I Just Wanna Be A Girl!

I've been to a few Taylor Swift themed parties and they are so therapeutic. I know some people say Swifties are like a cult following their leader, but there is so much more to it than that.  Have you ever heard about female rage? Well, some of Taylor's songs are perfect for when you're angry. When you are with a bunch of Swifties, you can scream your heart out and no one will judge you. They're going to be doing the same thing. You can dance like a maniac and no one would bat an eye. You can let loose and do things that you might not do with other company.  Then there are the bonds you forge. I met a bunch of girls last month and saw them again a couple days ago. They greeted me with a huge smile and welcomed in with open arms. Being a Swiftie is like being part of a community where you are totally accepted. Taylor's music is a safe space. Her songs talk about things that everyone has been through, from loss and grief to heartbreak and first love. The best part is ...

"How can you say that you love someone you can't tell is dying."  Yessss. How can you say that you love someone if you don't know them? The things they like. The things that make them tick. What makes them happy or sad? That's obvious. You can't. I'm not talking about the trivial things that people don't share. I'm talking about the big things. The obvious ones. The object of your affection can ask you for some things, but not everything. There are some things that should be natural and instinctual.  This line talks about signs in a relationship. If you are in a good relationship, you should be able to read the signs that your partner is giving you. You should know when things are alright and when some issues need to be fixed. The narrator in the song pretty much tells us that her partner doesn't know her very well. She has been trying to express something for a long time now, but he is oblivious.  In the end, all a person can do is remain quie...

  Flashback when you met me Your buzzcut and my hair bleached Even in my worst times You could see the best of me Flashback to my mistakes My rebounds, my earthquakes Even in my worst lies You saw the truth in me And I woke up just in time When I hear these lyrics, I feel like... there's someone out there who really understands me. The way the singer says this with such certainty makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside. It's someone who can see past the drama I cause and my meltdowns. It's someone who can weather my storms with me. The singer talks about how this person could always look beyond things in her past and see her. They saw the true her. They loved her for being herself.  This is a dream of mine. To have someone like this. Someone who knows I have off days and is willing to bear with them. Someone who just wants me to be with them. Just my presence. Someone who cares about what I have to say and wants to listen to the trivial things I want to talk about. Someone who ...

Before I start talking about this... I just have to give you the bridge of this masterpiece (How Did It End). Say it once again with feeling How the death rattle breathing Silenced as the soul was leaving The deflation of our dreaming Leaving me bereft and reeling My beloved ghost and me Sitting in a tree D-Y-I-N-G These lyrics are just so poetic and formal, yet they don't feel right for what Taylor is trying to convey. They look like something that she would want to present publicly - like a speech or report. Even though these lyrics are filled with emotion, as always, they aren't in her usual demeanor. I love how the song sounds like a ballad to her lover while it's also an elegy to what she lost.  The lyrics barely make sense, but the part I love the most is "D-Y-I-N-G." It's like she's trying to draw attention to the fact that she's dying inside. (Here comes my own perspective now). This song was written after her break-up with Joe Alwyn. Here, she...

This is the title of a song from The Tortured Poets Department. To me, it feels like the singer is telling us that people have a habit of underestimating her.  I'm sure a lot of people feel like their abilities are often underestimated. People don't realize what you are capable of until you prove it. It's not enough to just say something. You have to show the world that you can do it. That's the only way you will earn their respect.  Here, the narrator is a monster or witch descending on a town who has shamed her. This town doesn't fear or respect her. She is trying to change that. She wants to show them just what she is capable of and terrorizes the town.  "So I leap from the gallows and I levitate down your street. Crash the party like a record scratch as I scream..."  The picture this creates in my mind is one of a devilish figure. She is all ready to be executed when she breaks her bonds and jumps onto the street. There's a party, where people are ...

In my opinion, this song is pretty much a tribute to someone who the narrator misses more than anything. 'The Very First Night' refers to the first night that the pair spent apart. I think it's the night after they fell in love. They couldn't stay together. That was the moment that she knew how much she really loved the other person. It's obvious that you can't miss someone you don't love. To miss someone after knowing them for a short period of time is a sign of how deep the love is.  Over the course of the song, the narrator says that she doesn't let her friends know that she's brokenhearted after the relationship ended. She keeps it all to herself. She lets them believe that she is happy and content with her life when in reality, she's pretty heartbroken and lonely. The love she shared with this person was surprising. They fell in love unexpectedly. No one expected them to fall in love. In my opinion, that's true in every relationship. Rel...

There's a picture that the chorus of this song paints in my head. The chorus goes "'Cause I don't know how it gets better than this. You take my hand and drive me head first. Fearless. And I don't know why but with you I'd dance in a storm in my best dress. Fearless."  So here it goes. There's a girl who's usually very prim and proper. She prefers to stay indoors. She sticks to things she is familiar with and she doesn't regret it. She is the last person you would expect to be outdoors. But, for this one guy, she would set aside her morals. She would do anything for him.  This reminds me a bit of an argument between Damon and Elena from The Vampire Diaries. Elena says that she sets aside her morals and everything that she believes in for Damon. Now, this might seem toxic, but in the song, this just shows how pure the love between the two people is.  This perfect girl is willing to dance in a storm in her best dress. It shows that she cares for ...

