Stars

The song opens us to a chaotic and catchy guitar riff. Judging by the words, this represents the chaotic world we live in, the world of “entropy and pain”. The writer goes right into considering himself to blame. The world is messed up, and the writer is open to the idea that he may not be part of the problem… but it’s all guesswork, he doesn’t know. The verses, particularly the first, are filled with maybe’s and wonderings, uncertainties. When the chorus enters, everything seems more certain. I believe Jon’s saying that when he thinks about more than just himself, he actually feels more like himself. This is pretty cool, it’s like stop being selfish and you’ll actually be rewarded. I have definitely found this principle to hold true. I think this sort of parallels the idea that if you give everything to God, you’ll only be rewarded more.

Well that was easy… that’s what Stars is all about. Sure, and the point of college is to learn, but there’s more to it than just that. This is where writing about the meaning of lyrics becomes writing about interpretations of lyrics. Everything else I’ve left to say is based on thoughts provoked by the song.

Ever look into a night sky filled with beautiful stars? Isn’t it frustrating when you look up into the night and don’t see any more than like 3 stars? Stupid pollution … light and otherwise. Why are stars beautiful? If I took black construction paper, cut a few holes in it, and shined some white LEDs through it would that be beautiful? Not at all. I think they’re beautiful because of what they are and what they represent. They are huge, innumerable, and incredibly far away. If we struggle to imagine the size of planet Earth, how much more a star that is thousands of Earth’s away (and that’s just the closest star, any other one would be at least billions of Earth’s away). I think they’re so captivating because they’re so unimaginable and yet we can see so many in one view.

If you look at a building, say the student union at RPI, you’re looking at the comprehendible works of man. You’re looking at something that represents all sorts of student activities/clubs, food, jobs, etc. The union isn’t beautiful. What the sight represents can have a lot to do with how cool it is to look at. Stars represent something bigger than ourselves, something so vast we can’t even begin to wrap our minds around it all. Sooo much money and effort is spent into making things look cool. Think about a rock concert or the movie Avatar. All this stuff is cool and all, but does it really compare? I was dazzled by the crazy, colorful environment of some fake planet in the movie Avatar, but if I saw it over and over it just wouldn’t be as cool. It’s fake. Ever look at a mural of stars and thing, “eh, whatever”? It’s like temporary pleasures of this world, they’re tempting and enjoyable, but they just don’t compare in the long run to what God has to offer.

Like stars, there exists some one not fully comprehendible and some one infinitely beautiful…

“When I look at the stars I see someone else.”