February 16th, 2009 is the day I turned 28 years old. I turned off my phone last night. I had me time. I slept in until 1pm today and took my time. I woke up to no alarm. I went to lunch with my brother at my favorite BBQ joint. I’m sifting through emails and mySpace/Facebook comments from my dearest friends. I’m changing “27” to “28” on every biography that is seeded online. I’ve got a party planned at my local haunt tonight. I’m going to take things too far. Today, I’m 28 years old.
Much of my music lends a respect to life, aging and legacies. By no means do I feel overtly-old today but, as another year passes, one can’t help but reflect on the previous 27 and the events that led me here.
Today’s blog post will dip into my archives and site the themes of time and age in my music and poetry:
QUOTES: A handful of insightful quotes from the years.
FROM: AS OF LATE
I’ve got memories.
All the pieces that make up me-
Distant memories-
That are stuck to the ceiling
And hanging above my head.
FROM: BABYSITTING THE COWBOY
Lisa. Please watch over me;
Write it down in your memory that I-
I was a child lost in a daydream.
FROM: EVERYBODY & CHANGE
It’s not fair that none of us
Are anywhere we use to be,
This time last year.
Back when the rain cut into summer
And it kept us home from the little games we played.
It’s the reason that you’re leaving…
And staying away.
FROM: EXPLODE
In my bones I’m feeling older-
This war time has changed me-
I’m no doubt colder
And I will freeze here long before I burn.
FROM: GETTING OLD
Bring back the days when our hearts were bold
Cause now it seems, these days, we are getting old.
FROM: GHOST
Seven years- this could break me.
Seven years and I can’t forget that face
(though I’ve tried).
I MIGHT BE GONE
I might be gone by the end of this day
When my soul retires and drifts into space
And all of my life is at the mercy of grace-
Remember me time, as I float away.I might be gone in ten thousand days
When all of my life is rocking chair gray.
I hope I go in the middle of a crowd-
They’ll remember me then
Because people get use to having people around.Our memories remain through the poets and songs-
They are filling the graves with history’s bones.
We all sink by the side of the afternoon light-
What can you expect?
We are mortals in time.And in time, I might get old.
I might retire.
I might have little ones with minds I inspire.
I might get lucky and they’ll remember this song-
I hope it happens cause I might be gone.
IMMORTAL
Sitting by his gravestone I thought about his name
A slate of stone is all that remains.
The man once loved, now dissolved in a memory
Of a man once revered and treasured by family.One hundred years gone has taken this memory
Stripped his kin and killed his legacy.
No one that knew him is left or remains
Only a history book might remember his claim.I know one day I will join his bones
And leave those that I loved and loved me alone.
But who is so lucky to be immortalized in literature?
Nothing I’ve done deserves such an honor.
OLD THINGS
I remember living there- remember me?
Nothing fills your heart like history.
There is room for little space
And all of our hearts can be replaced
So we traded in the birch for the pine trees
And the evergreens.New things always shine but
They don’t make them anymore like the old things.I remember loving you- remember me?
Nothing fills your heart like history.
There is room for little space
And all of our hearts can be replaced
But she will always be so close to me.New things always shine but
They don’t make them anymore like the old things
What is new was never mine
So I feel nothing really shines like the old things.
FROM: THE SEQUEL
I needed change but all along
I’ve been living these yesterdays.
FROM: THE TUMBLE
Gone now are years of memories
That nobody wants but me
But that sounds like me, that is, to hold on endlessly.
FROM: WHISTLE STOP
It’s the end of the line
Your train rolled through the time.
Now, all your graces
And your legacies stand.
FROM: WHISTLE STOP
Where it stops I can’t say
But those warm summer days
Roll by like cars on a train.
FROM: WYOMING
All the years hang on the wind
Above this last good plot of land.
I hear it echo in the trees.
I hear it’s whisper on my knees.
SONGS: A handful of songs that reference aging, life and legacies.
BABYSITTING THE COWBOY
[audio:http://www.tylerstenson.com/audio/ocs/babysitting-the-cowboy.mp3]
EVERYBODY & CHANGE
[audio:http://www.tylerstenson.com/audio/rt/everybody-and-change.mp3]
GETTING OLD
[audio:http://www.tylerstenson.com/audio/miss/getting-old.mp3]
I MIGHT BE GONE
[audio:http://www.tylerstenson.com/audio/ocs/i-might-be-gone.mp3]
OLD THINGS
[audio:http://www.tylerstenson.com/audio/other/old-things-mock.mp3]
WHISTLE STOP
[audio:http://www.tylerstenson.com/audio/gleam/whistle-stop.mp3]
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