NOM Anthems

[Evil Monkey]

I am always on the lookout for songs that embody what it means to be a NOM. I have dubbed these songs NOM Anthems. I have found another song that I would consider a NOM Anthem at least in the opening verse. The below is the opening verse from The Tightrope from the Greatest Showman:

Tightrope
/
Lyrics
Some people long for a life that is simple and planned
Tied with a ribbon
Some people won't sail the sea 'cause they're safer on land
To follow what's written
But I'd follow you to the great unknown
Off to a world we call our own
Hand in my hand
And we promised to never let go
We're walking a tightrope
High in the sky
We can see the whole world down below
We're walking a tightrope
Never sure, never know how far we could fall
But it's all an adventure
That comes with a breathtaking view
Walking a tightrope

As NOMs, especially those born under the covenant, we have abandoned the path that was laid out for us since essentially birth. As the song explains some people are drawn towards following a set defined path in life/religion. For many it is the safe route through this life. As NOMs we have all chosen an uncharted path. We are all trailblazers with no path on our feet. This comes at a cost as the song also eludes. You remove all safety nets and are prepared to fall and land wherever you may without fear as part of the journey. I am always on the lookout for more NOM anthems to add to my playlist. I am interested to hear any suggestions you guys might have regarding good NOM Anthems. Open to any suggestions

[stuck]

I posted one not long ago "Do you hear the people sing" from Les Miserables.
https://newordermormon.net/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=6594

I like yours too. Sometimes it feels like my marriage is on a tightrope and also friend and family relations

[Ghost]

This song struck me as somewhat relatable early in my faith transition. (I think it's also a good song, musically.)

Right Where It Belongs
by Nine Inch Nails

See the animal in his cage that you built
Are you sure what side you're on?
Better not look him too closely in the eye
Are you sure what side of the glass you are on?
See the safety of the life you have built
Everything where it belongs
Feel the hollowness inside of your heart
And it's all
Right where it belongs

What if everything around you
Isn't quite as it seems?
What if all the world you used to know
Is an elaborate dream?
And if you look at your reflection
Is it all you want it to be?
What if you could look right through the cracks?
Would you find yourself
Find yourself afraid to see?

What if all the world's inside of your head
Just creations of your own?
Your devils and your gods
All the living and the dead
And you're really all alone?
You can live in this illusion
You can choose to believe
You keep looking but you can't find the woods
While you're hiding in the trees

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-jZHMX-CJ0

[Evil Monkey]

Another song that I believe was on my NOM Anthem playlist years ago but i had forgotten about it for abit until this week is Rachel Platten's Stand by You:

Even if we can't find heaven, heaven, heaven, heaven
Hands put your empty hands in mine
And scars show me all the scars you hide
And hey, if your wings are broken
Please take mine 'til yours can open too
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
Oh, tears make kaleidoscopes in your eyes
And hurt, I know you're hurting but so am I
And love, if your wings are broken
Borrow mine so yours can open too
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we're breaking down
We can find a way to break through
Even if we can't find heaven
I'll walk through hell with you
Love, you're not alone
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we can't find heaven
I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we can't find heaven
I'll walk through hell with you
Love, you're not alone
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
Yeah, you're all I never knew I needed
And the heart, sometimes it's unclear why it's beating
And love, if your wings are broken
We can brave through those emotions too
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
And oh, truth I guess truth is what you believe in
And faith, I think faith is having a reason
And I know, know love, if your wings are broken
Borrow mine so yours can open too
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we're breaking down
We can find a way to break through
Even if we can't find heaven
I'll walk through hell with you
Love, you're not alone
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we can't find heaven
I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we can't find heaven
I'll walk through hell with you
Love, you're not alone
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
I'll be your eyes 'til yours can shine
And I'll be your arms I'll be your steady satellite
And when you can't rise
Well, I'll crawl with you on hands and knees 'cause I
I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we're breaking down (Hey)
We can find a way to break through (Come on)
Even if we can't find heaven
I'll walk through hell with you
Love, you're not alone
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we can't find heaven (Hey)
I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we can't find heaven
I'll walk through hell with you
Love you're not alone
'Cause I'm gonna stand by you
Love you're not alone
Oh, I'm gonna stand by you
Even if we can't find heaven, heaven, heaven, heaven
I'm gonna stand by you


