I’ve been on a dark journey this year, as the politician and party I voted for in South Australia has turned sinister and cynical, and tried to claim that destruction of natural heritage they are undertaken was part of their election platform when it wasn’t.
I know everybody else has been jaded by politics for a while but, as an optimist, I did think that Peter Malinauskus was a decent human. That view has now shifted.
So while that has knocked my civic equlibrium for a six, I have seen friends bemoan their mental and emotional states online with raw honesty.
This song is a song of hope, steeped in the reality that we have finite lives and will die. It’s message is that it’s right and proper to struggle towards the light, and that this endeavour is eased by having someone else willing to be with you in the effort, even if that just means being there by your side. Period.
Some things in life occur beyond the realm of words and this clumsy, broken song, is an attempt to give voice to a particular mindset and method that some people I know adopt when going through moments of depressed feelings or despair.
And if, unlike the singer in this song, you can’t see a way out just now, stick with us and try one of these services to buy you some extra breathing space.
Australia:
- Lifeline — 13 11 14 (24/7 crisis support, call or text)
- Beyond Blue — 1300 22 4636
- 13YARN (for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people) — 13 92 76
International:
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (US) — call or text 988
- Samaritans (UK & Ireland) — 116 123
- findahelpline.com — searchable directory by country
Dark Territory Lyrics
[Verse 1]
If you’re having trouble finding me
It’s ‘coz I’m lost in my dark territory
I’m trying to remember, where I put the exit signs
Not giving up, but it will take some time
If I told you, what I am going through
Would not be fair to pass my burden onto you
It’s my road, I’m walking, it’s the path that I must tread
This shadow will keep stalking me until the day I’m dead
[Instrumental build]
[Chorus]
(It’s true I’ll die) but I’m not dying tomorrow
(Yes I’m fine) and I’m not leaving today
(I don’t want) to be the one who causes sorrow
When it’s time for me to finally drift away
We’ve watched the sun together
And we’ve counted every year
And through this dismal weather
You gave me, reason to, push past the fear
[Verse 2]
Sometimes when I wonder why it’s me
Who is stuck inside this dark territory
I try hard, to remember, what I did that caused this pain
And then I end up feeling worse again
When I’m in here, I cannot see your light
Because every sense I have is occupied
It’s my way, of coping, it’s another way to try
To keep on hoping, for relief, before I die
[Instrumental build]
[Chorus]
(It’s true I’ll die) but I’m not dying tomorrow
(Yes I’m fine) but I’m not leaving today
(I don’t want) to be the one who causes sorrow
When it’s time for me to finally drift away
We’ve watched the sun together
And we’ve counted every year
And through this dismal weather
You gave me, reason to, push past the fear
[Major instrumental solo]
[Bridge]
Darkness comes, and darkness fades away
(Thank god) These overcast conditions rarely stay
I know you’re worried for me, and you’re not sure what to say
It’s enough to know you’re with me, to push through this disarray
And it will keep me seeking sunshine, up until my final day
[Instrumental build]
[Chorus]
(It’s true I’ll die) but I’m not dying tomorrow
(Yes I’m fine) but I’m not leaving today
(I don’t want) to be the one who causes sorrow
When it’s time for me to finally drift away
We’ve watched the sun together
And we’ve counted every year
And through this dismal weather
You gave me, reason to, push past the fear
So let’s stay, together til, we disappear
So let’s stay, together til, we disappear