All We Ever Knew

Listen while you read:  https://youtu.be/S5cgWCoMSyc

When I wake up in the morning, I see nothing
For miles and miles and miles
When I sleep in the evening, oh lord, there she goes
Only in dreams, she's only in dreams
Well, well, my love, we've been here before
Don't drag me through this again
We tried everything under the sun

Now I'm trying to wake up from this
I'm trying to make up for it
All we ever do is all we ever knew

You don't see why your world has no love to give
Well, what goes around comes around
I know sometimes you get so caught in a dream
But now it's time to wake up from this
It's time to make up for it

I'm feelin' low, I'm feelin' high, feelin' down
Why isn't this enough?

All we ever do is all we ever knew
All we ever do

~ Jonathan Russell (The Head and the Heart)

So the song is in my head when I wake up, then I hear it on my radio, and then, when I start to research it, I find that just the night before, The Head and the Heart performed it on The Late Late Show! So that's the version you are hearing if you click on the link above. The song has been out for almost a year, part of the 2016 release, Signs of Light, so it surprised me to find out how present it is for me today.

If the song sounds familiar to you, it may be because it was featured on Cameron Crowe's Showtime dramedy, Roadies. I don't watch much TV, so I don't know anything about the show. But if it features The Head and the Heart, it must be good?

In explaining the lyrics, Jonathan Russell had this to say: "Everyone's gone through a relationship where things didn't work out. You try it again and it doesn't work out. That feeling of 'Why are we doing this to ourselves? We know it's not going to work out. We've tried it before. Just let it go.'" Hmpff.  Easier said than done?

But I'm choosing to look at this song through a larger lens. All we ever do is all we ever knew. In how many ways do we get stuck in our own ruts? How many times do we retreat to our own bubbles? Why are solutions so hard to come by? Why do we resist change? Sometimes it's arrogance and ignorance, but sometimes it's tenacity and faith. In terms of the polarization of our nation, I'd say it's all of those things. I don't claim to have any answers, except maybe the age-old wisdom that love is the answer. (See "All You Need Is Love," "What the World Needs Now Is Love, Sweet Love," "Imagine," "Give Me Love, Give Me Peace on Earth," "Love Train," "One Love," "What's So Funny About Peace, Love, and Understanding?" etc.) Yep, love is the answer.

Maybe we've just forgotten the question.