Midnight Oil “In the Valley”

This song is really speaking to me today. I’ve been wrestling with anxiety the last couple of weeks…. a good friend
helped me figure out what it is, understanding definitely helps but doesn’t make it go away by itself.
 
While recording music lately, I unearthed some influences that I haven’t thought about in a while. Midnight Oil is a huge one. They predate Rage against the Machine (which I also adore) in terms of making rock n roll a vehicle of societal/political rage, but they also have heart, compassion, and spirit.
 
“In the valley I walk
I cried yes I cried I was down then I crawled
Mercy’s arms, she comes
When I was down there
In the valley I walk
Do you read me they couldn’t hear me
In the valley”
 
That line about being down but then crawling gets me every time. It reminds me that we get beaten but not defeated. We get hardened but not hard. Air gets knocked out of us but we don’t stop breathing. Whatever fear or anxiety I may experience, I will not run or hide. I’ll sit with it and make my peace with it. And live on.
 
 
 
 
Life Insights