"You've Passed" by Neutral Milk Hotel

The lady is dying
She bends back like a wave
As her spirit is climbing
Through the hospital wall and away

And I wanted to hold you
As you made your escape
But now I should have told you
When your eyes were alive and awake

Always in life we all must make this mistake
And so I go it alone
And the pressure is great
I hold on to my own
Oh please oh don't go away

I wanted to know you
Before you started to fade
But I gave everything to
A lie and a farce and a fake


This song provides me some solace in my grief over my grandmother's death. I had wanted to be with her when she died, but my denial robbed me of that experience. I was, however, able to hold her cat as her cat died and found great comfort in that experience. And unlike the regret of this song, I was lucky to get to know my grandmother fairly well - through writing her biography with her - before she died.