Track 10: World of Wonders


A little more than twenty years ago, I started writing songs for my kids' birthdays. This was a way to give them something much more personal than a greeting card and even gave me the opportunity to offer the occasional bit of advice in the softest possible way. It was also a great way for me to stay connected to writing music. By this point, family and work filled nearly every waking moment, and I really couldn't justify taking time away from either thing to spend time in my studio – except, of course, if doing so actually had a function related to family or work.

I wrote "World of Wonders" for my middle daughter's sixth birthday. My oldest daughter and my son had entered their teens by this point, and I was fascinated with how they were making the crossing into adulthood. At the same time, though, I found the discoveries my middle daughter was making to be so filled with delight that I couldn't help but revel in them. And what I found myself wanting to say to her – even though I knew she was too young to comprehend it – was, "discovery is a lifelong thing." I wanted her to know that as excited as she was now about trains and butterflies and making friends, she would continue to encounter new forms of wonder throughout her life. Certainly, that has been true for me, and I'm quite a bit older than six.

I think this was also the first of her birthday songs that really registered on her. On my personal highlight reel is a moment from her birthday party that year when she pulled a group of her friends into the family room and said, "You wanna hear the song my dad wrote for me?" Parenting rarely gets more rewarding than that.

This production is much more elaborate than any of the previous tracks I've released here. This song seemed to lend itself to the chorus and the strings and the walking bass line at the end. It was my attempt to create a little sense of wonder.

WORLD OF WONDERS

Music and Lyrics by Lou Aronica

A butterfly spread its wings for the first time

A baby chick hatched from its egg

A seed you planted has come sprouting from the ground

It's the springtime of your life, and it's the best

Words on a page all have new meaning

You have your very first best friend

You learned something new today that you didn't know before

Things are so amazing, and that amazement never ends

The world is a world of wonders

New treats in store when you open up your eyes

The world is a world of wonders

Little girl, it's such a great time to be alive

You can ride your bike near the edge of the neighborhood

The training wheels will come off soon

Before too long, you'll get to soar down that big hill

And it'll be just like you're flying all the way up to the moon

I'm sure the world just seems astounding

I'll let you in on a little secret right here

As you grow bigger, it gets better all the time

You have such great things to discover year after year

Copyright © Lou Aronica


Track List:

Track 1: Nineteen Forever (cover of Joe Jackson song)

Track 2: The Lights Go Down at Eight O'Clock

Track 3: If This is Love

Track 4: Words and Music

Track 5: So Warm

Track 6: A Million Miles Away

Track 7: Forever

Track 8: Now I Understand

Track 9: Look at You

Track 10: World of Wonders

Track 11: Just Love It

Track 12: After All

Track 13: What I Have Now

Track 14: I'll Never Be

Track 15: Stand in the Middle

Track 16: Too Old to Rock and Roll, Too Young to Die (cover of Jethro Tull song)

Featured Posts
Recent Posts