The Foolish Fearless

When We Were Young by Take That

When we were young the world seemed so old,

Careless and cold,

We did what we were told in our lives,

When we were young.

Had the world by the tail, good would prevail, starships would sail,

And none of us would fail in this life,

Not when you're young.

We were drawn to whoever could keep us together,

And bound by the heavens above,

And we tried to survive,

Travelling at the speed of love.

When we were young,

When we adored the fabulous,

When we were young,

We were the foolish fearless,

Never knowing the cost of what we paid,

Letting someone else be strong,

When we were young.

In a moment of grace,

A long leap of faith,

There's still more glorious dawn awaits my life,

I'm here with the lovers

Then we burned the bridges we're crossing over,

Just to see the firelight,

And the innocent are getting over being old tonight.

When we were young,

When everything was what it seemed,

When we were young,

And everyday was how we dreamed,

Never knowing the cost of what we paid,

Letting someone else be strong,

When we were young.

And when you look at yourself tonight,

Are you someone you recognise?

You can take back what you've given away,

But it must be the last time.

 
When we were young......

As I prepare to send my daughter off to college, I've been thinking a lot lately about when I was her age - when I was young.  Times were so different, and yet, they weren't.  We didn't have many of the technological advancements that we do today, and I truly believe life moves at a faster pace now, but I bet she has the same thoughts and feelings that I did when I was 18 years old.   I adored the fabulous.  I was the foolish fearless.  I was travelling at the speed of love, and so is she.  Like her, I had the world by the tail and never believed that I would fail. 

I was so naive - I didn't think I was, but I was.  I thought I knew everything and my parents didn't understand - the world seemed so old.  I wonder if she feels that way, too? 

I've lived a lot of life since then, and thankfully most of my memories are good ones.  But if I didn't have the bad ones too, I wouldn't be who I am today, so I am thankful for them as well. 

And yet I want to protect her from anything bad.  From heartbreak.  From fear.  From being told no.  From loneliness.  From sickness.  From pain.  It doesn't work that way, does it?  One time when she was about 6 or 7 I said to her, "Why can't you go back and be my baby again?" and she said, "MOM!  I've got to LIVE!" 

That's right, baby.  You've got to live.  And I've got to let you spread your wings and do just that.  Cherish every moment in your life, and know that I'll always be here when things get tough.  I'll always understand.  Because once?  I was young.