Love Assignment #3: Write a Love Song

Music has been an instrumental part of my life for as long as I can remember (pun
absolutely intended). From a young age, my parents opened my eyes to the world of
brilliant songwriting of Carole King, Cat Stevens, Crosby, Stills & Nash, and, of course, The
Beatles. My sister and I would perform the Beyoncé “Single Ladies” dance at every
opportunity, we would lip sync Katy Perry standing on the coffee table, and we even played
concerts together featuring some definitely-not-improvised originals. By second grade, I
started piano lessons, by fifth grade I picked up the ukulele, and in eighth grade I began
playing guitar. From idolizing Taylor Swift lyrics, to memorizing favorite Phoebe Bridgers
melodies, to making playlist upon playlist, I have appreciated creative songwriting for
years.

Writing music is not a muscle I flex often, and before coming to college, it had been months
since I had pieced together even a few chords and lyrics. Despite my interest in everything
music related, my guitar skills aren’t top-tier, but bringing a guitar on campus has provided
so much joy, peace, and groundedness into my life here. Within the first months of school, I
found my abilities improving ever so slightly. Back home, I picked up my guitar occasionally,
but here I reach for it at least once a day to unwind, destress, and reconnect with myself.

As I felt my confidence growing, I started humming a few melodies. This class was inspiring
to me; there is so much to say about love: how it feels, what it looks like, what I think about
it. Sitting with love and being open to it is a love action in itself, as expressed by Thich Nhat
Hanh. With this mindset, I gave myself the space to write a few first-draft lyrics, then some
more, then I changed words so they would rhyme, then I set it to the tune in my head… It
was fun, it was creative, it was making something of what had been going on in my head.

It is deeply personal, too. More specifically, this song is about my experience being in love
and coming to that realization within my first quarter of college. Many of my writings for
this class have discussed my long-distance relationship, and this piece is no different. I
enjoyed weaving in inside jokes and choosing words intentionally to convey what I felt in
the most specific and representative way. Even the title itself carries meaning: my boyfriend
and I were in the same class when I was in first grade and he was in kindergarten. Knowing
where we are now, my final wish at the end of the song where I say, “take me back to first
grade” is me wanting to relive any moment I might have shared with him.

Below are the lyrics to my song with a few annotations in purple of what the lyrics mean to
me. With any art, it can be interpreted by the audience, but here are my thoughts. The final
product (for now) is a voice memo recording of me singing and playing my guitar. In my
opinion, the simplicity of it is what makes it feel most personal. It is just me with the music,
and it is authentically imperfect. I wrote this with no intention of showing it to anyone, not
even the person it is technically written for, but I am rethinking that now. I want to share it
with him (and with you!), and I look forward to doing so. Above all, it is a message of
gratitude: I am grateful for this class and how it has made me aware of the ways love exists
around me and within me. I am grateful for the experience of being loved and loving
another. I am grateful for music and its power to tell a story and convey a feeling. I am
grateful for love.
first grade

[VERSE] (This lyric combines the ones above to include visual

the leaves on the trees look just like your eyes [C Am F] and auditory imagery.)
but so does everything else [C G] let me stay [Am F]
(To me, this is the experience of getting to know (A direct connection to leaving home and starting long
someone so well and realizing that everything you see distance.)
reminds you of them.) don’t fall away [Em7 Am G F C]
you have me saying things i don’t recognize [C Am F] from me now [G]
you could say that i fell [C G]
(I disagree with myself here; love is not falling. It is [VERSE]
intentional, but sometimes we sacrifice semantics for i feel echoes of you when i look at the sky [C Am F]
the rhyme…) do you have to be far [C G]
(Truly, such a cliche, but it is one for a reason. I take
[PRE-CHORUS] comfort in looking at the sky and knowing that he is
if it’s cold i can’t tell [Am] under the same one.)
i forgot how to spell {C] I practice saying your name till it feels like mine [C Am
so go easy on my mind [Am G F] F]
you don’t have to hide [Am] and then i remember you are [C G]
so love take your time [C] (Again, I would dispute this. Ownership does not have a
i'll be waiting to [Am] place in love, however, I came to that realization after
catch you [Dm7] writing this, and again, sometimes the rhyme wins.)
(This is the unconditional promise to know someone
and understand them for who they are. I refuse to run [PRE-CHORUS]
from discomfort.) if it’s cold i can’t tell [Am]
i forgot how to spell {C]
[CHORUS] so go easy on my mind [Am G F]
i think about you in colors and shapes [F C G] you don’t have to hide [Am]
teach me to know you in melodies [Am G] so love take your time [C]
(This has many meanings, but one of them calls back to i'll be waiting to [Am]
how my boyfriend and I reconnected years after first catch you [Dm7]
grade. We both do theater; he is an incredible singer and
I gravitate more towards dance. The contrast of physical [CHORUS]
representations [colors and shapes] with a more i think about you in colors and shapes [F C G]
abstract, musical idea [melodies] plays to each of our teach me to know you in melodies [Am G]
strengths. More simply, it means that I want to know tracing your veins [Em7]
him in his language, whether that is in a literal context learning your pain [Am]
or more ambiguous.) painting the picture of writing a song [F C Am G]
tracing your veins [Em7] let me stay [Am F]
learning your pain [Am] don’t fall away [Em7 Am G F C]
painting the picture of writing a song [F C Am G] from me now [G]
 (I end the song on a note of nostalgia, an emotion I feel
[BRIDGE] extremely often. But it is not sad. To me, this last line is
(Lots of inside jokes!) an appreciation for where I am from. In the 13 years
modern jazz and jasmine tea [Em7 Am] between first grade and now, my life has changed so
(We both like Laufey, a modern jazz musician/singer, much, a lot of it for the better. In the next 13 years, who
and one of our first dates was getting boba together.) knows what new joys I could encounter?)
my dog likes the smell of the cuff of your jeans [F C G]
walk me home and hold my hand [Em7 Am]
(The week before I left, we would go on night walks
around the neighborhood together, and then sit at a
specific bench in the park.)
prettier than the sea and the sand [F C G]
a soft laugh and long sigh [C F G]
do we really have to go home tonight? [Am F]
a memory etched in my head [C G F]
but i want you here instead [C G F]
(The entire bridge is happy and reminiscent of sweet
love, but it ends with longing. To me, this articulates the
feeling of being in a long distance relationship: it is still
such a gift to be with someone, but there is a constant
desire to be close to them, and that is left unfulfilled.)

[CHORUS]
i think about you in colors and shapes [F C G]
teach me to know you in melodies [Am G]
tracing your veins [Em7]
learning your pain [Am]
painting the picture of writing a song [F C Am G]
let me stay [Am F]
don’t fall away [Em7 Am G F C]
from me now [G]

[OUTRO]
i wish i could have stayed [Am F]
(Some days, I wish I could have stayed in California or in
my town or anywhere close to where he is. This also
holds a broader meaning in my mind. I miss my home
and everyone in it. While this is a romantic sentiment
here, I want to be with all of my people, too.)
take me back to first grade [C G F]