In the late summer and early autumn of 2021, I knew my father was approaching his last days on this earth. Inspired by the soothing sounds of ocean waves and a train wailing in the distance on a quick trip down to the Jersey Shore, I began to write his eulogy. But it didn’t really start flowing until I listened to an album and re-watched a film that had once given me solace: Letter to You by Bruce Springsteen.
Filmed by Springsteen’s longtime collaborator and videographer Thom Zimny, Letter to You documents the making of the album of the same name with the E Street Band, while also providing soulful insights on the album’s themes: life, loss, death and life after death.
Letter to You explores these themes further through Bruce’s commentary and the songs themselves: about his long lost bandmates and how he is the Last Man Standing of his original band the Castiles; about the Ghosts of his past still being very much a part of his present; how One Minute You’re Here, the Next Minute You’re Gone explores the mystery of death; and how music can have the Power of Prayer to help you endure and overcome the hardest parts of life.
Further, the imagery during the film is extremely peaceful, healing and soothing, with the beautiful aesthetic of freshly fallen and falling snow blanketing the landscape throughout.
Bruce Springsteen’s music and storytelling has been the soundtrack to my life since early adolescence. Not many people realise or understand how spiritual Bruce Springsteen’s music really is, with much of its imagery and verbiage rooted in the Catholic tradition.
Many people also don’t realise that Bruce was raised in the Catholic Church (the name Springsteen is Dutch, though his heritage is primarily Italian and Irish). Perhaps these are some of the many reasons I connect with him so strongly: because of my own Italian/Irish/Catholic background, my family connection to the Jersey Shore, and the deeply spiritual dimension of his writing.
This film accompanied me during the writing of the eulogy – the contents of which had much to do with how music in general, but more specifically the music of Bruce Springsteen, brought my father and I closer together. At the end of my “Letter to Dad”, I “took all my fears and doubts” and found the things in my heart that rang true.
I also found the song that resonated the most: I”ll See You in My Dreams. When I was preparing my talk, I sang those verses, with the plan to speak to them at the funeral. But when the time came, I broke into song – much to the audience’s and my own surprise.
Finding one’s voice through the throes of grief is particularly challenging, but possible. For me, it was through that visit to the Jersey Shore shortly before my father’s death, as well as listening to this album and watching this film on repeat, that helped me to find mine. Through the grace of God, the power of prayer, and with a little help from my “longtime traveling companion and friend” Bruce Springsteen, I somehow not only managed to find that voice, but also sing a few verses for the very first time in public.
“One Minute You’re Here, The Next Minute You’re Gone”
At one point in the film, Bruce asks: “Where do we go when we die?”
He goes on: “Maybe we go nowhere or maybe everywhere. Maybe our soul resides in the ether, in the starless part of the sky. And resonates outward like a stone dropped into a still lake whose circles are like the lives of people we’ve touched over the course of our lives. No one knows how far our soul may reside or may sound. I’ve grieved at the thought of never seeing my friends again. But we see them on familiar streets. They move in shadow, glimpsed only from the corner of our eyes. We see them in our dreams.”
This segment only reinforced my strong faith in life after death, while bringing me fresh perspective on how to move forward through loss. Though death is so incredibly painful and hard to understand, it can also be beautiful and peaceful at the same time.
Finally, the closing of the film gave me so much comfort and peace that I watched the film again and again just to re-experience the ending. I find myself continuing to grieve over a year later and expect to continue to grieve for the rest of my life – as this is also part of healing. But God – and Springsteen – have helped me find my way in life without my dad. I hope that those who are grieving might watch this film while praying, or doing whatever it is that brings peace, solace, and a renewed perspective on life. It’s there. Now go. Go. And may God bless you.
Bruce Springsteen’s US tour starts in Tampa, Florida on 1 February 2023
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