when we had all the answers

I miss back when the world was small, and we had all the answers
I miss how it was when we were young
I miss back before I understood all the ways that life would break your heart

- Ben Rector, “Heroes”

‘Heroes’ by Ben Rector (Apply Music | Spotify) is a great song. It showcases a distinct vulnerability of longing for simpler times, when the world was small, when we were still young, and when we had all the answers….before we came into intimate knowledge of the myriad ways the world would break our hearts.

It’s a coming of age song with a strong tinge of nostalgia for what used to be, before the world forced us to grow up, and with an undertone of the pain caused by losing the innocence of childhood. ‘Heroes’ is a song I can turn to when I just need someone else to tell me I’m not the only one struggling to deal with the crap that life throws at us.