I resisted seeing "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?" for a long time because from what I had heard of it--and other things I'd seen that were written by this Hedges fellow--I expected it to be two hours of extreme emotional discomfort, nails-on-a-chalkboard style. And while there were moments like that, the tone of the relationships between the characters mitigated the painful situations enormously. Dave found the movie incredibly moving; he said for him it went right up there with "The Shawshank Redemption" in his pantheon of movies that refresh the soul and bring hope.
I don't think I'd go that far, myself, but I did write this song immediately after we watched the movie. All the stuff about trains and neighbors and the interstate is true. Also, the thing that's in "our front yard" can be read as referring to the United Center, where many people are able to escape from the toils of life for a time while watching their favorite band or sports team or circus.
we live a whistle from the interstate
but I don't even own a car
where other people go when they escape
is our front yard
the seasons circle all around the place
they try to tell us what they know
I curse the limitations of the interface
wanna tip my toes
where the road don't go
where the road don't go
our neighbors fight about the little things
we hear them screaming in the night
all I can do is sit up here and sing
that it just ain't right
tell you I love you each and every day
but I am frightened and it shows
that I'll be waiting here just turning gray
tryin to point my nose
where the road don't go
where the road don't go
the train it passes every five or ten
taking everybody home
but I don't really wanna ride with them
cause I'd be alone
we make eye contact over the remote
and we can't even hear the show
come take my hand and get your hat and coat
cause I know you know
where the road don't go
where the road don't go
Homeschool Mom or Life in the Trenches
13 years ago
2 comments:
Crystal I'm so sorry I didn't get to see you last weekend. Mom and I were really looking forward to seeing all the Eidson's and Sells and having a party with you all. Instead I did landscaping! With a lot of other people. It was like camping--only no marshmellows. I feel a new blog brewing about it, but it was another reminder that in this world we can only say, "If the Lord wills we will do thus and such" because only God knows where the wind will go. And last Thursday it went to my house (and a few others!)
Anyway, another really good song. I would like to hear it sung. Did you have a melody with it? Well, if you can come to the family reunion we can figure one out. Laura has a really nice acoustic guitar. I traded mine for a "rock and roll red" Gibson. (Some assembly required-not acoustic--I wanted a new challenge!)
I have so been there with the interstate close by & you don't own a car feeling. I can remember my 21st birthday alone in a Hyde Park apartment; all I had to eat in the fridge was a piece of fish. I broiled it and the broiler drawer stuck shut! Thankfully, someone called (Mom, I think) to wish me a happy birthday so I got to laugh about it instead of crying. I eventually got the drawer open; the fish was crispy but edible, and somehow I managed to make it through. I had those neighbors yelling in the night, too.
The poignancy in your music is like an antidote for the trivia-crowded public conversation that fills so much of our day and too much of our heads. We are not the only ones struggling like this; look at what our ancestors went through. It re-humanizes us to reflect on this and to affirm and encourage one another through these trials & tribulations.
Time for bed; I can feel my higher brain functions saying "nite-nite!"
--M
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