29 CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE: Don’t be tricked into singing along with lyrics just because the melody is good

It’s hard to understand the emotional effect of music—how soothing, relaxing, uplifting, terrifying, or electrifying a good tune can be.

It is scary, however, how easy it is to sing along with virtually any lyrics if the tune is stuck in your head. I always try to understand song lyrics, get their message, and think about why the author wrote them—and often I conclude that the message and motive are inconsistent with my beliefs and perhaps dangerous. And yet, I regularly catch myself humming or playing the tune of such a song in my head, with the lyrics floating along either in my brain or on my lips.

While music’s effect may be singular, other things can have similar effects: something or someone of great beauty, an eloquent essay or speaker, a good story or movie, and even a friend. Anything that causes you to let your guard down can have this power. You must be aware of it all of the time.

Let me explain why I think it is dangerous to just “sing along” without thinking about the meaning of things. The first problem is that when I sing along, somehow, I believe those lyrics then become part of my thinking. Somehow, the lyrics become a sort of Trojan horse, sneaking words and ideas I would never say into my vocabulary and brain, possibly to reappear in my words and actions without my even realizing it.

The second problem is that people may be watching and modeling off of me at any time. To the extent someone else has thought about the lyrics and respects me enough to value my opinion, hearing me sing along will make them think I think the lyrics are acceptable and perhaps lead them to decide they are acceptable too. Thus someone vulnerable to me as a role model may be led astray by my mindless acceptance.

The third problem is related to the first two, but more broadly stated: that we live in a time of transition (which can probably always be said), and there are always people with agendas seeking to influence that transition. Some of those will be willing to use subtlety to encourage others to follow a path they would not follow if they were thinking. Websites, TV, movies, books, newspapers, and other media may seem innocuous, but subtly send strategic messages to influence us and get us to go along. The Holocaust is an extreme example of what happens when people mindlessly “sing along” until it is too late—it’s going on all the time with a wide range of consequences.

I say this not to scare you, nor to ruin your enjoyment of music or anything else, but to help you realize you must be thinking all of the time, and be careful about the lyrics you sing.

One last note: There is, of course, a positive side to all of this. That is a powerful reason to memorize favorite verses, poems, speeches, and sayings—to have their challenges, inspiration and insight floating around in your head wherever you go. I cannot tell you how often, for instance, the wisdom of the poem at the beginning of this book has come to mind, comforting and testing me as I encounter life’s opportunities and dangers. Memorizing great words will serve you well—you may even find yourself quoting them!

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