Thank you to everyone who joined us for this session!

Together we listened to “Waving Through a Window” from the musical Dear Evan Hansen, posted and linked below. So many of our participants shared how this piece moved them – whether it resonated with their “physical distance from others”, “longing to get back in” to old routines, “quite literally, tap tap tapping on windows in the ICU” or feeling trapped behind “the glass that is Zoom”. One participant observed how the lyrics’ progression of “I-you-we” expanded the point of view of the narrator and of the audience. Others were struck by some of the imagery in the song (the sun that “doesn’t rise”, or the “stars in our eyes”…) In looking to the narrator, we wondered about who we could picture behind these lyrics, and what specific elements of our text shaped our perspectives: was it the age of the singer? The depth of their message? The self-awareness of their point of view? In looking to the audience, we wondered about the role of the listener as a witness: do we need an audience to confirm that the “sound” really happened? (“When you’re falling in a forest and there’s nobody around / Do you ever really crash, or even make a sound?”)

After our discussion, we wrote to the prompt: Write about stepping into the sun.

It’s always so interesting to see the many journeys a prompt can bring us on. In this case, the sun was present throughout our writing, yet in so many different ways. Our suns were bright, blinding, smile-inducing, and even next to the moon. One of the texts we read out loud left us with a profound question: “When is the right moment to step out?” 

Thank you all for another night of engaging conversation. We love seeing how our comments in the conversation build upon each previous one, and how our collective discussion helps us gain a deeper insight into our text.

Participants are warmly encouraged to share what you wrote below (“Leave a Reply”), to keep the conversation going here, bearing in mind that the blog of course is a public space where confidentiality is not assured.

Please join us for our next session: Wednesday, May 6th at 12pm EDT, with more times listed on our Live Virtual Group Sessions page.

We look forward to seeing you again soon!

"Waving Through A Window" – From Dear Evan Hansen

I've learned to slam on the brake
Before I even turn the key
Before I make the mistake
Before I lead with the worst of me

Give them no reason to stare
No slipping up if you slip away
So I got nothing to share
No, I got nothing to say

Step out, step out of the sun
If you keep getting burned
Step out, step out of the sun
Because you've learned, because you've learned

On the outside, always looking in
Will I ever be more than I've always been?
'Cause I'm tap, tap, tapping on the glass
I'm waving through a window
I try to speak, but nobody can hear
So I wait around for an answer to appear
While I'm watch, watch, watching people pass
I'm waving through a window, oh
Can anybody see, is anybody waving back at me?

We start with stars in our eyes
We start believing that we belong
But every sun doesn't rise
And no one tells you where you went wrong

Step out, step out of the sun
If you keep getting burned
Step out, step out of the sun
Because you've learned, because you've learned

On the outside, always looking in
Will I ever be more than I've always been?
'Cause I'm tap, tap, tapping on the glass
Waving through a window
I try to speak, but nobody can hear
So I wait around for an answer to appear
While I'm watch, watch, watching people pass
Waving through a window, oh
Can anybody see, is anybody waving?

When you're falling in a forest and there's nobody around
Do you ever really crash, or even make a sound?
When you're falling in a forest and there's nobody around
Do you ever really crash, or even make a sound?
When you're falling in a forest and there's nobody around
Do you ever really crash, or even make a sound?
When you're falling in a forest and there's nobody around
Do you ever really crash, or even make a sound?
Did I even make a sound?
Did I even make a sound?
It's like I never made a sound
Will I ever make a sound?

On the outside, always looking in
Will I ever be more than I've always been?
'Cause I'm tap, tap, tapping on the glass
Waving through a window
I try to speak, but nobody can hear
So I wait around for an answer to appear
While I'm watch, watch, watching people pass
Waving through a window, oh
Can anybody see, is anybody waving back at me? (oh)
Is anybody waving?
Waving, waving, whoa-oh, whoa-oh

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