Standing Still
Have you ever felt lost? Like you don’t know where to go or even where you are standing at currently? Have you ever felt confused? Like you don’t know what to choose or even what choices you have right now? Have you ever felt empty and hollow? Like you’re losing your grip and having nothing to hold onto? Have you ever felt broken down? Like you’re hardly breathing and having no light to guide your way? I feel lost when I realize that the one significant other whom I want does not want me back. I feel confused when I realize that a sweet sorrow may come tomorrow. I feel empty and hollow when I know that the one significant other whom I need the most does not need me back. I feel broken down when I understand that the one significant other whom I love does not love me the way I love him. When love isn’t reciprocal, that’s when we lose ourselves in the way. However, does it really mean that we are losing? Though we feel lost, confused, empty and hollow, and broken down, do we really lose? We may stand still, but that doesn’t mean we’re losing.
“Cutting through the darkest night
are my two headlights. Trying to keep it clear, but I’m losing it here to the
twilight. There’s a dead end to my left, there’s a burning bush to my right.
You aren’t in sight; you aren’t in sight.” –Jewel, Standing Still
The song I would like
to discuss the lyrics today is a song titled “Standing Still”, performed by
American singer-songwriter, Jewel. The pop rock country track was released in
October 2nd 2001 as the first single taken from the singer’s third studio
album, “This Way”. It was written by Jewel herself along with Rick Nowels. “Standing
Still” speaks about the feeling of lost in love because the way of expressing
the love is not reciprocal between her and her significant other. Well, that
happens a lot in a relationship. Most of the time, it becomes the source of a
conflict for a couple. However, people have their own way; and being in a
relationship means we must be able to negotiate every way: to bend. It is not losing
ourselves; it is what loving sincerely means. It is the essence of loving
someone. It is alright to feel lost and wonder about a lot of things sometimes,
since we are human. And it is alright to love someone who cannot love you the
same way in return, since we all have different way to express our feeling for
someone we love.
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| "Standing Still" single cover | source: en.wikipedia.org |
Who says that loving
someone is easy? Let me hit that person with an ashtray. Loving someone is not
that easy. Don’t mix it up with falling in love with someone. Sometimes we find
it easy to fall in love with someone, but loving them is a different thing;
because we define ourselves by the way we love someone. Since love is a verb,
it is defined by the way we love. People have their own way to love, and most
of the times, it is different for each person. Hence conflicts come when the
way is not reciprocal. And that is when we feel lost in love. Sometimes he
isn’t there when we need him the most. Sometimes he’s just leaving when he need
him to stay. Sometimes he just walk away when we need him to come and embrace
us. Sometimes he just got angry when we need him to smile and say that
everything is alright. “Cutting through
the darkest night are my two headlights. Trying to keep it clear, but I’m
losing it here to the twilight. There’s a dead end to my left, there’s a
burning bush to my right. You aren’t in sight; you aren’t in sight.”
Who says that loving
someone is easy? Let me slap that person with a reality. Loving someone is not
that easy. Don’t mix it up with having feeling for someone. Sometimes we find
it easy to have feeling for someone, but loving them is a different thing;
because we measure our feeling by expressing it for someone we love. Since love
is a verb, the feeling is measured by our expression. People have their own way
to express feeling, and most of the times, it is different for each person.
Hence conflicts come when they way is not reciprocal. And that is when we feel
empty and hollow. Sometimes his thoughtless words are breaking our heart.
Sometimes his reckless acts are tearing us apart. Sometimes his irrational
decision is drowning us in deep sorrow and desperation. “Mother’s on the stoop, boys in souped up coupes on this hot summer
night. Between fight and flight is the blind man’s sight and a choice that’s
right. I roll the window down, feel like I’m, I’m gonna drown in this strange
town. Feel broken down; I feel broken down.”
When the way we love
is not reciprocal, we feel lost and wonder whether that person wants us like we
want them. “Do you want me like I want
you?” When the way we express our feeling is not reciprocal, we feel empty
and hollow and wonder whether that person needs us like we need them. “Do you need me like I need you?” When
the way we express the love is not reciprocal, we feel broken down and wonder
whether that person loves us like we love them. “Do you love me like I love you?” When we feel that it all is not
reciprocal, we feel confused and wonder whether the feeling is just one-sided,
whether the love is unrequited, whether we are just standing still while that
person is passing us by. “Or am I
standing still beneath the darkened sky? Or am I standing still with the
scenery flying by? Or am I standing still? Out of the corner of my eye, was
that you passing me by?” Shakespeare said that parting is such a sweet
sorrow. And we wonder whether we have to prepare for it. “A sweet sorrow is the call tomorrow; a sweet sorrow is the call
tomorrow.”
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| "This Way" album cover | source: en.wikipedia.org |
When we feel lost,
confused, empty and hollow, and broken down because of love, it is natural that
we wonder whether we have to prepare for a goodbye. And parting, just like what
Shakespeare said, is such a sweet sorrow. No one can actually prepare for a
sorrow no matter how sweet it is. What an irony. And for me personally, there
is no goodbye that is not painful. Is
goodbye really needed anyway? It is just in the different way of expressing
love hence we feel like it is not reciprocal. And at some point, when we love
someone, we bend. And there is one saying that I found in Instagram, which I do agree with it: Loving someone who cannot love you the same way in return is not
weakness. It is one of the most courageous things you’ll ever do. You are
putting your armour at their feet and you are saying, “I will not fight you in
this. I have loved you and that means I have already won.” We may stand
still, but we’re not losing. Bending doesn’t mean that we lose ourselves. It
just means that we love sincerely. And we’re definitely not the one who’s
losing here.
“A sweet sorrow is the call
tomorrow; a sweet sorrow is the call tomorrow. Do you love me like I love you?
Or am I standing still beneath the darkened sky? Or am I standing still with
the scenery flying by? Or am I standing still? Out of the corner of my eye, was
that you passing me by?” –Jewel, Standing
Still
Cutting through the
darkest night are my two headlights
Trying to keep it
clear, but I’m losing it here to the twilight
There’s a dead end to
my left, there’s a burning bush to my right
You aren’t in sight; you
aren’t in sight
Do you want me like I want
you?
Or am I standing still
beneath the darkened sky?
Or am I standing still
with the scenery flying by?
Or am I standing still?
Out of the corner of my eye, was that you passing my by?
Mother’s on the stoop,
boys in souped up coupes on this hot summer night
Between fight and
flight is the blind man’s sight and a choice that’s right
I roll the window down,
feel like I’m, I’m gonna drown in this strange town
Feel broken down; I
feel broken down
Do you need me like I
need you?
Or am I standing still
beneath the darkened sky?
Or am I standing still
with the scenery flying by?
Or am I standing still?
Out of the corner of my eye, was that you passing my by?
A sweet sorrow is the
call tomorrow; a sweet sorrow is the call tomorrow
Do you love me like I
love you?
Or am I standing still
beneath the darkened sky?
Or am I standing still
with the scenery flying by?
Or am I standing still?
Out of the corner of my eye, was that you passing me by?
Are you passing me by?
Passing me by
Do you want me? Passing
me by
Do you need me like I
need you too? And do you want me like I want you?
Passing me by; are you
passing me by? Or am I standing still?
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