Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall

I recorded the following video almost three years ago (April 2007) late at night in my office in Eagle Base located in Tuzla, Bosnia. We were in the middle of preparing the base for closure in preparation for the turning over the base back to the Bosnian government. There were only a few Americans left on base, including contractors. We still had many local nationals working at the base. But most were gone during the evening hours. The other side of the base still had a good number of European Union military personnel.

So except for Friday, Saturday, and sometimes Sunday evenings when I joined and socialized with EU military personnel on their side of the base, the other week nights were pretty much spent solitarily. By this time most of the facilities on the American base were deconstructed by tearing them down or sending all the usable items and equipment back to Germany or Romania. Only a few buildings were left. Most of the outside lights were already taken down, so night time on the American side of the base was fairly dark. I had a lot of free time on my hands in the evenings for most of the week.

This video is a cover of Simon and Garfunkel’s Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall. The song is about existential angst about unexamined life. It muses about coping with reality and personal confusion. I’ve always liked S&G because of the lyrical content of their songs. Paul Simon penned most of the lyrics. Most of his early works were profound and poetic. I am fond of this song for these reasons. The original song is faster in beat and a bit more peppy. To me, the song has a darker undertone and my cover is sung a tad bit slower.





Flowers Never Bend With The Rainfall
by Simon and Garfunkel

Through the corridors of sleep
Lies shadows dark and deep
My mind dances and leaps in confusion.
I don't know what is real,
I can't touch what I feel
And I hide behind the shield of my illusion.

So I'll continue to continue to pretend
My life will never end,
And flowers never bend
With the rainfall.

The mirror on my wall
Casts an image dark and small
But I'm not sure at all it's my reflection.
I am blinded by the light
Of God and truth and right
And I wander in the night without direction.

So I'll continue to continue to pretend
My life will never end,
And flowers never bend
With the rainfall.

No matter if you're born
To play the King or pawn
For the line is thinly drawn 'tween joy and sorrow,
So my fantasy
Becomes reality,
And I must be what I must be and face tomorrow.

So I'll continue to continue to pretend
My life will never end,
And flowers never bend
With the rainfall.