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cattail down,
the morning rail yard whistle blows.
cattail down,
our boxcar bound for... no one knows.
after every hidden seed out
from it covering has been free,
and every book has been discarded from the bookshelf.
cattail down,
and the forgetting of myself.
cattail down,
replace the feathers in our vests.
cattail down,
surround the ivy
thats gone to poison in my chest.
"the parachute broke loose,"
cried the goose with misplaced
but understandable concern
for his little brother's mental health.
his happy little brother,
and the forgetting of himself.
cattail down,
around the bulrush, the pollen shed.
cattail down,
to dress my wounds,
it left a bee sting in their stead.
half an acre thoughts from out my head.
headed east out of st. paul,
we stopped for water.
rested in the cemetery,
watched the mississippi.
running out of food stamps,
found a bag along the footpath
off highway 61 filled with
what looked like marijuana.
(don't worry mom, we left it there)
hopped a grainrail out of pig's eye
toward milwaukee, a deer
between the tower and the tracks,
saw right through us.
said, "you don't know where you came from,
you don't know where you're going,
you think you're you-
you don't know who you are,
you're not you.
you're everyone else."
you're everyone else.
the morning rail yard whistle blows.
cattail down,
our boxcar bound for... no one knows.
after every hidden seed out
from it covering has been free,
and every book has been discarded from the bookshelf.
cattail down,
and the forgetting of myself.
cattail down,
replace the feathers in our vests.
cattail down,
surround the ivy
thats gone to poison in my chest.
"the parachute broke loose,"
cried the goose with misplaced
but understandable concern
for his little brother's mental health.
his happy little brother,
and the forgetting of himself.
cattail down,
around the bulrush, the pollen shed.
cattail down,
to dress my wounds,
it left a bee sting in their stead.
half an acre thoughts from out my head.
headed east out of st. paul,
we stopped for water.
rested in the cemetery,
watched the mississippi.
running out of food stamps,
found a bag along the footpath
off highway 61 filled with
what looked like marijuana.
(don't worry mom, we left it there)
hopped a grainrail out of pig's eye
toward milwaukee, a deer
between the tower and the tracks,
saw right through us.
said, "you don't know where you came from,
you don't know where you're going,
you think you're you-
you don't know who you are,
you're not you.
you're everyone else."
you're everyone else.
Lyrics submitted by aaron_kaump
Track duration: 03:47
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At the same time, the giving up everything for Christ idea applies, or any other spiritual sentiment which disregards material gain for identity, love of all beings, true happiness, etc (which Weiss writes about a lot).
It works on many levels because Aaron Weiss is brilliant and knows how to reach two audiences equally.
You're everyone else
You're everyone else
You're everyone else
You're everyone else
You're everyone else
Also, as far as that line that the whole band sings, I have no idea what it is either but I keep singing it to myself as "I've been leaking thoughts from out my head" which is ridiculous, I know, but made sense to me if only because in "Fig With a Bellyache" he says, "Got a heck of a lot to learn about remaining taciturn." Maybe he feels like he speaks too much without thinking first.
cried the goose with misplaced
but understandable concern
for his little brother's mental health.
his happy little brother,
and the forgetting of himself.
When I read this verse I got this out of it:
-"the parachute broke loose,"
I think this means he took a leap of faith. It could refer to when Aaron started living with the simple way. I think it just means totally relying on God.
-cried the goose with misplaced
but understandable concern
for his little brother's mental health.
In "American Christianity" a lot of people will see a true act of faith as something dangerous or suprising. It is understandable that his older brother (or whoever it refers to) would have concern for Aaron giving up all of his own understanding/desires and leaning all on faith. Yet at the same time it is misplaced because he is confident that God will provide.
his happy little brother,
and the forgetting of himself.
And this just sums it all up showing that by forgetting himself and relying all on God he has found true happiness
motherearthnews.com/Modern-Homesteading/1980-07-01/…
Of course, what that has to do with the rest of the song is still kind of an enigma.
“when you are with everyone but me, you’re with no one.
when you are with no one but me, you’re with everyone.
instead of being so bound up with everyone, be everyone.
when you become that many, you’re nothing. empty.”
- rumi
it sounds similar, sounds applicable to the song. i think it also helps it make sense.
"after every hidden seed out
from it covering has been free,
and every book has been discarded from the bookshelf.
cattail down,
and the forgetting of myself."
I feel like he's saying that only after he's completely stripped himself of his superficial identity and maybe every obligation or expectation he'd had in his life (uncovering the seeds), as well as everything that lies in his past (discarding the books), only then is he free to become himself. Forgetting himself seems to be a healthy practice in finding happiness.
"you don't know where you came from,
you don't know where you're going,
you think you're you-
you don't know who you are,
you're not you.
you're everyone else."
I think these lyrics are applicable to anyone who feels lost, but perhaps Aaron struggles with his identity also. He may be trying to discard his role that's been ascribed to him as this great figure who preaches his word of God (he writes about this problem in January 1979 as well, with his "grasshopper king" metaphor), and perhaps he's saying that he's nothing special. Maybe it came to him when he saw that deer, a pure creature of God, telling him that he's nothing, he's a regular person, just like everyone else.
I could be way off.
"the parachute broke loose,"
cried the goose with misplaced
but understandable concern
for his little brother's mental health.
his happy little brother,
and the forgetting of himself.
is referring to his brother mike's concerns for him throughout that period of his life. it's definitely one of the best songs on the album, and it feels a lot more genuine knowing that it's autobiographical and not metaphorical.