Stand on Your Own Head

How about you stand on your OWN head for a change?

The sixteenth song on They Might Be Giants’ LINCOLN album is a 1-minute 16-second anthem to the Olds - Stand on Your Own Head.

Understanding Generational Critiques

Being a teenager in the 1990’s meant understanding that the world was being damaged beyond repair by the boomers and their parents. I heard about the Boomer generation and predictions about what will happen to our economy when they started retiring (I had little understanding about the economy).

I also understood that the Boomers and beyond were fond of telling my generation to work hard, pull yourself up by your bootstraps, get it done, and stand on your own two feet. It often felt as though they knew the best way for them to retire in luxury (or to have anyone left to take care of them) was to ensure the younger generation fixed it all.

Of course, that meant telling us all we’re wrong all the time and should do things their way. It was a lot of pressure. Almost as though you were standing on your head and feeling all the blood pool down around your brain.

As I’ve mentioned in the past, when I offer up meanings to a song, it’s really more about what the song means to me. And sometimes that meaning can change over time. That is the beauty of music and arts in general. It is created for us to engage with and bring our own feelings into as we experience what the artist has created.

A personal connection to this song.

That being said, Stand on Your Own Head for me, was this anthem for we the younger generations to shout back up at the boomers and beyond to let them know that we know what they’ve done and they’re not off the hook.

You made my day, now you have to sleep in it

Now you have to sleep in it.

I love the world and if I have to sue for custody,

I will sue for custody.

Stand on your own head for a change.

Click below to hear “Stand On Your Own Head” by They Might Be Giants

The older I get, I see younger generations yelling back up at MY generation while also STILL yelling beyond us to the Boomer crowd. It makes me think of this song and I just want to yell back down at them and say, “Yeah, I know! We agree that they blew it!” The problem with that is that my generation is also blowing it. Even with the best intentions, generations of people are going to miss the mark in different areas as much as the preceding one.

At the very least, I’m not being yelled down at by the ones currently calling the shots while I sit at home, with no driver’s license, job, or ability to vote. Now, I can take part in calling the shot, and sharing the voices around me. At least now, I’ve got some skin to call my own.