Story Behind The Song

Plutarch writes of a meeting between the great Athenian lawgiver Solon and the richest king of his time Croesus. Croesus invited Solon to his palace to show off his wealth and afterwards asked him if he had ever seen a more fortunate man that King Croesus. Solon said that he had and named some obscure, simple citizen of Athens, long dead. Croesus was irritated, and Solon replied that as long as a man was living and subject to the forces of fate, he could not be considered fortunate because any degree of misery could still befall him--only death could take him to a place of safety. Croesus said, "Fuck you in the ass, Solon" but not too much later as he lay burning at the stake of the conquering Persians, he remembered Solon's words.

Song Description

As I grew older I realized that it was relevant to much more vital parts of our lives than playing, such as the duration of youth, happiness, health, and life itself--both my own and that of all others that I loved--without exception. This problem remained for me insoluble and always recurred to me, spoiling my joy at its greatest moments. One day after I had just returned to my childhood home from prison, during a wonderful time being reunited with everything that mattered to me, the old voice, like the slave that stood on the chariot, with the honored Roman general, whispering in his ear that all glory is fleeting, began its spoiling--reminding me that in an instant this moment would vanish forever. I looked up at the sky in extreme anguish, very nearly yelling out, trying frantically to find some way to stop the ebbing of the moment--to have it out with time in a final showdown. It seemed that my attempts to seize time only quickened its flight (as it always does) and I saw the moment as the fluffy clouds of a fine day sailing by (billowed by our laughter) like the sails of a ship. The clouds all disappeared and (as I scanned the horizon for a remaining trace) it came to me that although the moment was gone I was left with the memory--safe and utterly secure for the rest of my life, safe from the caprices of fortune that all living things must be subjected to. The word "memento" comes from a word meaning "to remember".

Lyrics

The SAILING MOMENT

I saw a moment sailing by
billowed by our laughter.
I hailed it but it spread more sail
so to lose me faster.
No force could stop its ride
into the forever after.

As I scanned the horizon
for a remaining trace,
I spied a golden memory
floating in its wake,
Of untarnishable luster
and a shining, sacred grace.

The meagerness of souvenirs
from a cruise of pleasure,
The paltriness of pots of gold,
the treason of the treasure,
"Memento" means "remembering" --
a trove that can't be measured.