#brucespringsteen

For a while, the headlines convinced me that patriotism was becoming impossible.

Then one night, Bruce Springsteen reminded me that the story of America isn't written only by the people in power. It's also written by families, neighbors, artists, and ordinary people who refuse to give up on the promise of a more perfect Union.

This essay traces my journey from hope, to doubt, to finding hope again—and how music helped me rediscover what it means to love my country.

New article: A Prayer for My Country

Sometimes a concert becomes something more than a concert.

What I expected to be a bucket-list Bruce Springsteen show in Brooklyn turned into a reflection on patriotism, community, and hope in a deeply divided America. This essay explores why Springsteen's music still resonates—and why I left the arena feeling more optimistic than when I arrived.

Read the full article:

I went to Brooklyn expecting to check a bucket-list concert off my list.

Instead, I found myself thinking about patriotism, community, and what it means to hope for a country that's still a work in progress.

Bruce Springsteen has spent decades writing about the American dream, the people left behind by economic change, and the belief that we can still build something better together. Seeing those songs performed in front of a hometown crowd made them feel more relevant than ever.

I wrote about why the night felt less like a concert and more like "A Prayer for My Country."

Puoi specchiarti nei suoi occhi per ore... ⏳

Smarriti tra le pieghe del suo tempo.

Stringere tra le mani i suoi silenzi.

Ma Lei è acqua profonda.

Puoi berne un sorso, puoi bagnarti le mani, ma non potrai mai stringerla nel pugno.

Ti scivola tra le dita, lasciandoti solo il brivido del freddo. 🖤

Segui la corrente, continua sul suo corso segreto...

Lasciati trasportare. 💜

Born to Run is an insane album of bangers. I mean... The title track, Thunder Road, and Jungleland. Every song is a masterpiece. But for me Backstreets is my favorite track.

There's so much open to interpretation interpretation lyrics. The name Terry is ambiguous. Is Terry a man or woman? Some think the lyrics describe a closeted same sex relationship. I don't know if there is a wrong way to interpret the song. My personal belief is it is about a friendship.

"One soft, infested summer, me and Terry became friends

Trying in vain to breathe the fire we was born in

Catching rides to the outskirts, tying faith between our teeth

Sleeping in that old abandoned beach house, getting wasted in the heat"

It feels like one of those codependent intense friendships you have in youth. You find someone you connect with and spend every moment together. We have all had them. A friendship that forms fast and then blows up hard.

"Blame it on the lies that killed us, blame it on the truth that ran us down

You can blame it all on me, Terry, it don't matter to me now

When the breakdown hit at midnight, there was nothing left to say

But I hated him and I hated you when you went away"

The end of the song is devastating and heartfelt.

"Laying here in the dark, you're like an angel on my chest

Just another tramp of hearts crying tears of faithlessness

Remember all the movies, Terry, we'd go see

Trying to learn to walk like the heroes we thought we had to be"

This is a love song AND break-up song in one.

Then you look at the album cover. A traditionally masculine man leaning on his best friend who is literally built like a pro football player. Bruce insisted on putting Clarence on the album. This was the mid-70s. The Civil Rights movement and desegregation was not that far in the past. An integrated band was radical. The album cover depicting their friendship was radical. The emotional images from the album of two masculine presenting men joking around and literally leaning on one another, presents a alternative vision of manhood. You can love your best friend, you can hug your best friend, and you can be emotional about and with your best friend and still be a masculine man. Its a fuck you to the notion traditional masculinity.

Anyways I will NEVER be normal about Backstreets.

Born to Run is an insane album of bangers. I mean... The title track, Thunder Road, and Jungleland. Every song is a masterpiece. But for me Backstreets is my favorite track.

There's so much open to interpretation interpretation lyrics. The name Terry is ambiguous. Is Terry a man or woman? Some think the lyrics describe a closeted same sex relationship. I don't know if there is a wrong way to interpret the song. My personal belief is it is about a friendship.

"One soft, infested summer, me and Terry became friends

Trying in vain to breathe the fire we was born in

Catching rides to the outskirts, tying faith between our teeth

Sleeping in that old abandoned beach house, getting wasted in the heat"

It feels like one of those codependent intense friendships you have in youth. You find someone you connect with and spend every moment together. We have all had them. A friendship that forms fast and then blows up hard.

"Blame it on the lies that killed us, blame it on the truth that ran us down

You can blame it all on me, Terry, it don't matter to me now

When the breakdown hit at midnight, there was nothing left to say

But I hated him and I hated you when you went away"

The end of the song is devastating and heartfelt.

"Laying here in the dark, you're like an angel on my chest

Just another tramp of hearts crying tears of faithlessness

Remember all the movies, Terry, we'd go see

Trying to learn to walk like the heroes we thought we had to be"

This is a love song AND break-up song in one.

Then you look at the album cover. A traditionally masculine man leaning on his best friend who is literally built like a pro football player. Bruce insisted on putting Clarence on the album. This was the mid-70s. The Civil Rights movement and desegregation was not that far in the past. An integrated band was radical. The album cover depicting their friendship was radical. The emotional images from the album of two masculine presenting men joking around and literally leaning on one another, presents a alternative vision of manhood. You can love your best friend, you can hug your best friend, and you can be emotional about and with your best friend and still be a masculine man. Its a fuck you to the notion traditional masculinity.

Anyways I will NEVER be normal about Backstreets.