Life Through Music: “Somewhere Only We Know” by Keane

I don’t know why, but during the fall I always feel so nostalgic or reminiscent. Maybe its because we are getting close to an end of another year. Maybe it’s because fall has many holidays that are filled with many memories of family and friends over various times in my life. Fall to me is a time to reflect on the year that has past. To shed my leaves and prepare for the rebirth of myself in the spring. 

  

Last week I had the privilege to tag along with my sister Paula as she went to take pictures of all the places that she has ever lived in her life for a school project. Naturally being her brother for all but two and a half years of her life I have actually been involved in many of the places she had on her list to visit. Not just because she and I are brother and sister, but also because we lived together many years later after living with my mother. 

I don’t need to go through each and every spot that we visited last Monday, but what I do want to mention is that it was crazy to go back and see places that I lived in the past. Some of those places even decades ago now. It is also no surprise that many of the places that we visited looked very different from they did when I was a kid. Its always amazing how big things seemed when I was younger, but are much smaller now that I am older. Just seeing how the neighborhoods look now that years have past. Its both amazing and sad to me see each place we visited because although you can enjoy the memories you had there during that time period you can never go back to or stop the change that has happened since you have moved on. Change is the only thing in life that is inevitable. 

This is the apartment that is straight across from the apartment I actually lived in when I was about 4.
Why I'm showing this apartment instead of the one I lived in?
 Because this is where I met my first best friend Brait.

This is the house I have spent the longest time at in my life.
It didn't look this nice when we left it, but the owners who bought it have done a great job with it.

This is the view at the end of the street from where my grand parent's (on my dad's side) house is in St. John near the University of Portland.  

The song that I picked for this week and last week is a song that my sister played while we were in the car between stops. This song “Somewhere Only We Know” and really the whole album by Keane definitely have the feeling of fall for me. It’s mood fits the feeling of fall and all the things that fall beings up for me. Even in the music video for this song it has many fall shots in it. So fitting that it was a day of sharing somewhere that we only know and have shared between just me and my sister for the most part all these years. 

Lyrics:

"Somewhere Only We Know"

I walked across an empty land

I knew the pathway like the back of my hand

I felt the earth beneath my feet

Sat by the river and it made me complete

Oh simple thing where have you gone?

I'm getting old and I need something to rely on

So tell me when you're gonna let me in

I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

I came across a fallen tree

I felt the branches of it looking at me

Is this the place we used to love?

Is this the place that I've been dreaming of?

Oh simple thing where have you gone?

I'm getting old and I need something to rely on

So tell me when you're gonna let me in

I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

And if you have a minute why don't we go

Talk about it somewhere only we know?

This could be the end of everything

So why don't we go

Somewhere only we know?

Somewhere only we know?

Oh simple thing where have you gone?

I'm getting old and I need something to rely on

So tell me when you're gonna let me in

I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

And if you have a minute why don't we go

Talk about it somewhere only we know?

This could be the end of everything

So why don't we go?

So why don't we go?

Ah-ah-ah

Ah-ah-ah

This could be the end of everything

So why don't we go

Somewhere only we know?

Somewhere only we know?

Somewhere only we know?

I don’t directly connect to what the lyrics say, but the repeating of “Somewhere only we know” seem to fit the feeling that my sister and I had as we took a trip down memory lane for a good portion of our life so far. 

I say it all the time, but I don’t care if I sound like a broken record because I truly have the best sister in the world. During the day we made a stop to have lunch at Dick’s Kitchen downtown and we had one of the best talks we have ever had. Between that and the food it will go down as one of the best times I have spent with my sister. We even shared a vegan pumpkin chocolate shake that was so good. I guess I should throw in the whole day because it really was so perfect. She is my rock in life and has helped me through this crazy thing called life. 

The sun shined the whole day which made the fall colors brighter than they already were on a day that the temperature was as warm as anyone could ask for in November here in Oregon. It’s a day I won’t soon forget and I will add it to all the other memories that I visited on that day.  

It’s always a tough process to see what things you must let fall away and see what stays at the core of you. To make room in the spring with new growth on what is left behind and build on this growth to begin anew. 

As always I bring this to you with so much love and pure D-lite. = )