Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. by Cat Power.

The Muse is very active in Christmas/Holiday music. With reason.

There is a lot of meaning in this short song, but today the Muse opened up the very early part of the lyrics:

from now on, let your troubles be out of sight

The troubles are still there, the pain that they are causing can, will, and does return. For the moment, however, maybe it is too much all at once. Entertain your flesh a little, and ignore the strife. No drugs needed, just hope based in the reality of a better future.

Young people wonder how their professors of poetry can see so much meaning in a given poem, even suggesting that the poet didn't even know what it meant at the moment of writing. But the question remains:

• Can words mean something that the very author never intended them to mean? 

The answer can only be:

• Yes.

While I scoffed at such talk as a 25 year old, I now see it as the only possible way for the world to operate. Language is far too personal for it to be any other way.

Let the Muse speak.
Enjoy.