life with more cowbell

Perspectival image of piano keyboard, fading into the background, by consorex on Pixabay.

Back in 2015, I decided to start choosing a theme song for the year—a song that reflected where I was at and where I was going, or hoping to go.

Since then, I’ve chosen a new theme song every year. Previous theme songs have included:

2015: I’ve Got This written and performed by Candice Sand

2016: Put on Your Sunday Clothes written by Jerry Herman, and performed by Michael Crawford and Barbra Streisand in Hello, Dolly! (but I like the Wall-E reference)

2017: Mary Tyler Moore Theme Song written and performed by Sonny Curtis

2018: Living on the Bright Side written and performed by Angela Saini

2019: Here I Go Again written and performed by Angela Saini

2020: Hey You written by Randy Bachman and performed by Bachman Turner Overdrive

I was a little late picking a song this year, what with the COVID-19 flipping life around and all. Eventually, I went with another blast from the past: Que Sera Sera written by Jerry Livingston and Ray Evans, and performed by Doris Day. It’s a song my mum used to sing us as a lullaby of sorts. Looking back on this as an adult, I initially found this to be a strange choice. The cheery delivery and arrangement are offset by the stoic, almost fatalistic quality of the lyrics. On the upside, it’s a reminder to live in the present and not fret about the future—and that’s how I choose to interpret it. After all, life’s what happens when you’re making other plans. Plans, which many of us are aware, God laughs at.