“Tom Petty is dead and this is the worst day of my life.”
This is the text message that lit up my phone screen at 4:28 p.m. October 2, 2017 as my day at the office was winding down. This message was sent to me by a fellow rock music enthusiast, my roommate, and one of my best friends. Since I do not check social media while at work, I had not yet seen the posts and the articles released about this breaking news (even though Petty’s death was not truly confirmed until about 10 p.m. that night). My immediate reply to her was, “Please tell me you are kidding.”
Those last 30 minutes of work were nearly impossible as I fought tears and sobs from escaping my body; the realization that one of my favorite artists had passed away at the mere age of 66 was a tough pill to swallow and I was extremely grateful that the bulk of my coworkers had already gone home for the day.
I finally allowed the tears to flow while I was on my drive home to campus. Nearly all of the radio stations that I have saved to my favorites were already playing Tom Petty songs in honor of his memory and impact on music. His lyrics seeped out of my speakers and wrapped around me like a reassuring hug. We have learned a lot from Tom Petty over the years and this led me to consider the most important insights we have gained through Tom Petty’s music.
In no particular order of importance, below are the top ten lessons that we can learn from Tom Petty through his immortal lyrics:
1. “She’s gonna listen to her heart, It’s gonna tell her what to do, She might need a lot of lovin’, But she don’t need you.”
“Listen to Her Heart,” You’re Gonna Get It!, 1978
These lyrics remind us that we all need love, but we get to choose where we receive that love. When making pivotal decisions in life, our hearts will guide us in the right direction if we allow ourselves to listen to them.
2. “You belong among the wildflowers, You belong in a boat out at sea, You belong with your love on your arm, You belong somewhere you feel free.”
“Wildflowers,” Wildflowers, 1994
One of his beautifully folksy numbers this a song about freedom in love; love is not jealous or controlling, it is mutual freedom to embrace the beauty of the world together. Love should be like wildflowers: it should grow everywhere, from rough terrain to tranquil fields; love is resilient and we should sow love wherever we go.
3. “I know what’s right, I got just one life, In a world that keeps on pushin’ me around, I’ll stand my ground, and I won’t back down.”
“I Won’t Back Down,” Full Moon Fever, 1989
This song is all about personal integrity and sticking to your values or beliefs. No matter what pressure you are under or dilemmas you face, keep in mind that integrity is how you act when no one is watching and how you respond to pressure defines you as a person. Stay true to yourself, don’t back down from your convictions, and don’t back down in the face of adversity.
4. “I’ve got a few of my own fault lines, Running under my life.”
“Fault Lines,” Hypnotic Eye, 2014
If anything, I like to think of this song as a reminder that everyone has a past and has more going on right underneath the surface that they show the world. Despite these fault lines we all have, and the occasional earthquakes they cause, we are all somehow still held together and these fault lines in our lives should not stop us from living life to its fullest.
5. “It don’t make no difference to me baby, Everybody has to fight to be free, You see you don’t have to live like a refugee.”
“Refugee,” Damn the Torpedoes, 1979
The difference between a refugee and a revolutionary is their attitude. This song reminds us to not commiserate in our current predicaments, but to rather to forge on and not allow our own self-pity to hold us back. Don’t accept your situation complacently, but fight for what you want.
6. “Well some say life will beat you down, Break your heart, steal your crown, So I’ve started out for God knows where, I guess I’ll know when I get there.”
“Learning to Fly,” Into the Great Wide Open, 1991
This song is about not being afraid to live, to struggle, to get lost, because that is what life is all about. Even if everything seems to be against you, that is no reason to stop trying to achieve your goals. Learning to fly without wings is like starting a journey without a map or maybe even a destination, but you venture on anyway, and that is the unpredictable beauty that is life.
7. “I rolled on as the sky grew dark, I put the pedal down to make some time, There’s something good waitin’ down this road, I’m pickin’ up whatever’s mine.”
“Runnin’ Down a Dream,” Full Moon Fever, 1989
Set to a rolling beat that matches the rhythm of tire rotations, “Running Down a Dream” encompasses that feeling of endless possibility one experiences while driving. This song excites one to chase one’s dreams and delve into the mysterious path ahead; since your dreams will not come to you, you need to run after them.
8. “Well I don’t know what I’ve been told, You never slow down, you never grow old.”
“Mary Jane’s Last Dance,” 1993
A song of growing up told by the perspective of a teenager, it reminds us how easy it can be to fall into nostalgic feeling of being young and immortal. However, this song also reminds us not to settle into what society has in store for us, but to keep the spirit of curiosity alive within us. Once we settle or become too comfortable in our lives, then we have officially lost that spark of adventure that lives within the young at heart. Hold onto that spark and build it into a flame that continuously burns within you.
9. “I’m gonna free fall out into nothin’, Gonna leave this world for awhile, And I’m free, free fallin’.”
“Free Fallin’,” Full Moon Fever, 1989
This calming tune encourages the art of letting go and just being in the moment, making this iconic song an all-time favorite for some. Sometimes, it is nice to escape from the busy world full of schedules and deadlines and to just free fall into your present moment and truly appreciate all it has to offer.
10. “All around your island, There’s a barricade, That keeps out the danger, That holds in the pain.”
“Walls,” 1996
To be completely honest, every line in this song carries its own meaning, but this line in particular carries a valuable lesson. When we guard ourselves too much, it does protect us from getting hurt, but it also bars us from creating meaningful connections which we may regret later. Every now and then, it is good to let special people into your life who will enrich it more that you could have ever imagined. The possibility for pain is still there, but it is better to have lived and experienced meaningful connections rather than to allow them to pass you by and always wonder what you had missed.