Blogocentric Formulations

When I get older I will be stronger, they'll call me freedom

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DAY 28

Song: "Wavin' Flag"
Artist: K'Naan
Album: Troubadour (2009)

So anyone who follows soccer is probably familiar with this song. Even though it was originally written for Somalia citizens as an anthem about their aspirations for freedom, it was picked up and popularized as a theme song for many different occasions including, most notably, the last FIFA World Cup (2010) and for the relief efforts in Haiti following their massive earthquake.

The lyrics are a powerful call to action, reposted her from Azlyrics.com:

[Chorus:]
When I get older
I will be stronger
They'll call me 'Freedom'
Just like a wavin' flag
And then it goes back, and then it goes back
And then it goes back, and then it goes...

Born to a throne, stronger than Rome
But violent-prone, poor people zone,

But it's my home, all I have known,
Where I got grown, streets we would roam

Out of the darkness, I came the farthest
Among the hardest survival
Learn from these streets, it can be bleak,
Accept no defeat, surrender retreat

[Bridge:]
So we strugglin'
Fightin' to eat
And we wonderin'
When we'll be free
So we patiently wait
For that fateful day
It's not far away,
But for now we say:

[Chorus]

So many wars, settlin' scores,
Bringing us promises, leaving us poor,

I heard them say, love is the way
Love is the answer, that's what they say

But look how they treat us, make us believers
We fight their battles, then they deceive us

Try to control us, they couldn't hold us
'Cause we just move forward like Buffalo soldiers

[Bridge]
[Chorus]

This has been such a fantastic blogging activity this month (special thanks to lizco252 for putting it together!), I wanted to end it on a high note, with a song (well, two songs if you count the one from yesterday too: "I could really use a wish right now, wish right now" ) that embody the human spirit for aspiring to something greater. As writers, whether we're bloggers, novelists, essayists, journalists, lyricists, screenwriters, or whatever... we have the power to create something with our words. We have the power to shape a reader's perspective and, in addition to entertain, to communicate with them about issues we think are important. Don't let that opportunity go to waste. As we've seen and heard in the songs that have been posted all month, there's a real opportunity to create something that has real significance and lasting effect.