Holiday quiet on these streets
Except for some stubborn leaves
That didn't fall, and now they clatter in vain
Holiday sky, midnight clear
Wind is high, hard to steer
Old muffler rumbles like an old fighter plane
In search of some rest, in search of a break
From a life of tests where something's always at stake
Where something's always so far
What about my broken car?
What about my life so far?
What about my dream?
What about . . .
What about everything?
What about aeroplanes?
And what about ships that drank the sea?
What about . . .
What about the moon and stars?
What about soldier battle scars
And all the anger that they eat?
I am not in need
Get away and come with me
Come away with me and we'll see
If I was right on that night, that a future was made
Before time takes each year, like a knife cuts it clear
It's school, then work, and then life that just sharpens the blade
I think about time for fun
I think about time for play
Then I think about being done, with no resume
With no one left to blame
What about fortune and fame?
What about your love to obtain?
What about the ring?
What about . . .
What about everything?
What about aeroplanes?
And what about ships that drank the sea?
What about . . .
What about the moon and stars?
What about soldier battle scars
And all the anger that they eat?
I am not in need
Holiday quiet on these streets, except for some reason me
The hometown harbor lights bright, the sailboats clatter in vain
Holiday sky, midnight clear
Wind is high on this pier
I find it hard to complain when compared with what about . . .
What about everything?
What about aeroplanes?
And what about ships that drank the sea?
What about . . .
What about the moon and stars?
What about soldier battle scars
And all the anger that they eat?
What about aliens? What about you and me?
What about gold beneath the sea?
What about . . .
What about when buildings fall?
What about that midnight phone call?
The one that wakes you from your peace?
Well, I am not, I am not in need
~ Carbon Leaf
Whenever Shuffle treats me to this song, I remember how much I love it. And today (which would have been my mother's 96th birthday), it entered my brain through my earbuds and then stayed with me. So I'll share it with you. The video linked above might be a treat, too, depending on whether or not you are old enough to remember Warner Brothers cartoons. Some clever person illustrated the song with clips from those old cartoons. So, go ahead, treat yourself. Carbon Leaf is a Richmond-based band, and the song appears on their 2004 release, Indian Summer.
Although there's a "holiday" tomorrow, I doubt if Veterans Day was the one Carbon Leaf had in mind. But then again, there are old fighter planes and aeroplanes and ships and soldier battle scars in the song, not to mention buildings falling and midnight phone calls that wake you from your peace. So maybe. But whether or not there's a connection there, I find the song compelling for many reasons.
It seems that lately, the number of issues on our collective plate are enough to make us throw up our hands and yell "Uncle!" And that's not taking into account anyone's individual worries, like relationships and broken cars and unemployment and finding time to play. It's all summed up quite neatly in the unanswerable question, "What about everything?" (I think maybe we can scratch the aliens off our list of things to worry about, assuming it refers to aliens from outer space.)
But the point here, I think, is to try to put our worries into perspective. I find it hard to complain when compared with . . . (fill in the blank). And of course, worrying solves nothing and helps no one.
Before time takes each year, like a knife cuts it clear
It's school, then work, and then life that just sharpens the blade
Spend your time wisely. Don't waste it on worry. Right, Mom?
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