MONDAY MUSINGS: THE DANCE

Tonight I watched the award ceremony for the U.S. Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, an award given to a composer or performer for their lifetime contributions to popular music. This year the recipient is Garth Brooks.

I live in Oklahoma City, and in fact used to have a house in Yukon, OK, Garth’s hometown. My wife saw him playing in honkytonk bars here before anyone knew who he was.

The best part of the awards ceremony was the last hour or so when Garth told his own story in songs, both those of other songwriters as well as his own. The last song was “The Dance,” one of his most popular songs.

It struck a chord in me (sorry for the pun), as a Prom dance is a main element in the plot of my second book, Rule Number One. In it, the hero didn’t get to go to the Senior Prom with the heroine due to a misunderstanding, but it was one that ended their friendship for fifteen years, until another dramatic reunion.

It’s a beautiful song, albeit a bittersweet one. Here are some of the lyrics that fit in with the story I’m writing:

And now I'm glad I didn't know The way it all would end the way it all would go

Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain. But I'd of had to miss the dance.

Here’s Garth’s original video: