Pages

Monday, January 30, 2012

Two Sides

What I love most about songwriting is that it allows me to capture a moment, a thought or a feeling that I can keep with me forever.

About a year ago, I was involved in a business deal gone bad.  It was especially crushing to me because it involved someone that I knew personally.  Since I considered this person a friend, I assumed everything would go smoothly; but unfortunately, it didn't.  It went very wrong, very fast and I left the whole situation feeling very hurt and upset. 

Long after the business deal was over, I continued to be angry about it.  I just couldn't let it go.  One of my closest friends noticed this and asked me about it, and without holding back, I expressed how mad I still was about the situation.  In a gentle response, my friend shared with me the other side of the story, as she happened to know the other person involved, and she also told me that I had been holding on to anger for too long and that I needed to bring it before the Lord.

So that's exactly what I did.

That night, I went home and prayed.  I first asked God to forgive me for holding on to so much bitterness and anger, and I prayed that He would help me to forgive the person that hurt me.  In that moment, God revealed to me something I wasn't expecting...that person was hurt too.  He also showed me that there are two sides to every story, and the other person's story is just as important as mine.

That was a humbling, life changing experience for me, and I knew I needed to capture that lesson in a song so that I would never ever forget it.  Here are the lyrics to my song, Two Sides.  I haven't come up with the music yet, but I will one day soon.  (I'm imagining it as a country song ;))

Two Sides

I was driving in my car one day, blasting my radio
Smiling as the sun beamed down on me
When I stopped at the light, I looked up at my window
Just to see the same old man begging for money

But what I didn’t know is that man used to have it all
A house, a wife, two kids and a great job too
But when he lost that job, everyone abandoned him
And now the street was the only home that he knew

It’s in moments like these
That God gently reminds me

(Chorus)
There are two sides
Two sides to every story
And you can’t understand it all
You gotta show some compassion
And open up your heart to see
There are two sides to every story

Well, I had this friend; yes, she was my best friend
We did just about everything together
And at the biggest time in my life, when I needed her there
She wasn’t anywhere to be found

But what I didn’t know is that she used to have it all
A house, husband, two kids and great job too
But when her husband left her, she lost everything
And now loneliness was the only friend she knew

It's in moments like these
That God gently reminds me

(Chorus)

It's not always about me
Lord, help me to be humble so I can see

(Chorus)

2 comments: