“How Can I Not Love You”
If you have ever seen “Anna and the King” then you might remember the song “How Can I Not Love You”. In the movie it’s actually a love song between a man and a woman who can never be together, but for my purposes I want you to read the lyrics in the context of a parent who has just lost a child. I must warn you, however, that if you have lost a child this song is almost unbearable. I think I have successfully listened to it only once in the last 5 years without it bringing me to tears within seconds. Soon after our sons birth and death my husband made a beautiful slideshow of the pictures of our baby boy, put to this song. I lost my composure and was not able to even watch the slideshow before I had to leave the room. Why, then, am I writing a post about the song and recommending people read the lyrics or listen to it? I suppose it’s because it expresses the very deepest sorrows of my heart, and I imagine the heart of any parent who has lost a child. It’s beautiful, it’s pure, and it’s heart-wrenching.
The music video is at the bottom of the post, so you can start it and then go back up to read the lyrics while it plays (since the music video doesn’t quite fit with the parent-child scenario). Enjoy.
Written by George Fenton, Babyface, Robert Kraft (1999)
Performed by Joy Enriquez
Cannot touch
Cannot hold
Cannot be together
Cannot love
Cannot kiss
Cannot have each other
Must be strong, and we must let go
Cannot say what our hearts must know
How can I not love you
What do I tell my heart
When do I not want you
Here in my arms
How does one waltz away
From all of the memories
How do I not miss you
When you are gone
Cannot dream
Cannot share
Sweet and tender moments
Cannot feel
How we feel
Must pretend its over
Must be brave, and we must go on
Must not say, what we’ve known all along
How can I not love you
What do I tell my heart
When do I not want you
Here in my arms
How does one waltz away
From all the memories
How do I not miss you
When you are gone
How can I not love you
Must be brave and we must be strong
Cannot say what we’ve known all along
How can I not love you
What do I tell my heart
When do I not want you
Here in my arms
How does one waltz away
From all the memories
How do I not miss you
When you are gone
How can I not love you
When you are gone
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