Again whilst on the elliptical this morning I was listening to my Ipod. Yes, there is a jack to plug it into and really great speakers to hear all of my favorite tunes! So the album "Rust Never Sleeps" pops up and away we go!
The song "Thrasher" rolled right in behind "Hey Hey My My" and I began to drift and dream with the imagery of Neil Young's well written lyrics.
I wondered about the meanings behind lines like: "they had given all they had for something new" knowing exactly who 'they' were. I've done it myself. You probably have also... That moment when you trade it all in for something that appears to be better than what you have right now. It seems that there is always a higher price tag for not counting the cost for such trade offs, when in reality, we were better off to stay put. Stay the course. Keep keeping on. We never get ahead by starting over all the time. There always seems to be a catch on these 'too good to be true' deals.
"It was then that I knew I'd had enough, burned my credit card for fuel. Headed out to where the pavement turns to sand. With a one-way ticket to the land of truth and my suitcase in my hand, how I lost my friends I still don't understand." This is the fourth stanza out of eight. (Musical genius!) This verse is where Neil decides that Crosby Stills and Nash are better off without him and vice versa. But I believe it speaks more of a universal truth. I believe the author is saying that when we finally get a taste of what is good and right, and we're tired of the status quo, though it may be lonely, we can walk away knowing we are doing the right thing. Even if it means leaving your coat or your cards and money on the table. Some things are just not worth repeating whether in word or deed. You know. Cut our losses. Move along.
I think in these well-penned lyrics Neil believes that it was best for him to move on down the line. He is trying to impart that life is short and a thrashing comes to us all. And yes, there will be pain. But it is in the pain that we grow and rise to a better understanding of circumstances and people around us. "Down the windy halls of friendship, to the rose clipped by the bullwhip." I don't know about you, but most of my friends today are not those of yesteryear. There are a few wonderfully, faithful ones that hang in there and keep in touch. I am grateful for I know this is rare.
And in the last verse: "But me I'm not stopping there, got my own row left to hoe. Just another line in the field of time. When the thrasher comes I'll be stuck in the sun like the dinosaurs in shrines. But I'll know the time has come to give what's mine." Is this about the maturation process? Or maybe a beginning of the understanding of the rhythms of life and the human experience. Perhaps Young sees his life and death in a brief moment of clarity, knowing that he too will pass away. But in the mean time, with death a long way off (if we are blessed,) each of us has our own race to run. Each of us has a contribution to make. A positive one or a negative one by our words and actions each day.
So what'll it be? You gonna hang around lost in rock formations, becoming park bench mutations on the sidewalks and in the stations, waiting, waiting... or are you going to agree to the Great Grand Canyon rescue episode. Will you raise up your hands for help/surrender? You can decide how your story will go. Just say yes to God's design and saddle up for the grand adventure. (A rescue plan is in the works, I promise!)
Hey hey, my my!
No comments:
Post a Comment