What's a song that really expresses or imparts a skill or important truth to internalize
Little Black Sandals - Sia
Boundaries. To me, the little black sandals represent boundaries or the abillity to recognize and extricate yourself from whatever you consciously+unconsciously feel is dangerous and unsafe for you
The line where he says he'll let go only if only she explicitly asks it is the exact opposite of how it should be, where the default is no and inviting people to opt-in to that which may be triggering.
I like that tea analogy where boundaries is as simple as whether or not you'd like a cup of tea. Invite and have consent before you use it up for someone who doesn't want or cannot accept it
"""
[...]
And it's kind of like a movie but in movies no one ever falls asleep
And I know you're going crazy and I know you're going broke, and you're sitting here laughing like that's some kind of joke, but I'm not laughing
And I want you to be careful, and I want you to be smart, I don't want you to romanticize falling the fuck apart
[...]
"""
It's an incredibly sweet little song on a great pop punk album.
But I've been thinking about this a lot since hearing it. I think I've known people who just, well, do that. Romanticize falling the fuck apart. Being a mess. Not having any shit together at all. Don't make any progress and maybe no effort on changing or improving. It's not great.
But maybe that's not the only read.
I had someone in my friend group a couple months ago who pretty much straight out said critical analysis is stupid and pointless. That looking for any meaning beyond the shallowest accounting of the plot is a waste. They said it's just made up. I'm like my dude it's all made up. It's fiction. They seemed to have this idea that you were supposed to find the right answer in the text, rather than create and defend something you find interesting. So now I think about that when I think about meaning in text, sometimes.
Safety Dance by Men Without Hats feels a bit like low-hanging fruit, but I think it fits quite well. Whether it is dancing or really any sort of expression, you ought to do it if you desire to regardless of how others may feel. And if your friends constantly constrain themselves based on the judgements (or fear of judgement) of others, that isn't going make them new friends either. I wish I danced more when I was a kid. But I dance now.