“Lullabye (Goodnight My Angel)” by Billy Joel

If you are one of the many people who have tried to explain death to a child, you can understand the difficulty one faces in finding just the right words. I remember sitting on my bed as a toddler after my father died, watching my mom struggle to answer my question, “Why hasn’t daddy come home yet?” Her response, while vague, never left me. “Daddy isn’t coming home anymore, sweetie. You will see him again someday, just not right now.”

Remarkably, I understood.

There are no “correct” words to describe death to a child, which is the message that American soft-rock artist Billy Joel conveys in his song “Lullabye.” Also known as “Goodnight My Angel,” the song was written as a prelude to the artist’s hit single “River of Dreams.” In it, he seems to be speaking to his daughter, Alexa Ray, and answering her questions about of the subject of death. He sings:

Goodnight, my angel

Time to close your eyes

And save these questions for another day.

I think I know what you’ve been asking me.

I think you know what I’ve been trying to say.

I promised I would never leave you

And you should always know

Wherever you may go

No matter where you are

I never will be far away.

Credit:www.focusonthefamily.com

Although death is hard to explain to a young child, Joel does his best to let his daughter know that, no matter what happens, she will never be alone, even after he dies. Regardless of whether he is physically present, he will continue to be there when she needs him and will watch over her.

The final stanza of Joel’s “Lullabye” is one of my favorites:

Someday we’ll all be gone

But lullabies go on and on…

They never die

That’s how you

And I

Will be

In these final lines, Joel reminds all of us that, even after they are gone, our loved one’s live on in our memories. He also seems to suggest that sharing music allows us to transcend the boundaries of time and space, and, in a way, conquer death.

While the topic is heavy, Billy Joel’s “Lullabye” is an extremely simple song. The melody is similar to that of an actual lullaby, and consists only of Joel’s piano and vocals. But this is what makes the song so beautiful and poetic. It shows us that not having all the answers is really okay. Sometimes, a little reassurance and a song is enough.

Listen to Billy Joel sing the song below.