him…Maybe even reverence or a kind of awe. I think actually winning may have actually touched him.
That tiny flicker, possibly just a spark of awareness in him gave me a comparable sliver of hope.
I went to sleep Sunday night thinking about two old sayings. One is “a rolling stone gathers no moss” and for me, the whole idea of Trump as my president still seemed pretty mossy so hmm, what other country could I move to??
But then I thought of my Dad. He had the most amazing trait of being able to be content anytime, any place. His favorite saying was “Bloom where you’re planted.”
Bloom with Trump??? Oh Dad, I wish you were still here to tell me how in the world to do that.
Now, here’s the woo-woo part. Guess what I dreamed Sunday night? A scene from the deliciously idealistic TV series, West Wing.
Here’s a brief context: A classically Southern Republican lawyer (stereotypical, but for her gender), much to her chagrin, gets “called” to join the White House staff. Here’s what TV Guide says about her character.
The West Wing gets a right winger as young Republican lawyer Ainsley Hayes (Emily Procter) signs on as Associate White House Counsel. She’s offered the job at the insistence of the President…
In this scene she is having a small re-union lunch with her former, fellow right-wing lawyers. She’s been at the Whitehouse for long enough now to begin seeing who these “radical Jed Bartlet liberals” really are. (Script below in case the video doesn’t work.)
Leave it to my smart-ass dreams to make me get the lesson by slapping me into the shoes of a passionate Republican, with whom I simply cannot argue.
Ah, the Magic……………..
Oh, damn. I wanted you to say it to his face. I wanted to see… Harriet: I hate these people. Bruce: Did you meet anyone there who isn’t worthless? Ainsley Hayes: Don’t say that. Bruce: Did you meet anyone there who has any – ? Ainsley Hayes: I said don’t say that. Say they’re smug and superior. Say their approach to public policy makes you want to tear your hair out. Say they like high taxes and spending your money. Say they want to take your guns and open your borders, but don’t call them worthless. At least don’t do it in front of me. The people that I have met have been extraordinarily qualified, their intent is good. Their commitment is true, they are righteous, and they are patriots. And I’m their lawyer.
I grew up in San Diego. My bones, my very cells are trained to live in a perfect climate, with very little temperature change, and where seasons are nearly undetectable.
I have lived in Washington state for more than 40 years now and as much as I adore the natural beauty of the Northwest in all its weather phases, I still grieve, deeply, as we move into Winter. I know there is beauty and purpose in the dark months, but I will never like the cold.
Is there anything more pitiful than the very last one of the year!!
These were all taken in the last week or so…depressing to see all the final blossoms on each plant…
But here are the ones that really get to me.
sigh………….the very last apples on 30 trees! I can feel the S.A.D. creeping in…
Oh wait. This morning I spotted THIS!!
You gotta love an undefeatable Primrose!!!
OK, tomorrow, something more uplifting, I promise!
Obscure background music provided for your pleasure while viewing photographic examples of TINY!
Ask yourself, while viewing, TINY? Compared to what?
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This small exercise in the magical practice of deciding how to see something is provided by ChosenPerspectives…
Lyrics for Compared to What!
Les McCann and Eddie Harris 1969
I love to lie and lie to love
I’m hangin’ on they push and shove
Possession is the motivation
That is hangin’ up the goddamn nation
Looks like we always end up in a rut
Everybody now
Tryin’ to make it real compared to what
Slaughterhouse is killin’ hogs
Twisted children killin’ frogs
Poor dumb rednecks rollin’ logs
Tired old ladies kissin’ dogs
I hate the human love of that stinking mutt
I can’t use it
Tryin’ to make it real compared to what
President he’s got his war
Folks don’t know just what it’s for
Nobody gives us rhyme or reason
Have one doubt they call it treason
We’re chicken feathers
All without one nut goddamn it
Tryin’ to make it real compared to what
Church on Sunday sleep and nod
Tryin’ to duck the wrath of God
Preachers fillin’ us with fright
They all tryin’ to teach us what they think is right
They really got to be some kind of nut
I can’t use it
Tryin’ to make it real compared to what
Where’s that bee and where’s that honey
Where’s my God and where’s my money
Unreal values a crass distortion
Unwed mothers need abortion
Kind of brings to mind old young King Tut
He did it now
Tried to make it real compared to what
When Helen posted this theme I immediately thought of the same song Karuna chose. I LOVE that song. Sly And the Family Stone captured what a whole generation was pleading for the world to get through music!
But my very next choice came quickly to mind. I LOVE this song and it is an anthem in my life, and one I play for others often. Juliet has a lovely voice and this song addresses the theme this week perfectly!
Help Me Understand by Juliet Wyers. (Worth googling for more of her.)
(Lyrics unavailable but mostly understandable if you really listen)
PS We might really need this song after tomorrow….
…is “to change in appearance or form, especially strangely or grotesquely; transform.”
And one of our instructions this week for the WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge is to”create a gallery, with a series of photos showing a metamorphosis in progress.”
Well, I haven’t shared my beautiful (or maybe grotesque…eye of the beholder and all) BUGS for a while. You can read about them here:
But for today’s topic, here is a slideshow showing their transformation. (By the way, the featured image at the top of the page is of a pile of eggs. They are not normally on my carpet but this photo is of the remains of the one and only unsupervised encounter between my bugs and my cats. Even though it is Halloween I won’t torture you with details of how those eggs got from the laden belly of the mature female bug onto the rug…oh wait, maybe I just did!)
