gone
About This Song
“Gone” is a song about my mother, who died of cancer on March 8, 2011, at age 74. We scattered her ashes in the ocean on Eastern Long Island, near where this video was filmed. It was the first song I ever wrote, shaped in part by the simple structure of “Blowin’ in the Wind,” which made writing a song feel possible to me.
Lyrics
The sun is shinin' but it still feels cold
Blue sky seems a little gray
I can't see what's out on the horizon
How long will I feel this way?
Gone, gone, ashes in the sea
Gone, gone, just a memory
It feels like a dust storm is blowin' all the time
Tears keep streaming down my face
Feels like an earthquake has knocked me off my feet
When will I find a better place?
I spend so many hours looking through old photographs
I can't believe how fast the years go by
But I can't stop that river from a flowin' to the sea
So how much longer am I gonna try?
In dreams she comforts me and tells me it's OK
But I'm hopelessly lost when I wake
I wish there was a trail leading out of these woods
How much longer will it take?
I don't know what's on the other side
Or if there's a heaven above
But sometimes it feels like she's standing next to me
And somehow I still feel her love
She's gone, gone, ashes in the sea
Gone, gone, but still a part of me
She's still a part of me