Renegade is the song I needed to hear right now. It captures the heartbreak of wanting someone to grow and change to be a better version of themselves, and knowing it can’t work out between the two of you if nothing changes.
The lyric “there was nowhere for me to stay, but I stayed anyway” breaks me. That spirit of hope for something is such a beautiful, but fragile, thing. We make investments of time and emotion in people. It’s hard to leave that behind because you don’t want to believe your investment was a bust. Why can’t we let go of good situations gone bad? Is hope really that misleading and naive? Maybe I’m too close to the situation still, but I had the idea that love can heal anything. That it can heal broken pieces and lead to renewal. Maybe that’s a false belief I need to break down, I don’t know. Can we love someone that “doesn’t have their shit together”? Is that desire for them to change not accepting of their true nature? How can I separate the feelings I have for someone from how they view themselves? “Let all of your damage, damage me”. Showing people our scars doesn’t make us any less valuable. If anything, I believe it makes us brave. I think I have a lot of things to still sort out of what it means to truly care about someone. Thanks @taylorswift for hitting me in the feels and co-writing a song that makes me feel seen and understood (once again). 💜💔💜
