The Youngbloods – Darkness, Darkness lyrics

This song resonates with me and has since the death of my son ten years ago. It was if the darkness enveloped me at his death and it seemed a comfort of sorts. In the darkness, I could escape the pain, the heartache. In the darkness, I would be away from reality and not have to face that which was to horrible to confront. It seemed a cooling relief.

This song was considered an anthem for Vietnam soldiers, describing how they felt on the front. I first heard it in a homemade video about Stephen King's "Pet Cemetery", which is what I now always associate this song with. It's a story which takes me back to my suicidal teenage years, when I felt like I was being kept alive by unnecessary and unnatural means by people who didn't want to let me go. I felt like it was just my time to pass on, and the medications and counselings people used to keep me from killing myself were keeping me in a state of limbo, like a zombie. I felt like I was buried on the Micmac ground and had come back halfway, an abomination who needed to be returned to the grave. I'm an adult now, I'm living a happy life and I don't think of committing suicide anymore, but the story of Pet Cemetery and, subsequently, the song Darkness, Darkness, beings memories of begging for a blissful end to my suffering back to me. I think the song is a good fit for that story, because it's about the peace that comes with darkness, a thing that, like death, is instinctively avoided by people, but has its positive sides. The folk elements call to mind the music of the American pioneers, whose songs often touched upon the themes of fear, death and pleas for an escape: the setting of Pet Cemetery is very American and the fearful small town residents are reminiscent of pioneers. Looking from the point of view of people who were buried on the cursed land, a Vietnam soldier on the battlefield, or the person singing this song, darkness is no longer frightening: it's something sweet and merciful that would normally come easily, but must now be called upon desperately. Darkness, sleep and obscured vision are like a death within itself that can be terrifying or welcome depending on your situation. The associations I've developed with this song make me feel very emotional personally, but, for someone without these associations, I'd still recommend the song to fans of somber but rhythmically catchy Americana music.