I admit, I'm not an Evermore fan. But, there were a few lines from this song that stood out and demanded my attention.  "I was never ready, so I watch you go." This lyric shows us that we can't keep waiting for the opportune moment. We have to take things by storm. If we keep waiting, we might lose something that we love. We might never be ready for what could happen. But, we can't let that stop us from trying. You'll never know what could happen if you never try. Here, the lyric refers to a relationship. The narrator wasn't ready to confess her feelings for the other person, so she ended up losing him.  The beginning of the song talks about how the narrator broke someone's heart. She tells us how he left him stranded, and how she let go of him while dancing. She says...  "Your heart was glass, I dropped it." This line reminds me of something my friend used to tell me. "Trust is like a broken glass. Once it's broken it can't be f...

Let me get one thing straight. I just want to talk about the significance that Taylor Swift's Eras Tour had on young girls and swifties. I don't want to talk about any of the other factors now. The Eras Tour has created a huge impact on the lives of so many people. From learning the chants to guessing the surprise songs to making friendship bracelets to trade, there is so much more to the Eras Tour than a simple concert.  For starters, it's a place where women and teenage girls feel safe. I mean, have you seen the costumes that they prepare for the tour? They dedicate a lot of time to their outfits. These outfits aren't things that you can wear out on the streets. They might be representations of some of Taylor's songs or they might be similar to Taylor's own costumes. Some costumes are the Lover bodysuit, the Reputation bodysuit, and the Lavender Haze jacket. Here, girls and women can dress up however they want to and embrace Taylor and her songs.  Next, there ...

Everyone has different ways of showing their love. That's why we have the whole idea of love languages. This song talks about a beautiful relationship.  The narrator is telling us about the various reasons she loved her guy. She tells us about all the reasons he was a gentleman. She says that she couldn't ask for anyone better. I'm sure a lot of us can relate to this. We feel like the person we are in a relationship with is the best person ever and that we could never have anything better than that person.  Then she reminisces about their relationship before they were together. (This is what I think is happening. I can't say this is what the song actually means.) She tells us that their relationship wasn't always as smooth as it is now. She tells us that there were ups and downs. She tells us that they had plenty of arguments. But, she tells us that the relationship was like a rollercoaster. It was scary and unexpected, but it was still magical and exciting. Again, ...

There are a few lyrics in the song 'All Too Well Ten Minute Version' that stood out to me. The first one was "And you call me up again just to break me like a promise, so casually cruel in the name of being honest."  The second one is "You kept me like a secret, but I kept you like an oath." These are lyrics that touch my heart in one way or another every time I listen to them. The second one especially. It talks about the difference in the level of commitment that two people have to each other. To one person, it's not very serious. To the second person - the narrator of the song - the amount of commitment that she shows towards her partner and their relationship is magnanimous.  Going back to the first lyric now, one aspect of the lyric is that honesty - or the truth - does hurt sometimes. Her partner - or rather her ex - says some things to her that are really cruel. But, in the end, he was being honest with her. Yes, you should be honest, but can'...

When I was listening to this song, I was thinking of what story the song was trying to tell. This is my interpretation of what it's narrating.  So, the protagonist and narrator is a girl who's trying to get with this guy that she likes. She's been working on it for quite a while now and things are just right (finally). Out of nowhere, another girl enters the picture and steals him from the protagonist. The protagonist underestimated the woman she was competing with. Similarly, the other woman didn't know how much pain she was going through when she appeared out of nowhere.  The protagonist goes on to tell the object of her affection that the other woman is a fake. She believes that the woman should know that "stealing other people's toys on the playground won't make you many friends." This woman looks down at the narrator. She considers herself higher and better than the narrator. She thinks she's crazy. But, in the woman's defense, the narrato...

I was watching the All Too Well short film, directed by Taylor Swift when this thought struck me. Sometimes, there is a line that shouldn't be crossed. It might seem small to you, but once it's crossed, there's no going back from it.  There was this scene where the couple on screen were fighting. The guy asked her for her forgiveness and she accepted. But, look at the lyric that followed that scene. "And I know it's long gone and there's nothing else I could do. I forget about you long enough to forget why I needed to." Take a moment for the lyrics to sink in.  It doesn't matter that there was an apology or reconciliation. There's no way that they are going to look at each other the same way. They might share intimate moments again. But, it doesn't really matter. There's a break in their relationship. Things aren't going to be that easy again. The level of trust they place in each other won't be the same as before. There's alway...

