the miseducation of patrick dunn

I’ve always found the music of The Decemberists reminiscent of my ninth grade literature class. When I hear the lyrics of Colin Meloy, I am reminded of my Miss Havisham-like teacher hunched over her desk by the weight of her heavy pearl necklace and reading snippets of literary classics aloud to a class of uninterested teenagers. Occasionally, the sound of her frail voice would resonate some distant thought that would stir me from a daydream. I felt that sense of nostalgia early last year when I first heard “Don’t Carry it All,” the opening track off their latest album, The King is Dead. I found the track to be one of the few rare gems in their catalog; that as a whole I find to be too folkish for my taste.

To me, the song outlines the harsh reality that is life. We live our lives day to day, constantly facing obstacles and dire situations; we grieve and then move on in a seemingly endless cycle. Last winter was a somber time in my life. Before the curtain fell on 2010, I predicted the new year to be the one where I finally “broke even.” It was a slogan I created for myself. I wasn’t necessarily planning to figure everything out; instead I simply intended to create an itinerary of viable outcomes. Anyway, the universe has this tendency of occasionally throwing a curveball into our direction; and at times can even hold the potential of derailing our hopes and dreams. This song serves as a reminder that we shouldn’t hold on to the burden of the unexpected and should let the weight roll off our shoulders - and simply, don’t carry it all.

Listen: The Decemberists - “Don’t Carry it All.”