"Red" Series: Don't You See the "Starlight"?

Hey Everyone,

     So, if you have looked at the track listing for "Red", you'd know that I'm skipping around a little bit but this particular song just speaks to me with my school's prom coming up this Friday. This song, "Starlight" is one of my favorites on this album (but then, aren't they all?). It's got a sort of retro yet pop of today feel to it and it's a really cute concept for a song and the story inside it is great.
     Most people think that the inspiration for this song was the Kennedy family because of Taylor's recent relationship with Conor Kennedy. But this is not true, as the song was written before she actually met the Kennedy family.
     Okay, so you can find the lyrics here. It was actually difficult to find accurate lyrics for this song. I have the album itself and the official lyrics. Most online lyrics have the line "never would forget how we moved" when the actual pronoun is supposed to be "he". So imagine yourself back in the forties. It's summer and you're "17 and crazy, running wild wild". You meet a boy on the boardwalk and he's different from all the other boys. He makes you feel alive. You sneak out with him that night to some yacht club party with a ridiculous plan to pretend to be a duchess and a prince and it works! Then you're dancing and everything feels magical. It's a night you know in your heart you will never forget. Every moment, every detail is so vivid that it seems it will stand out in your mind forever. So mystical that it seemed everything was made of "starlight".  Then we flash forward into the future.

     You're hanging out with him again. Maybe he's officially your boyfriend now and you're at the beach. Maybe something's got you down.So he tries to cheer you up with this advice: why worry about the things you can't change? So then to bring up the mood, he talks of dreams. He talks of the impossible. And after that. that is what they become. Dreamers. She talks of another time when they're dancing and he talks of getting married and having kids and sharing their dreams with their kids. Teaching their kids to dream and follow their dreams.
     I think this song ends with a beautiful line: "Don't you dream impossible things?" I think we all do. Even those of us who are serious or say that daydreaming is ridiculous or a waste of time. We all have impossible dreams or hopes or fantasies. I think as a society, we need to dream a little more. Everyone is so caught up with reality all the time. Yes, reality is something everyone has to face and accept. But just because something seems impossible doesn't mean it is. It doesn't mean you can't make it happen. Not only that, but dreaming feeds the imagination and I think we all need to let our imaginations run wild a little more often. When was the last time that you just sat and daydreamed; let your mind wander. It's such a freeing and beautiful experience. To just dream. And I think in this world, people have stopped believing in dreams. People tell you that you're "not good enough". Don't ever let anyone tell you that. You are. You're special in your own special ways and if you really believe in your dreams you can make them happen.

Believe in your impossible dreams...

And dance like you're made of starlight. Because you are on the inside. We are all made of our own special starlight.
Love to all,
-Autumn the Music Girl