Ohh yes. I'm sure we all have had our fair share of teenage love. I'm sure we believed that it would last forever.  Look back and remember the endless drama that followed. Teenagers don't really know what love is. They just love the idea of love. It's nothing more than infatuation. Yet, when one experiences it, it seems like it would last forever. There was probably a lot of sneaking around. You thought that it was the joy of the first love.  I'm sure there were some good parts. You probably learned what to expect in the future. You learned what you needed. You learned what to avoid. You learned about your boundaries. You discovered new sides of yourself. You figured out what you would and wouldn't do for another person. It set you on a path of self-discovery. There was also an inevitable heartbreak when you swore off dating. You thought your life would never be the same again. You felt like you would never get over it. Spoiler alert... you did. And guess what? ...

This particular line in the song 'The Prophecy' sang out to me. What I see here is a girl who was always second best. She was someone who put everyone else's needs before her own. She would do anything for someone she loved. She would sacrifice herself for someone she loves.  Yet, nothing she does is ever enough. Even though she prioritizes important people in her life, no one does the same for her. She is never anyone's first choice. She doesn't know what it's like to be prioritized. She doesn't know how to let anyone take care of her. However, she wants to know what that feels like.  Yes, she is a high maintenance. Yes, she does have some expectations. But, that doesn't mean that she doesn't need someone to be there for her. It doesn't mean that she doesn't secretly crave a bit of pampering from time to time. She is self-sufficient, but she needs some time to be small.  This girl wants to be chosen by someone. She wants to be prioritized. S...

  "I want to wear his initial on a chain round my neck, chain round my neck Not because he owns me, but cause he really knows me."  This is a lyric that I can really understand. When you wear someone's initials, it doesn't mean that they own you. It doesn't mean you are theirs. It's not a symbol of ownership. It's a symbol that the initial you are wearing means something to you. It can be that of your best friend, your parents, your partner, or your own as well.  I think it's a big honour if someone wears your initials. It means that you have made a great impact on their lives. If they are wearing it, it obviously means that it's a positive impact that you made on them. It might not seem like much to you, but you probably did something that they really needed. You might have made them believe in themselves again. You might have boosted their confidence. You might have been their biggest supporter. You might have been the reason they succeeded in th...

  "You know there's many different ways that you can kill the one you love The slowest way is never loving them enough" These lines are really very true. There are many ways that you can kill the one you love - or rather kill love itself. You can make someone lose all belief in love. You can make them lose all hope for their future. You can break their heart. You can send them into depression. You can hamper their relationships in the future. You can make them doubt themselves. You can make them feel like everything is their fault.  The slowest way is never loving them enough. You don't give them the love that they deserve. You can make them feel inferior. You can even make them feel like they don't deserve your love. But, no one has the right to make another person feel like they don't deserve love. Everyone deserves love. If you can't give them that - for whatever reason - that's on you. You shouldn't make them feel like they are unworthy. That c...

Why do you need to ask for permission to cry? To me, that shows the sorry state of today's world. In this world, people don't have the freedom to feel emotion - not only sadness. The world is so cruel these days.  Showing emotion is one of the most basic things. It's horrible that people can't show emotion without permission. I mean, why do you need to ask whether you are allowed to feel. It's not only sadness. If a person is happy in public (and showing it), people have to ask why. It's not just that they are curious, they are jealous. They are jealous that they aren't happy. Why can't someone just be genuinely happy for another person? The world is so competitive. No one really wishes the best for you.  The opposite thing happens when you are upset. People watching are really happy to see that you are upset. That's just plain evil. If someone is upset, one's instinct should be to ask what's wrong and to try to make them feel better.  There ...

The song 'Fifteen' is a beautiful portrayal of a typical high school experience. It starts on the first day of high school, walking through the doors. The narrator is obviously very nervous and she is trying to stay out of everyone's way. She has loads of dreams. She has a lot that she wants to do. Being a typical teenager, she believes that she has everything figured out.  One of her little dreams was hoping to catch the eye of a senior boy. She wanted to be seen. (This is something that every teenage girl wants. Everyone wants to be seen and known.) The speaker tells us that when you're fifteen, you really believe in love. If someone tells you that they love you, you believe them without a doubt. She believes that she knows what she's doing.  The speaker talks about meeting her best friend by chance. All she did was sit next to this girl, and things just fell into place. Before she knew it, they were inseparable. Smash cut into her first date. Her mom was waiting ...

The bridge of this song is one of the most heartbreaking things that I have heard.  So I'll watch your life in pictures like I used to watch you sleep And I feel you forget me like I used to feel you breathe And I'll keep up with our old friends just to ask them how you are I hope it's nice where you are It tells us about the emotions that one feels after a break-up. Here, the speaker is obviously still in love with her ex-lover. But, unfortunately, she has to watch his life from a distance now. That breaks her heart. Another line in the song says "I never thought we'd have a last kiss." She truly believed that the relationship would last forever.  I'm sure this is something that everyone can relate to. How can you love someone without seeing a future with them? How can you let someone go without missing them to the point of insanity? Is it possible to skip the heartbreak and just go back to the way you used to be? I certainly don't think so.  I think ...