I Won't Give Up...
...Never, Ever, Ever Again
I woke up early, made it to the gym by 5:30 am, pushed myself harder than during my first workout. When I finished working out, I felt more emotional than I have in weeks. In a good way. Mostly.
Maybe it was the sunrise that greeted me as I left the gym—painting the sky with soft pastels, a quiet reminder of new beginnings. Maybe it was the moon, still hanging in the sky as I walked to my car—a steady presence, reminding me of the magical dance between light and dark. Or maybe it was music I listened to all morning.
From Diana Ross’s 1970s anthem “I’m Coming Out” to Jason Mraz’s 2010s ballad “I Won’t Give Up,” I chose songs that I knew would make me feel something.
In the case of Mr. A To Z’s ballad, it made me feel something mighty, might real.
The original version has always tugged at my heartstrings, but his collaboration with the a cappella group Straight No Chaser—what a name, but what a talented group—ended up bursting my emotional dam wide open. Queue the waterworks!
“I Won't Give Up”
Written by Jason Mraz + Michael Lee Natter
When I look into your eyes
It's like watching the night sky
Or a beautiful sunrise
Well there's so much they hold
And just like them old stars
I see that you've come so far
To be right where you are
How old is your soul?
Well, I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up
And when you're needing your space
To do some navigating
I'll be here patiently waiting
To see what you find
'Cause even the stars they burn
Some even fall to the earth
We've got a lot to learn
God knows we're worth it
No, I won't give up
I don't wanna be someone who walks away so easily
I'm here to stay and make the difference that I can make
Our differences they do a lot to teach us how to use the tools and gifts
We got yeah we got a lot at stake
And in the end you're still my friend at least we did intend
For us to work we didn't break, we didn't burn
We had to learn, how to bend without the world caving in
I had to learn what I got, and what I'm not
And who I am
I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up
I'm still looking up
Well, I won't give up on us (no I'm not giving up)
God knows I'm tough (I am tough) he knows (I am loved)
We got a lot to learn (we're alive, we are loved)
God knows we're worth it (and we're worth it)
I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up
For me, there’s something so personal and powerful about the combination of poetry and music. Songs can remind me that even when I’m struggling, even when I feel stuck, there’s still beauty, still progress, still a reason to keep going…to keep trying.
Life has a way of throwing obstacles in all of our ways. Some days the obstacles can feel overwhelming. But in my experience as long as I do my best to adjust, to keep moving, to push through, to try…things usually work out for the best.
So even when I doubt myself, even when my path seems unclear, I show up as best I can. And keep showing up until the doubts fade and the paths emerge.
So if you’re feeling discouraged, if you’re questioning whether it’s all worth it, I urge you to never, ever, ever give up. God knows you’re worth it, boo. Even if the skies get rough…I’m sending you all my love.
Keep looking up!
Clint 🌈✌️
“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.”
Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere's Fan
ON THIS DAY = MARCH 18
BIRTHDAYS
1862 = Eugène Jansson = Swedish painter 🌈
1886 = Edward Everett Horton = American actor and comedian 🌈
1893 = Wilfred Owen = British soldier and poet 🌈
1901 = William Johnson = American painter
1909 = Ernest Gallo = American businessman and E & J Gallo Winery co-founder
1932 = John Updike = American novelist, short story writer, and critic
1934 = Charley Pride = American singer
1938 = Carl Gottlieb = American actor and screenwriter
1941 – Wilson Pickett = American singer-songwriter
1950 = Brad Dourif = American actor
1950 = Stanley Bennett Clay = American actor, director, and producer 🌈
1951 = Ben Cohen = American Ben and Jerry's co-founder and philanthropist
1959 = Irene Cara = American singer-songwriter and actor
1959 = Luc Besson = French filmmaker
1963 = Vanessa L. Williams = American model, actor, and singer
1969 = Michael Bergin = American actor
1970 = Queen Latifah = American rapper, producer, and actor
1972 = Dane Cook = American comedian, actor, director, and producer
1975 = Sutton Foster = American actor, singer, and dancer
1979 = Adam Levine = American singer-songwriter and tv personality
EVENTS
1308 = France orders the arrest of all Knights Templar on charges of heresy, idolatry and sodomy, but these charges are only a pretext to seize the riches of the order.
1848 = The premiere of Fry's Leonora in Philadelphia is the first known performance of a grand opera by an American composer.
1990 = In the largest art theft in US history, 12 paintings, collectively worth around $500 million, are stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.
THIS is the reason I love doing what I'm doing...such sage and wise words, Clarke. You're a gem and gent. Thank you for sharing words of wisdom. I'm grateful for all the "universal solvent" I have been given (and hopefully given back). Cheers! 🌈
Love is the universal solvent. Terrifying at times, always to be respected, yet always to be sought.