Week of 7/5/2015

"Heroes" by Peter Gabriel, off of his 2010 album, "Scratch My Back"

We can be heroes
Just for one day...

Retrospective Note 2022: Real heroes are there for the hurt and the dying, standing with them and fighting alongside them for their justice, and for their peace. America's idea of being a hero has been lost in translation, drowned in years of propaganda and false patriotism, leaving nothing more than people who care about nothing except themselves, thinking the fight is over because they have everything they could ever want, and can STILL accumulate without walls while others are left with nothing. Well, the true patriots are the ones who have been shoved aside, fighting for their right for a better tomorrow. While the rest of America has gotten comfortable with their privileges as they ignore those they see are "below" them, those from "below" are rising up, and making good change. They are the real heroes. Instead of being complacent like the rest of America, let's join their side, and be heroes too. And when we win, with equal rights for all, only then will we be able to truly celebrate another "Independence" day.

Week of 7/12/2015

"Could Have Been Me" by The Struts, off of their 2014 album, "Everybody Wants"

I wanna live better days
Never look back and say
It could have been me...

These guys NEED to be heard! HOW did I miss this hit?!

Retrospective Note 2019: These lyrics. Damn. I feel like this year has been the year of “it could have been me”. I gave up on so much after graduating high school to try and make my Dad proud. Now he’s no longer here. Why did I do that? WHY did I do that? So many of my peers are succeeding, and I’m over here always having to get back to square one...

Retrospective Note 2022: It's been a long time coming, but I'm finally feeling like I'm making moves for myself, and not sitting back longing to get back to 2010-2012 when I was absolutely thriving creatively. 2019 hurt deep, for I was feeling very much left behind by the choices I had made. Nearly 10 years of trying to get back to that time I was thriving, trying to make up for lost time, and of course, I never was able to get that back. I wasn't innovating, I was back tracking, and it definitely showed. It wouldn't be long before 2020, when the world would shut down, and I would be left to my own devices to be able to freely create without work or anything holding me back. I got a taste for what I wanted in life, and for the first time, it felt possible. I want to entertain, I want to encourage, I want to sing, I want to dance. I want to fly. A decade of frustration, and I finally saw what I was capable of doing. I stopped pining for being able to thrive with my peers instead of being "left behind", and finally decided to start fresh, and do what was good for me. It's now 2022, and I'm farther than I ever thought possible. I'm still at a full-time job to pay the bills, but at least I'm on the road to finding a way out of that lifestyle. I'm working to create, and creating to live. An album is on the way as well. This is what I always wanted to do, and I'm finally doing it. I'm living better days.

Week of 7/19/2015

"Dark Side" by R5, off of their 2015 album, "Sometime Last Night"

I like the red, hope you don't mind
And it tastes so good on you, ooh, yeah~ 💙

Week of 7/26/2015

"He" by Jars of Clay, off of their 2015 debut self-titled album

Well, I try to make you proud
But for crying out loud
Just give me a chance to hide away...

Retrospective Note 2022: A song that encapsulates how it felt growing up in my father's household. The exhaustion of dealing with his verbal and sometimes even physical abuse absolutely took its toll on me. It's been 10 years since I graduated high school, and 7 since my father's passing. Those days of daily screaming matches and words of degradation are far behind me. It's weird to think about sometimes. Most days I don't even THINK about what I went through growing up. Gosh, what my younger self would have given to just have a smidgeon of the peace I'm experiencing these days. A lot of that peace absolutely comes down to knowing who my true father is, and that's Jesus Christ. Whenever I felt my absolute lowest from my father's scorn, I always felt safe knowing I could run to Him when it was all done. Whether hiding in the bathroom, or hiding underneath my covers at night, Jesus' open arms were waiting there for me. He's my sole provider of the peace I have. I just wish my younger self had the same amount I do now...