Let’s Be Still

One of the most common complaints I have heard at college is that everything is moving too fast. Because of the stress of new and challenging classes, new social situations, and the routine of college life, the days appear to blend together. For these reasons, it is hard to take a step back and reflect upon what is really going on in our lives. College is such a short yet impactful time of our lives, so it makes sense that we should make the most of every day if we can. Also, due to the fast pace world of social media, it is easy to live our lives through a screen instead of experiencing the real world and making memories. In my opinion, I believe our culture has forgotten what it is truly like to relax due to a fast pace world that focuses on having a financially successful life instead of a good life. Songs like “Let’s Be Still” by The Head and the Heart remind us to slow down and to let the realities of life sink in.

The song opens by showing how easy it is to become enwrapped in the worlds we live in.

You can get lost in the music for hours
honey, You can get lost in a room
We can play music for hours and hours
But the sun’ll still be coming up soon

Here, music is used as a synonym for the many things that we can get lost in. Like music, the world of our studies and trying to be social at the same time is easy to vanish into. The line, “You can get lost in a room” is especially powerful because it shows how often times things flush our minds that we often don’t know where we are in life. It is so easy to get distracted with the trivial aspects of everyday life that it is even possible to get lost in a simple room. The things that divert our attention however won’t ultimately fulfill us because, “the sun’ll still be coming up soon.” This line shows how the worlds we get lost in aren’t what is true, and we must be snapped back into reality.

As I mentioned earlier, one of the most common complaints I hear is that people think everything is moving too fast.

The world’s just spinning
A little too fast
If things don’t slow down soon
we might not last
So just for the moment, let’s be still

Due to the constant stresses of everyday life and being at college, the world seems to be spinning too fast for us. We accomplish everything that needs to be done for that day, but do we really take the time to sit back and think about what we did? If things don’t slow down soon, are we really living life the best way that we can? What’s prominent in these lyrics, however, is that only for a moment should we try and be still. It’s unrealistic to spend every day relaxing but we must take at least one moment out of our day to reflect. If we can take the time to just sit and be still in silence, then our lives will become much more fulfilling.

The song continues to grapple with this fast-moving world and its relation to us in the following stanza:

The world’s not forgiving
Of everyone’s fears
The days turn into months
the months turn into years
So just for the moment, let’s be still

Because of the expansive social media realm, our day to day interactions revolve around us wanting to be liked. The worlds of Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, etc. have become grounds for people to try and prove themselves to the world. We live in constant fear of wanting to be liked so we get sucked into the false realities of social media. In my own experience, living my life through a screen has caused the days to turn into months and the months to turn into years. Due to my constant fear of trying to prove myself to others on social media, I have forgotten what it is like to be still.

It is hard to experience silence nowadays. The weight of everyday life and the added stress of new technologies has sped up our world so fast that it is hard to sit back and relax. Songs like “Let’s Be Still” by Head and the Heart are here to show us that we need to take time to slow down every once in a while. Our days are numbered here on Earth, so we need to take moments out of our day to just be still. This is a message I believe that all people (not just millennials) need to hear in order to start experiencing life firsthand and not through a screen.

Watch the music video here: