You know what I hate? I hate the song "Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls" by TLC. I heard it on the radio yesterday and it's been bothering me ever since.
When it came out in 1994, everybody loved the song. Oh, it's so catchy! Oh, it's so inspirational! What a great message! What message is that? Let's review the chorus:
Don't go chasing waterfalls;
Please stick to the rivers and the lakes that you're used to.
I know that you're gonna have it your way or nothing at all,
But I think you're moving too fast.
Supposedly it means you shouldn't chase after flashy / material things, or that you shouldn't let yourself be taken in by the lure of the sexy Bad Boy. Or whatever. But what does it really say?
I'll tell you: Stick to the rivers and lakes that you're used to. Don't move beyond your comfort zone. Don't look for adventure. Don't reach beyond your own or others' expectations. I know you think you're better than your present circumstances, but dude, you're not.
That's what passes for inspiration? (Or did in 1994? LOL.) It's condescension couched in pseudo concern (bless your heart, I'd just hate to see you get hurt!) and it's just about the worst advice I could think of to give anybody.
So here's my advice, though sadly it will not be sung by three hot women of questionable sanity:
Chase those waterfalls, sistah. Scale mountains. Dream those impossible dreams whether or not you ever fully achieve them, whether or not you get hurt in the process. I mean, not that I want you to get hurt -- but if you're playing things safe, how much can you really expect to gain from your experiences?
So there you go. Dream big, live big, says the stay-at-home mom eking out her quiet Midwestern life while referencing decades-old pop songs.
Yeah, I'm definitely cool like that. ;-)
~RCH~
6 comments:
i always thought that song was quite silly! don't go chase your dreams! don't dream big! ha! those silly ladies...
and so crazy that you posted this when i posted something similar too! we must be seesters!
I hear faint sounds of background music, "To dream the impossible dream..."
See, and isn't that a better song? (Not that you probably know from TLC, Daddy, but that's okay.) :-)
Exactly! "Climb Every Mountain" would also win in a song-off!
There was another song that came out about the same time that I just hated~ "Love Will Save the Day" by Des'ree?
"Gotta be bad
You gotta be bold
You gotta be wiser
You gotta be hard
You gotta be tough
You gotta be stronger
You gotta be cool
You gotta be calm
You gotta stay together
All I know all I know is love will save the day."
Psychonanylze that one if you like. I still can't stand it.
I agree that when that song first came out I found the lyrics annoying, but it's the kind of song that grew on me over time. Do you remember the video for it? I think there were several different "stories" within it-- one was about a kid who gets involved in a gang and gets killed and you see him mom grieving and another was about someone who got AIDS and was dying. So I guess you have to see the "waterfalls" as the dumb risks that young people sometimes take that end their lives too soon and not the good kind of risks that take you to exciting places in life. Just my 2 cents ;-)
Ha! I still think of you and your rant about the correct use of irony whenever I hear Alanis Morisette's Ironic on the old-school radio station in my town. Funny thing is, I heard the same rant from my DH the first time we heard it together. I am now forever paranoid about invoking irony and generally just avoid it ;-)
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