In any other world
you could tell the difference
and let it all unfurl
into broken remnants.
Smile like you mean it
and let yourself let go.

‘cause it’s all
in the hands of a bitter, bitter man.
Say goodbye
to the world you thought you lived in.
Take a bow,
play the part of a lonely, lonely heart.
Say goodbye
to the world you thought you lived in,
to the world you thought you lived in.

I tried to live alone,
but lonely is so lonely you know.
So human as I am,
I had to give up my defences.
So I smiled and tried to mean it,
to let myself let go.

‘cause it’s all
in the hands of a bitter, bitter man
Say goodbye
to the world you thought you lived in.
Take a bow,
play the part of a lonely, lonely heart.
Say goodbye
to the world you thought you lived in,
to the world you thought you lived in.

‘cause it’s all
in the hands of a bitter, bitter man
Say goodbye
to the world you thought you lived in. Take a bow,
play the part of a lonely, lonely heart.
Say goodbye
to the world you thought you lived in,
to the world you thought you lived in.

Say goodbye
to the world you thought you lived in.
Say goodbye
to the world you thought you lived in.
Say goodbye.

In any other world,
you could tell the difference.

Apparently this song is actually about someone whose life was irrevocably changed by the war in Lebanon (found by way of mikablog.com)

But as I zoomed southbound on the I-5, the phrase “in any other world” immediately made me think of parallel universes, and the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics and how I often fantasize that while my own life is pretty goddamn lonely, there is probably at least one alternate universe out there where I actually find and get together with my soulmate. (My fear is that I’ve actually found her at some point in my life, except that I screwed it up royally.)

I thought of that “Sliders” episode where the main characters finally make it back to what appears to be their own universe, only to find out that it’s only an almost-identical copy. The big dealbreaker is the fact that the Golden Gate Bridge is painted blue in that universe. But everything else is pretty much exactly like their home universe. (Of course, I also think about the Simpsons Halloween Special where Homer creates a time-machine and ends up creating all these alternate versions of the present, finally ending up in a universe which seems like his original universe, except that everyone has reptilian tongues. He merely shrugs and says “Eh, close enough.”)

I kind of wonder if the “bitter, bitter man” is a depiction of God. (Or maybe I’m simply projecting. Like Tyler Durden said, your conception of God tends to be based on your conception of your father, and my dad certainly fits the description of being a bitter, bitter man.)

Or the “bitter, bitter man” could certainly be me, and this song is about that part of my soul that I’ve somehow failed to kill, that still hopes that things are going to turn out for the better. The voice in my head that keeps me from committing suicide, and makes me realize that all my fears and all my self-doubts are perhaps illusionary, and maybe the world isn’t as bad as I think it is.

Wow, me, with hope? Who’d’ve thunk it?

And while I’ve been seriously telling myself to let certain things in my life just go for quite a while now, and while I’ve tried lowering my defenses, I still haven’t really gotten anywhere. My soul has been stagnant for quite a long time.

Here’s to hoping.

Maybe things will change. For the better. Maybe.