DESCRIBING EXCHANGE WITH SONG LYRICS
Everytime I listen to a song, that brings me back to a certain moment of my life, a good or a bad one. The first one that comes in my mind is Shake it off, by Taylor Swift. When I was in the US that song was played everywhere, I think I actually hated it at some point, it was too much. But today i want to focus on lyrics and categorize them in pre-departure, post-departure and post-exchange.
We all know that most of the times songs make it easier to explain things. It is easier to write down our feelings rather then say 'em out loud. Months ago I shared with you my exchange year playlist (click here to read more about it) but today I want to describe with song lyrics what an exchange student might feel during the whole experience, from the fear that chases us before departing to the unstoppable sadness of losing everything and everyone that takes over us when our time abroad is up.
PRE - DEPARTURE LYRICS
Hit the lights - Selena Gomez
"It's the plane you wanna catch to Vegas,
Things you swear you'll do before you die,
It's the city of love that waits for you,
But you're to damn scared to fly."
Sleep on the floor - The Lumineers
"Pack yourself a toothbrush dear
Pack yourself a favorite blouse
Take a withdrawal slip
Take all of your savings out
'Cause if we don't leave this town
We might never make it out"
POST - DEPARTURE LYRICS
Hopeless Wanderer - Mumford & Sons
"And hold me fast, Hold me fast
'Cause I'm a hopeless wanderer
I will learn, I will learn to love the skies I'm under
I will learn, I will learn to love the skies I'm under
The skies I'm under"
Where is my mind? - Pixies
"With your feet on the air and your head on the ground
Try this trick and spin it, yeah
Your head will collapse
But there's nothing in it
And you'll ask yourself
Where is my mind?"
POST - EXCHANGE LYRICS
Welcome to my life - Simple Plan
"Do you ever want to run away?
Do you lock yourself in your room?
With the radio on turned up so loud
That no one hears you screaming
No you don't know what its like
When nothing feels alright
You don't know what its like to be like me
To be hurt, to feel lost
To be left out in the dark
To be kicked when you're down
To feel like you've been pushed around
To be on the edge of breaking down
And no one there to save you"
I really like every song I listed here because somehow I can relate to the lyrics. When the time to depart arrived I was really excited to go, I was ready to pack and hop on a plane and when I had to fly back home nearly one year after, I felt broken, lost.
Do you feel like these songs are the ones which shortly descibe your feelings? If not which ones would you choose? I am curious to know!
- Cris
I really like every song I listed here because somehow I can relate to the lyrics. When the time to depart arrived I was really excited to go, I was ready to pack and hop on a plane and when I had to fly back home nearly one year after, I felt broken, lost.
Do you feel like these songs are the ones which shortly descibe your feelings? If not which ones would you choose? I am curious to know!
- Cris
the same as what i feel now
ReplyDeletewanna go back to the time exchanging
I feel like that feeling will never completely go away, I'm living in my host country at the moment and it is very different from when I was here on exchange, so I feel like it will never be the same... sometimes we don't think about it but when we do we get nostalgic...
DeleteI still have three months of exchange, and I am so afraid of finishing it... What would you like to do if you were still on exchange? Do you regret not doing something?
ReplyDeleteI'm really glad to hear that you are afraid to finish it because it means that you are enjoying it. I don't remember regretting anything in particular, but I'd just suggest you to overdo everything that you enjoy doing in your host country because once you go home you will never get to do stuff like that. Even simple things, for example almost every evening before dinner my host family and I sat down with drinks and we talked about our day and that was something that I did not do with my parents back home, and I enjoyed it because I felt part of the family completely. Even school, by the end of my exchange I was pretty much done with it, but if I could go back in time I'd probably hang out more at track meets or other sport events at school just to kind of embrace it more. Hope this helps! Enjoy the rest of your exchange. :)
Delete