Slow & Steady

Sleeping At Last's 'Slow & Steady' is a deeply introspective song that explores the complexities of love, faith, and the human soul. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of life's struggles and the resilience required to navigate them. The opening lines, 'You carved our initials into these family trees. But when the branches are bare and broken, love is so hard to reach,' suggest a sense of nostalgia and loss. The imagery of bare and broken branches symbolizes the challenges and hardships that can make love feel distant and difficult to attain.

The song delves into the idea of preparing for the worst and the safety found in surrender, as expressed in the lines, 'We've learned to brace for the worst and to... To read the last pages first, surrender feels safe.' This reflects a cautious approach to life, where one anticipates difficulties and finds comfort in letting go. The metaphor of the soul as soil, light, and tree rings further emphasizes the theme of growth and resilience. The soul is depicted as the foundation that nurtures life, the light that inspires hope, and the markers of time that measure our experiences.

The lyrics also touch on the challenges of maintaining faith and the fleeting nature of time. 'Faith is expensive to taste, and time... Time is borrowed loose change that's already been spent,' highlights the difficulty of holding onto faith and the preciousness of time. The song suggests that the soul is a repository of our experiences and the patience needed to start anew. The closing lines, 'Maybe it's the thresholds that swallow us whole as we learn to let go, in spite of the dirt on our clothes,' encapsulate the idea of embracing life's messiness and finding strength in vulnerability.