A indie anthem exploring Gratitude for the near-misses. All the times he almost quit, almost took the safe job, with a grateful edge.
Inspired By
Gratitude for the near-misses. All the times he almost quit, almost took the safe job, almost gave up on the dream. The alternate timelines he didn't live in.
This track comes from the Lowcountry marshes where Aaron found wisdom knee-deep in pluff mud. It tackles Gratitude for the near-misses. All the times he almost quit, almost took the safe job, almost gave up on the dream. The alternate timelines he didn't live in.. The lyrics get specific — "Almost never saw the ocean from a deck at 0300" — because personal tracks on Majik's are personal for real, not performatively. The indie rock production matches the energy of the confession. It hits grateful and intense, in that order. Every personal track in the catalogue comes from a real moment, a real feeling, a real person. This one is no exception.
[verse 1]
I almost took the government job with the pension and the plan
Almost settled for the cubicle and the nine-to-five sedan
Almost said yes to the safe when every bone screamed go
Almost packed the dream away where no one else would know
I almost wasn't founder, almost wasn't CTO
Almost wasn't standing here, almost let it go
But something in the almost made me turn around and fight
The version of myself who'd rather be polite
[chorus]
I'm grateful for everything I almost wasn't
Every safe road that I didn't take because it
Would have led me to a life that fits but doesn't breathe
Grateful for the almost that taught me to believe
In the uncomfortable, the uncertain, the insane
Everything I almost wasn't is the reason for the gain
I'm grateful for the almosts that I turned into a yes
And the yeses that I built into this beautiful mess
[verse 2]
I almost wasn't Navy, almost signed a different line
Almost stayed ashore where the weather's always fine
Almost never saw the ocean from a deck at 0300
Almost never learned the weight that turns a boy to plenty
Almost never met the brothers who would shape my spine
Almost never learned to lead, almost never learned to shine
In the dark, which is the only place that shining matters
I almost chose the easy and it would have shattered
Everything
[chorus]
I'm grateful for everything I almost wasn't
Every safe road that I didn't take because it
Would have led me to a life that fits but doesn't breathe
Grateful for the almost that taught me to believe
[bridge]
In some parallel universe there's an Aaron who said no
Who played it safe, who didn't build, who didn't let it show
That the unconventional was the only way that fit
And I feel sorry for that version, but I'm grateful I'm not it
Because this version, this mess, this midnight-grinding man
Is the one who built the unicorn with nothing but his hands
[verse 3]
So here's to almost, the scariest word I know
Almost quit, almost didn't, almost let it go
But I didn't, and the full circle brought me right back here
To everything I almost wasn't, grateful, full of cheer
[outro]
Almost wasn't
But I am
And that's the whole story