The Beauty and Essence of Acceptance as told by Rascal Flatts’ “I’m Moving On”
“I’m Moving On”
Finally content with a past I regret
I’ve found you find strength in your moments of weakness
For once I’m at peace with myself
I’ve been burdened with blame, trapped in the past for too long
I’m movin’ on I’ve lived in this place and I know all the faces
Each one is different but they’re always the same
They mean me no harm but it’s time that I face it
They’ll never allow me to change
But I never dreamed home would end up where I don’t belong
I’m movin’ onI’m movin’ on
At last I can see life has been patiently waiting for me
And I know there’s no guarantees, but I’m not alone
There comes a time in everyone’s life
When all you can see are the years passing by
And I have made up my mind that those days are goneI sold what I could and packed what I couldn’t
Stopped to fill up on my way out of town
I’ve loved like I should but lived like I shouldn’t
I had to lose everything to find out
Maybe forgiveness will find me somewhere down this road
I’m movin’ onI’m movin’ on
I’m movin’ on
Released in October 2001 as the fourth and final single from their self-titled debut album, “I’m Movin’ On” is one of Rascal Flatts’ signature songs. The track, which serves as the closing song from their commercially successful album, has peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. It has won the prestigious “Song of the Year” award during the 38th Academy of Country Music Awards where the group also snagged the Top Vocal Group award.
Apart from the widespread commercial success of “I’m Movin’ On”, what makes the said song special is the story behind it. The band’s vocalist, Gary LeVox, has described the song as something that “drains everything out of you”. This may be due to the emotional nature of the song. Accompanied by a simple mandolin and violin melody, the song speaks of just moving on and the beauty that comes with it. It speaks of liberation and letting go of all the bad things that just happened in order to just move on. The meaning it carries helps people to accept the painful things that may have happened in their lives and just embrace life as how it is. This is proven by Joe Don Rooney, the band’s lead guitarist when he noted that the song helped one of their fans who was a drug addict. The impact of the song according to Rooney is one effective way of how the band can truly interact with their fans.
With the song’s meaning, it is no surprise that “I’m Movin’ On” is a perfect track to be used as anaccompaniment for burial service. The song as a whole represents an ample tribute to the person who has passed away. It can also represent the acceptance of the people that the said person left behind. It’s as if they have given permission for their loved on to move on the same way that they did. A song with a beautiful melody and a deep meaning really sets the mood and helps all people to cope with such event.
