Searching for the “Unwritten”

By Angela
New Organizing Project blogger
===========================================

Maybe it’s just me. But I feel as though over the recent years, most music has lost something very critical – substance. That is, except for substances like alcohol/drugs and addictive hooks, especially in the genre of mainstream hip hop.

So what am I looking for when I say “substance”? I am referring to lyrics that speak about finding oneself and inspiring hope. I am a believer in the power of words. Good lyrics have the power to instill thoughts in our minds and create a certain feeling in our hearts. Of course, the music itself can make or break a song. But good music layered with strong lyrics is the combination that makes me listen. When one or the other is lacking, I move on.

Lately, I find myself looking to music that was created a few years back. Music that was created even just a few years ago seems to carry more meaning and substance that fulfills my musical criteria. Speaking of which, I want to share with you all one of my favorite songs that came out in 2005:

“Unwritten” by Natasha Bedingfield

I am unwritten
Can’t read my mind
I’m undefined

I’m just beginning
The pen’s in my hand
Ending unplanned

Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words
That you could not find

Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin

No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips

Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten

~

I break tradition
Sometimes my tries
Are outside the lines

We’ve been conditioned
To not make mistakes
But I can’t live that way, no

Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words
That you could not find

Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin

No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips

Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
To the years where your book begins
Feel the rain on your skin

No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips

Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
To the years where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten

The rest is still unwritten
The rest is still unwritten

~

I love this song because often I feel as if I am lost in this world. I often doubt myself and wish at times that the world can unfold itself without me worrying about it. But this song reminds me to live life to its fullest, not planning everything because I never know what may happen. It gives me hope to move on despite all my challenges, however lost I may be.

This song reminds us to keep our eyes open for all the possibilities in our lives. We each have a book dedicated to our own lives. We are the authors of our own book. Each day is a blank page. How will you fill it up? Imagine your potential, your possibilities.