Kate Bush’s piercing composition “This woman’s work” was first heard in the film “She’s Having a Baby”, which was released back in 1988. The heroine named Christy has complications during childbirth, and her husband Jake at this time is tormented by his own impotence, realizing that his wife may die.
So what is this lyrical, goosebumps song written from a man’s point of view really about? At first glance, about childbirth. The fact that childbirth is an extremely difficult female work, in which a man cannot help in any way. But, as we remember, music and poetry are ambiguous things. They are fraught with many meanings and subtexts. You just need to dig deeper.
“This woman’s work” is a composition about powerlessness in the face of fate. About terrible, complete helplessness, when you don’t even want to cry – howl and sob out loud, but you can’t. You have to hold on not even for yourself, but for the sake of someone who is immensely dear. The one who is on the verge of life and death. At such moments, despair overwhelms the soul and I want to turn back time in order to do everything. And thoughts, like those of the hero of the song, revolve around what “should have done, but did not”, and “should have said, but did not have time”.
In my opinion, this is the most bitter and terrible message of the song. We always think that there is a lot of time, that we will have time to tell our loved ones everything, we will have enough time to be around. And when the life of a loved one hangs in the balance, we understand how little we were together, how much we left unsaid, how often we quarreled in vain where everything could be turned into a joke. And everything suddenly becomes so empty, so unimportant. But there is nothing we can do, and we can only hope. Hoping for God, for Fate, for a miracle – for something that will still give us another chance to correct our mistakes.
In those moments when I am ready to give everything for a simple touch, for a fleeting kiss, for the fact that my dear and beloved person is simply there, just living, time goes differently – It stretches like rubber. And every second feels like an eternity. An eternity filled with endless questions. In addition to the banal “why?” “Why?” and “for what?” there is the most agonizing one: “what didn’t I have time to do before this terrible moment?”. And thousands of topics that could be talked about, hundreds of common words and pleasant moments immediately pop up in my head. And then the thought: “I would like to experience it again, say words, hear the laughter of a dear person, discuss all sorts of nonsense together.”
But this realization, unfortunately, comes when the closest person is close to the fatal line. And happiness – if you manage to beg Fate for another chance, a little more time. And if not? As the saying goes, “What we have, we don’t keep;
if we lose it, we cry.”
And if we consider the song a little more superficially, then the hero of the song understands how childbirth is a difficult job for a woman and laments that he cannot help her in any way. How so? After all, he is so big and strong, and now his small and weak beloved is suffering and suffering. And he would probably give everything to help her and ease the pain. But, alas, nothing can be changed, because nature has decided that childbirth is a woman’s work, and a man’s lot is just to wait. Perhaps this situation will make the hero think about something. After all, there is a lot of hard work in a woman’s life that a loving man could share with her: cleaning, cooking, helping around the house, caring for a child – all this is difficult. But here, unlike childbirth, a man can remove some of the burden of responsibility from a woman. It is a pity that many men forget about it.
The songs are beautiful because everyone sees something of their own in them. They can pull out of depression, or they can make you think about something. For example, over the fact that you need to take care of those who are nearby, help them and spend every free moment with them. Songs are a whole world that can make us kinder, softer and more tolerant of loved ones, teach compassion and sympathy. At one time, the Kate Bush song became a real discovery for me, which allowed me to rethink a lot in this life. And, perhaps, it was thanks to the composition “This woman’s work” that I learned to appreciate my loved ones and enjoy every second next to them. In any case, everyone will find something of their own in this composition, because such poignant songs leave no one indifferent.
