A very impressive song and I can’t begin to say how much I like the logic chain she begins with (ie, not being sorry to dreaming of that which you can’t have, or, alternatively, living forever by only thinking of yourself). In my mind it always brings up the Genesis story and the apple that links awareness with the fall. In this song, it’s similar inasmuch as that by never being sorry, you’re staying static. By being aware — evidenced by sorrow and the self-awareness requisite to be aware of how one’s own actions affect, detrimentally, another’s life, it limits your life and allows you to die…but the life you live is one of awareness. Which…I think I’d rather live a short, but self-aware life, than a long and selfish one. Well, that’s what I’m trying for at least.
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Regina Spektor – Pound of Flesh (Ezra Pound)
If you’re never sorry,
Then you can’t be forgiven.
If you’re not forgiven,
Then you cannot be forgotten.
If you’re not forgotten,
Then you can live forever.
If you live forever,
Then you’ll begin to dream
of death.
Ezra Pound sat upon my bed,
asked me which books as of late I’ve read.
Ezra Pound sat upon my bed,
asked me which books as of late I’ve read.
Asked me if I’ve read his own
and whether I could spare a pound
of flesh to cover his bare bones.
I says, “Man, take a pound, take two.
What’s a pound of flesh between
friends like me and you?”
What’s a pound of flesh among friends?
But if you’re never sorry…
If you’re never sorry,
Then you can’t be forgiven.
If you’re not forgiven,
Then you can’t be forgotten.
If you’re not forgotten,
Then you must live forever.
If you live forever,
You cannot be reborn.
If you’re not reborn then,
You can’t be a baby.
If you’re not a baby,
You can’t learn how to crawl.
If you cannot crawl away,
Then you must stay in bed all day.
If you stay in bed all day,
You’re sure to have some visitors.
Ezra Pound will sit upon your bed,
ask you which books as of late you have read.
Ask you if you’ve read his own,
and whether you could spare a pound
of flesh to cover his bare bones.
You’ll say, “Man, take a pound, take two.
What’s a pound of flesh between
friends like me and you?”
What’s a pound of flesh among friends?