As Tears Go By

It invariably rocks the worlds of those that fancy themselves as having slightly artistic bents when boldly confronted by the blazing artistry of someone who truly oozes talent in every waking moment of their existence.


Most people grow to become better people as they travel the course of their lives. That seems to be the purpose of life. I like to think I have done the same. However, some traits about a person never change. Again, I am like others in this way. I have always been feast or famine, sunlight or darkness, black or white, introvert or extrovert. My family members always told me that my extremes of personality create strife in my relationships because those that know me never know which ‘side’ of me they will encounter. One side is neither more pleasant than the other but “the sides” create confusion. If you were accustomed to seeing my light side, suddenly encountering my dark side, you would be confused too. You would wonder what happened. The answer would be nothing. I am fickle like that. Just like a secret door, one side suddenly turns to reveal another totally different side. It happens quickly without warning. This is me. This is my nature. All of that is to say that today, I was introspective.

Today, I really appreciated the lyrics of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards for something that I had never appreciated in this way before. I was in a meeting and something the speaker said made me think of the song “As Tears Go By”. (Insert scenes of earthquake here. That is to say my world rocked.) Jagger and Richards were only 21 years old when they wrote this hauntingly beautiful song.

“My riches can’t buy everything,

I want to hear the children sing.

All I hear is the sound,

Of rain falling on the ground.

I sit and watch

As tears go by.

It is the evening of the day.

I sit and watch the children play.

Doing things I used to do,

They think are new.

I sit and watch

As tears go by.”

Tell me. How does someone know at age 21 what it feels like to know that more life is behind you than in front of you? You want to hear the children sing but you never will again because you are so far from being a child that it is all but forgotten. All you will hear is the sound of tears falling on the ground, tears for your youth. How did they know how the evening of the day would feel at the tender age of 21? That is true genius. It puts me in awe.