This song really resonates with me on multiple levels. This song came out in 2016 but whenever I hear this song it takes me back to when my father was VA Hospital bound and near the end of his mortal life in 2011. My wife and I spent as much time as we could with my dad in the closing month of his life with me burning through my work time off without care because every single moment left with my Dad became priceless...work was meaningless that last month of my Dad's life. Everyone in my entire extended family knew the end was nigh for my Father so many of them took this as an opportunity to further there own religious agenda in thinking they were somehow helping him secure a better afterlife. On one such occasion in the VA hospital where my Dad spent about 75 percent of his final month in, my wife and I were his only visitors at the moment but he was taking a call from my half sister (Ex Mormon turned Born Again Christian and his only Daughter). She was on the phone basically telling him to become Become "Born Again' now while he still draws breath. While this conversation was going on i could make out only parts of what my Sister was saying through the hospital phone but my wife and i could both tell by the look on my Dad's face he had already checked out of the conversation. The conversation was one sided and went on for what seemed like an eternity when every moment left with my Dad was prescious. When my Dad finally managed to free himself from my Sister's sermon phone call he said"goodbye Love you" as nice as he could given the circumstances, put the phone back on the hook and then immediately looked at my Wife and I and said, "Well I guess I'm going to Hell". To which my Wife responded "If you're going to hell we're right behind you". To which I responded "Heavens not worth it without you Dad."

This song reminds me of that moment and makes it clear to me whats important. My Dad was a Never Mormon and an agnostic even though most my extended family would call him an atheist behind his back. I always supported my Dad in his decision to never join the church because his decision was based 100 percent on logic...and by that time I knew his logic was completely sound. When my Dad passed i was totally prepared to follow him and walk through Hell with him. Wherever my Dad is in the afterlife if there is one I am going to find him. There is no Heaven without him. This weekend was my Dad's birthday. He would have turned 94. This song came on my Pandora on the day of my Dad's birthday and I was instantly transported back to that moment in the VA where my wife and I looked at my Dad and pretty much total him "Dad, Where you go, we go!". And that will always be the case. There is so much more i could say about my Dad's last month and it's relevance to this forum but I will leave it here for now.

[Evil Monkey]

I posted one not long ago "Do you hear the people sing" from Les Miserables.
viewtopic.php?f=4&t=6594

I like yours too. Sometimes it feels like my marriage is on a tightrope and also friend and family relations

Agreed. I think once the toothpaste is out of the tube when it comes to Mormonism life becomes one giant tightrope act. Your old friends and family would never fully understand you if you came clean...i have found one or two friends to confide the truth in but they have always been outsiders. Almost impossible to confide in someone that is still within the Church's grasp. I think I may have met a closet NOM once in my ward before the boundaries changed but I was too chicken to ask him more questions to determine if he really was NOM or not...he dropped hints like "I stay in my Nursery calling cause my opinions don't align with many in the church... so I stay in the Nursery to stay out of trouble ". Sounds like a closet NOM to me. But back to the tightrope analogy every step within and around the church I always carefully think through so I chose to remain silent. Maybe just maybe he'll find his way to this forum if he hasn't already.

[Evil Monkey]

This song struck me as somewhat relatable early in my faith transition. (I think it's also a good song, musically.)

Right Where It Belongs
by Nine Inch Nails

See the animal in his cage that you built
Are you sure what side you're on?
Better not look him too closely in the eye
Are you sure what side of the glass you are on?
See the safety of the life you have built
Everything where it belongs
Feel the hollowness inside of your heart
And it's all
Right where it belongs

What if everything around you
Isn't quite as it seems?
What if all the world you used to know
Is an elaborate dream?
And if you look at your reflection
Is it all you want it to be?
What if you could look right through the cracks?
Would you find yourself
Find yourself afraid to see?

What if all the world's inside of your head
Just creations of your own?
Your devils and your gods
All the living and the dead
And you're really all alone?
You can live in this illusion
You can choose to believe
You keep looking but you can't find the woods
While you're hiding in the trees

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-jZHMX-CJ0

This song is new to me... although I am a huge fan of Nine Inch Nails. Thanks so much for sharing.

[lostinmiddlemormonism]

Defying Gravity - Wicked!

Something has changed within me
Something is not the same
I'm through with playing by the rules
Of someone else's game
Too late for second-guessing
Too late to go back to sleep
It's time to trust my instincts
Close my eyes and leap
It's time to try defying gravity
I think I'll try defying gravity
Kiss me goodbye, I'm defying gravity
And you won't bring me down
I'm through accepting limits
'Cause someone says they're so
Some things I cannot change
But till I try, I'll never know
Too long I've been afraid of
Losing love, I guess I've lost
Well, if that's love, it comes at much too high a cost
I'd sooner buy defying gravity
Kiss me goodbye, I'm defying gravity
I think I'll try defying gravity
And you won't bring me down
Unlimited (unlimited)
My future is (my future is) unlimited (unlimited)
And I've just had a vision, almost like a prophecy
I know, it sounds truly crazy
And true, the vision's hazy
But I swear, someday I'll be
Flying so high (defying gravity)
Kiss me goodbye (defying gravity)
So if you care to find me
Look to the western sky
As someone told me lately
"Everyone deserves the chance to fly"
I'm defying gravity
And you won't bring me down
Bring me down
Bring me down