[Part 1 - a poem] When I was young, There was hope, And soap on a rope at Christmas . When I was young, I wondered what it would be like when I was older. Now I’m older , I stop and wonder - at what it was like when I was young. There are a few themes - Assumptions and dreams, There were times of hope when I was young. I was small town safe with a narrow window on the world , No breakfast TV and endless news. Three channels, then four, and then one more. Yes, there were bombs - In the city. Yes there were wars - but far away. There were famines, And pop stars angered into song. There were TV shows righting wrongs, And dreaming of brighter futures still to come. And still, still to come When I was young, There was hope, And soap on a rope At Christmas . [Part 2 same poem, just songified] When I was young, I used to stare at the sky, Wondering what it meant to be getting by, (by the way this second part is mostly rewritten by A.I.) Now the years have folded like pages worn, And I look back to the hopes I had before. Now I’m older, I wonder too, What it felt like to be so new, Every corner a mystery, Every day still part of me. Pre-Chorus There were dreams in the cracks of the streetlight glow, Things I believed but didn’t yet know, A little town and a smaller world, But it felt like the whole wide world. Chorus When I was young, there was hope in the air, Like sunlight caught in the morning stair, When I was young, it all felt true, Even the things we just walked through. And I didn’t know what I didn’t know, But I believed it would all just grow… When I was young. Verse 2 Three channels flickered on the old TV, Then four, then five, like a new sea, Breakfast shows and distant wars, Behind our quiet kitchen doors. We heard of bombs in a city far, Names on the news like faded scars, Famine stories, pop songs loud, Voices rising in the crowd. Pre-Chorus They told us truth could change the world, In every note a flag unfurled, From black and white to colour screen, We learned what everything could mean. Chorus When I was young, there was hope in the air, Like sunlight caught in the morning stair, When I was young, it all felt true, Even the things we just walked through. And I didn’t know what I didn’t know, But I believed it would all just grow… When I was young. Bridge And there were promises wrapped in sound, Of better days turning around, And soap on a rope at Christmas time, Small little treasures of simpler times. Final Chorus When I was young, there was hope in the air, Like a radio song drifting through nowhere, When I was young, it all felt wide, Like the whole world opening up outside. And now I see, looking back through the haze, Hope was a child in those simple days… When I was young. Outro When I was young… When I was young… ...................... (Further reflections for anyone still reading) Of course we all know, nostalgia isn't what it used to be. Not every life was better, and real people lived in the far away places I heard about. And good news often didn't make the news. There is still hope today. We hear about all the bad stuff, all the time, and our news feeds can too easily feed despair. There is hope. I hope you find it.
