In the wake of Mother’s Day, with all the brutal things happening in our country and our world, I am feeling weepy. I am always a sap, but nowadays, it is pretty extra.
In this weepy state, I have a new favorite song, “Rainbow Cars,” written by a 4-year-old from New York. The author is named Jean or maybe Gene (I don’t have a written copy of the transcript). The song appears on the
Story Pirates podcast, in which adults take words and stories by kids and turn them into songs and sketch comedy. Most of their shows are hilarious. But this one brought me to tears.
The lyrics are simple. But what moved me so much was the way the adults took the lyrics so seriously and then wrote a song good enough to be in a Broadway show with the lyrics from a four-year-old. And beyond that, the lyrics contained the seeds of rational climate policy.
As laid out by Jean/Gene:
the rainbow cars don’t have people in them;
they are powered by stars;
and at the end, all of the rainbow cars dance.
Isha Clarke, (Lindsey Moore/KQED)
Even at the age of four, Jean/Gene is envisioning a more sustainable world. I would certainly rather live in the world Jean/Gene has created than this one we have. And our work is to follow the visions of young people like Isha Clarke and Greta Thunberg and Autumn Peltier, and the Sunrise Movement and Youth vs. Apocalypse to transform the world we have. The Story Pirates are bringing their skills to uplift young people’s words and turn them into song, to put them into podcasts, to amplify in ways the children cannot access. Young people are so clear about what needs to happen. They are not yet jaded by having had to make so many compromises with capitalism. We need to turn their visions into policy.
In the Story Pirates song, it is the adults following the vision of the young person that moves me, as much as the music. It is beautiful to see them take Jean/Gene’s words so seriously. Story Pirates also has a
non-profit dedicated to supporting young people.
there are rainbow cars
that are cars covered in rainbows
they are covered in rainbows
they go to rainbow island
the cars don’t have people in them
they have star power
the star power makes them go
the cars don’t have people in them
they have star power
the star power makes them go
on rainbow island the rainbow cars go on all the rides that are there
on rainbow island the rainbow cars trick or treat for candy and they dress up
there are rainbow carsthat are cars covered in rainbows
they are covered in rainbows
they go to rainbow island
the cars don’t have people in them
they have star power
the star power makes them go
at the end end
all of the rainbow cars dance.
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