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Hear the Song
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Leaving the Nest
words and music by Paige Powell © 2015 Paige E. Powell
1. My parents' house is finally leaving me
It lingered too long for me to feel free
Clouded by time, it slowly faded away
As gently as twilight covers every day
2. It isn't that my family did something wrong
They just couldn't listen to my different song
I visit claustrophobic rooms whisp'ring, "Do you recall
The wishes and wanderlust within these walls?"
Bridge: My true self is becoming clear to me
My place and my songs defining who I can be
The things I need to do, I do without being told
My freedom's an ocean breaker
Rolling through my soul, through my soul
I’m flying on my own
I’m finally feeling whole
3. The dark is growing grayer like the foggy tree
Leaving just the outline of its memory
A soft, quiet veil snows on my painful past
That obligated feeling is leaving at last
4. My home is my new life now that I have grown
Reborn out of wanting to be left alone
Oh, how I wanted to escape
Through that imposing door
That self-imprisonment haunts me no more
Bridge: My new life helps that part of me to die
That house haunted me long after I said, "Goodbye"
My true self is becoming clear to me
My place and my songs defining
Who I really can be — who I can be
I'm finally feeling free!
I'm finally feeling free! Yeah!
This song explores the emotions of a college-age woman (yes, this is a photo of Paige when she was in college) yearning for internal freedom after visiting her family, comparing her parents’ home to the “home” of her new adult life.
When we realize that some of the values and choices of our family are not our own, its not that they did something wrong — its that we’re growing up. The woman in this song has been longing for freedom and now that she’s an independent adult, she realizes that her parents’ house has been haunting her. She laments, “I visit claustrophobic rooms whispering, “Do you recall the wishes and wanderlust within these walls?” The strong, rock drums punctuate the discordant guitar chords that resolve into the bridges, declaring, “My true self…” and “My new life…” and arriving at “I’m flying on my own!”
More on "Leaving The Nest" from "The Story Behind the Song" Blog: click HERE.
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