My Top 5 Favorite Lyrics From Taylor Swift’s Folklore

5:

I persist and resist the temptation to ask you

If one thing had been different

Would everything be different today?

From “the 1.” Life is full of what-ifs. I think this lyric strikes true for a lot of people throughout their lives; most people wonder what would change if we had made one different decision in the past at one point or another.

4:

Leaving like a father

Running like water

From “cardigan.” My own issues with my father and father figures in my life makes this lyric hit home every time I hear it. It’s a very stereotypical theme, which is why it’s rated below many others, but written in a beautiful way regardless.

3:

I can go anywhere I want, anywhere I want

Just not home

From “my tears ricochet.” I could have made a top 5 lyrics list using this song alone, but this line cuts so deep that it had to be included on this list. Unlike every other line on this list, it doesn’t cut deep because I can relate to it. No, I can go home anytime I want. But the message hidden underneath these lines—that home was a person, one she can no longer go to—strikes my heart so strongly that it doesn’t matter that I don’t relate to the lyrics.

2:

I didn’t have it in myself to go with grace

Cause when I’d fight, you used to tell me I was brave

From “my tears ricochet.” I don’t think I can even explain this one properly. There is definitely a sense of the lyrics hitting home for me, but unlike previous relatable lyrics no specific memory is attached to this one. Instead, I have a vague sense of deep understanding with no specific reason to attach that to. I have some theories on why this one feels so familiar to me, but nothing concrete. Regardless, the message being conveyed in these lines is one that tops my favorite lyrics from the album.

1:

They told me all of my cages were mental

So I got wasted like all my potential

From “this is me trying.” This one nearly kills me each time I listen. This song is one I don’t typically listen to… but when I do, nine out of ten times it is purely to hear those lines. My own experience with anxiety and being surrounded by family members who simply don’t understand the struggle makes this