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Here’s another photo to show the range of growth I get to witness.
And here is a reaction of some family members to one of the less pleasant consequences of having Giant Spiny Australian Leaf Bugs around.
Tiny poops but they are very dry and have no smell…
These creatures MOLT three times during their lives. It took me many years to actually witness the process and it is amazing! What they leave behind after the second and third molting is the opposite of transmogrifying. (You don’t want to know about the first molting. Oh wait. I keep forgetting it’s Halloween! They EAT IT!!!)
The molted skins are PERFECT in every detail, right down to the tiny claws, spikes and antennae!
an empty skin
I guess you could say my experience of having these bugs as members of our pet family has Transmogrified ME! I have gone from that stereotypical image of squealing in terror while running for the nearest table to climb on over a tiny house spider or a beetle …to writing this post.
This week’s challenge– our theme for Song Lyric Sunday is to post a song that helps pull you out of a dark place.
I too am completely affected by music. I believe in its power. I assign music to my clients all the time. I use it myself to calm down, to wake up, to get moving, to release, to exercise, to entertain myself, to love more deeply, to remember my own power, and on and on!
WAY too many songs came to mind when I read this week’s theme but the one that I woke up this morning is below. I had heard this song for a long time without listening to the lyrics and found it just so-so. Then a couple of years ago I had the privilege of attending an “adopted” nephew’s amazing graduation ceremony…and the whole class sang this song!! How perfect for their launch into adulthood.
I have since adopted it as my anthem, a reminder of the blank page of every single day of my life! (It helps me get unblocked when trying to WRITE also!!)
A great one to sing loudly, standing up while looking in a mirror! Hoaky I know, but try it!
It will be hard to remain in the dark if you do!
Lyrics (I LOVE that SEVEN people collaborated to write this song!!)
I am unwritten
Can’t read my mind
I’m undefined
I’m just beginning
The pen’s in my hand
Ending unplanned
Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find
Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten
Oh, oh, oh
I break tradition
Sometimes my tries are outside the lines
We’ve been conditioned to not make mistakes
But I can’t live that way
Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find
Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten
Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find
Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten
The rest is still unwritten
The rest is still unwritten
Our challenge this week from the wonderful (and generous with her time) Helen is:
” to post a song you fell in love with that you didn’t expect to like. Maybe it’s a type of music you used to turn your nose up at, or maybe it’s a band or singer you prejudged without listening to them first (I’m so guilty of this). I can’t possibly be the only one…”
I think I already did this by confessing the story of my instant dislike of the Goo Goo Dolls just because of their name (and album cover picture). Read more about that one here:
But here’s the song I immediately thought of today. I couldn’t tell you if this song is Rap or Hiphop or whatever but the first time I heard it, I burst into tears. It is the song that made me realize there are whole generations out there, AFTER THE SIXTIES, who still use their music to “protest” and “proclaim” their beliefs. We can’t ignore our children and grandchildren, and even our great grandchildren. They are speaking to us through their music! No matter how much we may not like the forms they are choosing, we still need to listen to them!
My choice is What It’s Like by Everlast the video is blurry but it has some pretty haunting and effective pictures. (WARNING: the lyrics are ALL HERE! This is NOT the blanked out, censored version they play on the radio!)
Lyrics
we’ve all seen a man at the liquor store beggin’ for your change
The hair on his face is dirty, dread-locked and full of mange
He asks a man for what he could spare with shame in his eyes
“Get a job, you fucking slob, ” is all he replies
God forbid you ever had to walk a mile in his shoes
‘Cause then you really might know what it’s like to sing the blues
Then you really might know what it’s like
Then you really might know what it’s like
Then you really might know what it’s like
Then you really might know what it’s like
Mary got pregnant from a kid named Tom that said he was in love
He said, “Don’t worry about a thing, baby doll, I’m the man you’ve been dreaming of.”
But three months later he say he won’t date her or return her call
And she swear, “Goddamn, if I find that man I’m cuttin’ off his balls.”
And then she heads for the clinic and she gets some static walking through the door
They call her a killer and they call her a sinner and they call her a whore
But God forbid you ever had to walk a mile in her shoes
‘Cause then you really might know what it’s like to have to choose
Then you really might know what it’s like
Then you really might know what it’s like
Then you really might know what it’s like
Then you really might know what it’s like
I’ve seen a rich man beg, I’ve seen a good man sin, I’ve seen a tough man cry
I’ve seen a loser win and a sad man grin, I heard an honest man lie
I’ve seen the good side of bad and the downside of up and everything between
I licked the silver spoon, drank from the golden cup, smoked the finest green
I stroked the fattest dimes at least a couple of times before I broke they heart
You know where it ends, yo, it usually depends on where you start
I knew this kid named Max, he used to get fat stacks out on the corner with drugs
He liked to hang out late, he liked to get shit-faced and keep the pace with thugs
Till late one night there was a big gun fight and Max lost his head
He pulled out his chrome .45, talked some shit and wound up dead
Now his wife and his kids are caught in the midst of all of this pain
You know it crumbles that way, at least that’s what they say when you play the game
God forbid you ever had to wake up to hear the news
‘Cause then you really might know what it’s like to have to lose
Then you really might know what it’s like
Then you really might know what it’s like
Then you really might know what it’s like to have to lose
One thing that stood out is “The song was also unexpectedly and surprisingly a hit to adult contemporary stations since most rap songs or songs with rap verses cannot be played on the format.”
an empty skin