Mumford and Sons. So if you didn't know already, they are some pretty cool cats. Not only is their music rockin' in my opinion, but their lyrics actually have some depth - unlike many popular musical talents these days (but that's a whole other discussion).
Anyways, the most recent display of brilliance: their new album - namely the song Below My Feet. Why you might ask? Well, let's just say they've caught on to our amazing S-LC jargon and mentioned service AND learning in a song. They are just that cool. No, but really. I recommend that if you haven't already, you should cue up itunes, pandora, or whatever musical download site is hip nowadays and have yourself a little listen.
Below you will find a selection of the lyrics as well as some killer reflections (none of which I take credit for since I take them from a discussion I had with some S-LC co-habitants).
peace, love, and pandora,
Emily
Below My Feet lyricsYou were cold as the blood through your bones
And the light which led us from our chosen homes
Oh, I was lost.
So now I sleep
Sleep the hours that I don't weep
And all I knew was steeped in blackened holes
Oh, I was lost
Keep the earth below my feet
For all my sweat, my blood runs weak
Let me learn from where I have been
Keep my eyes to serve
My hands to learn
And the light which led us from our chosen homes
Oh, I was lost.
So now I sleep
Sleep the hours that I don't weep
And all I knew was steeped in blackened holes
Oh, I was lost
Keep the earth below my feet
For all my sweat, my blood runs weak
Let me learn from where I have been
Keep my eyes to serve
My hands to learn
Well I was still
But I was under your spell
But I was told by Jesus
All was well
So all must be well
Just give me time
You know your desires and mine
So wrap my flesh in ivy and in twine
For I must be well
Some Thoughts:
- the musical tone in this song is natural and mellow (versus electronic) as well as light and upbeat (not dark, but rather optimistic)
- verse 1 talks about moving out of darkness and stepping into the light and how having been in a black hole, stuck inside a house made the author feel lost. What does this represent for the value of getting off the couch and into the community?
- the chorus talks of reassurance - 'i was told by Jesus all was well' - and how it therefore, 'must be well'. Is there a connection between this phrasing and the song 'it is well with my soul'? How do we cling to this promise of reassurance even when we don't feel well?
- 'keep the earth below my feet' - is this talking about how we stay grounded in Christ? Does it relate to the kingdom-building work we are called to do as co-workers with God and agents of renewal in a fallen world?
- 'let me learn from where i've been' - LEARN! from my past? from the school I go to? from the countries I've visited? from the community I live in?
- what could the switch from the typically 'hands to serve and eyes to learn' to the unexpected 'eyes to serve and lands to learn' be challenging us to do?
- how DO we use our 'eyes to serve' and 'hands to learn'?
- Calvin's motto seems embedded in here with the idea of offering not only hands, but also hearts/thoughts/willingness to learn
1 comment:
This song is about a death causing a crisis of faith and rejection of an old belief system, which is followed by a new view on religion and life, which is described in the chorus.
The first stanza addresses the dead person, who is "cold as the blood through your bones." But he also describes the "light which led us from our chosen homes" as cold. He resents the light (referring to the light people are alleged to follow into the afterlife) for taking people away from the lives that they build for themselves on Earth. This death has caused resentment for God and the afterlife. He is lost, without his loved one and without his faith.
The second stanza builds on this. He sleeps and cries. All he knew (his previous belief system) is steeped in blackened holes. He sees holes in his religion. They are black. This is a dark time. He doesn't want to see these holes or have these doubts, but they're there. He is lost.
(I'll get to the chorus at the end)
The next two stanzas are accompanied by a louder and more defiant beat than the first two, which are slow and sad.
He is still. He's surviving, kind of dealing with this death. But he's under someone's "spell." I think he's referring to a preacher or someone else who indoctrinated him in his old belief system. The choice of the word spell clearly indicates that he has a negative view of this person's influence, under which he was convinced that Jesus was telling him all his well. He sings the last line "so all must be well" with a tone of sarcasm and anger. He was being calmed (I was still) by this old belief system, but it was like a drug, a sedative.
Just give me time. Leave me alone. Now he's telling this preacher that he has different desires than him. He is rejecting the old belief system. The person he is addressing wants to wrap his flesh in "ivy and in twine." Ivy brings to mind images of ivy covered churches and an aged smothering feeling. Twine is also negative, controlling. We wrap meat in twine. This is all a reference to the typical Christian rejection of all things related to sex. He is rejecting this attitude. Again "for I must be well" (by being wrapped in ivy and twine) is spoken sarcastically and defiantly.
Now the chorus. It's a prayer that sums up his new requests of God. Keep the Earth below my feet. Keep me alive. But also, perhaps, keep me down to Earth. For all my sweat, my blood runs weak. Despite all his efforts, he gets closer to death every day he lives. He's giving up his fear of death, or perhaps asking God to take it away. Let me learn from where I have been. Help me continue to become a better person. Keep my eyes to serve, my hands to learn. I don't completely get this yet, but I love it. It's a reversal of what you would expect. Perhaps it's about him wanting to live, to learn by acting and making mistakes. It could be viewed as a reversal of the traditional Christian view of learning by watching and listening to your parents and preachers, and then serving God and others through your actions which conform to these teachings. He's going to learn by doing, and serve by watching and listening, because what better way to serve people than to make them feel watched and listened to. I think it's also about humility. We usually think we're smarter than those we help because we've learned by watching, and we can help others by doing what we've learned. But he is suggesting that we can better serve those people by listening to and learning from them, and we can better learn by doing.
There's so much more to this song, from the subtle nuances of word choices, to the chanting, the changes in musical tempo. It's packed with meaning.
Their songs are often religiously motivated, but never preachy. They're about personal experiences, usually struggles, with religion. The above taken from songmeanings.
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