On the highway

When I was writing “Dangerous Space,” I listened to songs I thought Mars and the band would like, and — especially — songs that Duncan Black might write and sing.

Here’s one: Audioslave, “I Am the Highway.”

It’s a song about relationship: for me, it’s the relationship between who I am in the everyday world, and who I am when I write.

I love my days and nights. They are sometimes tedious, sometimes very hard, often joyful. Nicola is here. People read my stories, and sometimes the stories come to life inside them. A bad day in my life is a bad day, but it’s my life and I love living it.

But here I am limited. Here sometimes I am so much less than I am. I don’t think I’m unusual that way, but that doesn’t really help (grin). I don’t like being less brave, less clear, less ready to throw my head back or throw my arms around someone, less generous, less passionately engaged… I love Nicola and my family and friends, I love this beautiful world so much, but I am not always happy about being tied to reality.

When I write, I am everything. And for those moments it is real, even if I cannot bring it with me into the real world.

I am not your rolling wheels
I am the highway
I am not your carpet ride
I am the sky
I am not your blowing wind
I am the lightning
I am not your autumn moon
I am the night

I love being everything.


click here if you can’t see the player

4 thoughts on “On the highway”

  1. Oh are you ever right. Desire and aspiration are everything, but we always seem to come up a little bit short in real life. On the other hand, I can’t imagine being always contentented with my life, no matter how good it is. I am so glad you love to write and create the worlds you can’t quite have.

  2. Whoops. I meant to say “so beautifully PUT”, not ‘but’. Eesh. Sorry ’bout that. It truly is beautiful what you have spoken. Reality can hinder us so much sometimes. 🙂

  3. Wow, this song does fit. I don’t think I’ve ever heard it before.

    “Here sometimes I am so much less than I am. I don’t think I’m unusual that way, but that doesn’t really help (grin).” Yeah, I’m with you on both counts there. I mean, it’s nice to know that you feel that way too, but it doesn’t make me feel it (the not liking it) any less.

    And this, “When I write, I am everything. And for those moments it is real…”

    Thanks for putting that into words.

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