The 400 Project

Way back in 2008 a band named Story Of The Year released an album called The Black Swan. The second last song of that album is an interlude containing a deep and thought-provoking message. This minute-long interlude contains some eerie music as the back drop to a voice speaking about the human race, our history, and our place in the universe. Many may have skipped this track and I’m sure it didn’t make it on most playlists, but anyone who’s heard its message and considered its meaning would have a hard time forgetting it. The song is called Pale Blue Dot. Check it out and follow along with the lyrics below.

“The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena.
On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of,
Every human being who ever was, lived out their lives.
Thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines.
Every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every hero and coward,
Every creator and destroyer of civilization,
Every saint and sinner in the history of our species.
Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that,
In glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot.
Our posturings, our imagined self-importance,
The delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe,
Are challenged by this point of pale light,
And underscores our responsibility to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot.”

It sets the stage for the final song on the album while giving some perspective on the world around us. Beyond that, this track is something worth listening to during a moment of silent reflection after a tragedy has occurred around our world. The message is simply that earth is a small point in our universe. It may feel vast and expansive as we live out our lives here, but there is much more out there. The great tragedy of the human race is that we all trample over each other in an attempt to reach the top of this very small point in the universe. What if we stopped trying to destroy each other and put all that effort into creating new and amazing things? Imagine what heights we could reach. This track may be almost 10 years old, but Story Of The Year captures the state of our wold today in a quick interlude that deserves a listen.

What do you think of the interlude? What thoughts or emotions did it bring up? Share your story in the comment section below.