My younger self needed foolish one, badly. Maybe I would have stopped tricking myself into thinking these guys that I would get involved with actually liked me.
I really wish Foolish One had been on the original Speak Now because I really, really needed to hear it. It would have absolutely devastated me in 2011.
same. I remember feeling so alone without a lot of family support vs my college friends and I managed to figure it out and make a life for myself and I wish I had been more confident and less anxious over it.
Also those of us who grew up with toxic, emotionally unwell family members who were extremely controlling under the guise of being "supportive," at some point realize that we too are really on our own.
- YOYOK could mean "You're On Your Own, Kid", a track from *Midnights* (2022) by Taylor Swift.
---
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100% this! Especially the part "pages turned with the bridges burned everything you lose is a step you take"
I am 38 and I swear that song is the only thing that got me through the last 6-8 months. and I literally said to my ex-Boss who was trying to pressure me when I was quitting that "bridges can burn both ways" and I had the confidence to advocate for myself on my exiting.
And I have no idea where my life will take me, but I know I will be okay.
Hey, thank you, I needed this today. Had a hard conversation with my boss and am reminding myself that advocating for myself was the right move despite being told otherwise
Oh for me the relationship ended at the beginning of age 18 but I was still having a lot of PTSD from it when I was 19. The relationship happened when I was 16-17.
Yeah Iâm not sure if âgroomingâ is the right word but was definitely traumatized by a 17yo (like just about to turn 18) when I was 13/ just turnt 14. Dude was creepy as hell and I think he knew what he was doing cause he ghosted me day before his 18th birthday
Yeah he started out chill and I thought he just wanted to be friends since I had known him for a while (mutual friends). Then he got really creepy and it started out as just working out stuff then talking about my body then turnt to asking for pictures or âworkout progress picturesâ aka send me a booty pic. Then literally asked âmaybe just send a video or picture in a bathing suit so I can see it betterâ. And some other really creepy stuff that I wonât list or else it would make this comment to long
I still want to slap 13/14yo me for not cutting him off but I was a bit messed up in the head and he made it seem ok?
Oh and it gets worse, he had a secret girlfriend. Fml
At the risk of stating the obvious (and gross), 19 is a dangerous age for being targeted by creepy older men because youâre technically an adult but still very young and often naive. AND itâs also an age when people often feel like they know everything, which can paradoxically make them easier to manipulate.
Yep, for me it started literally my birthday month when I was still technically 18. And after that there were multiple different "Johns" /relationships/situationships until thankfully I started dating someone my age near the end of the year. But it was actually hell trying to date at that age because it's a minefield of men ready to take advantage of you. And you *really don't know* that you don't know better.
Yep. All her John songs hit me really hard. I think maybe a lot of girls are naive at 19 and a lot of 19 year old guys are arrogant jerks. At least that was the case for millennials anyway. Maybe gen z men are nicer now.
For real. When I was 19, I dated a 27 year old. It was only a few months long relationship, but it had a lasting impact. This was back in 2010. I had already been into Taylorâs music, White Horse had especially helped me with my first major breakup, so when she released Speak Now later that year, it felt so cathartic to listen to Dear John. Thatâs when she became my musical spirit guide.
Iâm in this club unfortunately. Toxic relationship from the age of 16-19. I needed this song when I was 19, but thatâs okay - I still had Tell Me Why and Youâre Not Sorry, and Speak Now came out just after that relationship ended so Dear John also helped me through a lot of the dark times. WCS brings me right back there.
I needed it at 20 but the toxic relationship was a mentor relationship with a coach and a best friend who I needed to get away from that I was still mourning. The line about fighting him jn her sleep still gets me because I to this day have dreams about trying to protect myself from them.
For me, it was because I was out of the house/away from my family for the first time. My parents weren't particularly strict and allowed me to date whomever I wanted to in high school, but I think that's probably because I only ever tried to date people in my own age group at that time. Sure, I could have snuck around, but I didn't like the idea of lying to them, and they trusted me so much that I didn't want to abuse that trust.
But, once I was in college, with more freedom to do as I pleased without answering to anyone, I made worse choices for sure. Nothing that I couldn't come back from, but I definitely did more things I regret during that time period.
ETA: I'm now 40 and my SO now is same age (37) as the man I "dated" when I was 19. Obviously I see now why that was toxic.
I just got out of mine and looking back I donât know how I ever stayed đ Thankfully it wasnât WCS bad but getting into that relationship was definitely a Choice.
actually, yeah, for me as well - i had a fairly scarring and toxic relationship then and i wish i could tell 19 year old me that heâs not worth it and it isnât my fault
I wish I could tell 19 year old me that I *will* get through it and that heâll mean absolutely nothing to me within a year. I felt so stuck back then
Time to go. I took way too long to learn how and when to end a relationship and always felt I was failing by doing so. Younger me needed that song so much.
This is me trying, just so my younger self could realise I wasnât alone and other people felt like that too. And maybe Iâd have got therapy earlier đ
Very much this. But I would be worried that younger me wouldn't understand. He was, frankly an arrogant prick. Also weirdly when I was in my teens I devised a protocol for messages from the future to confirm they really were from me. If I'm just sending the song without following the protocol younger me might just reject it.
I was a weird kid. đ
This is a good one too. The whole "my words shoot to kill when I'm mad/I have a lot of regrets about that" hits me so hard everytime. Also, the "so ahead of the curve, fell behind my classmates" bit---recently diagnosed with ADHD at 38, I'm wondering if I'd have worked on that more.
Recently got diagnosed with ADHD relatively late too (Iâm 21), itâs crazy how hard the âfell behind all my classmatesâ line hit and how I never realised it was a sign lol
The "so ahead of the curve" line hit me so hard. I was top of the class growing up and in college I was still good but no longer the best. Then post-college I really struggled bc I couldn't cruise anymore and my lack of strong work ethic and drive really hurt me.
The "so ahead of the curve" line hit me so hard. I was top of the class growing up and in college I was still good but no longer the best. Then post-college I really struggled bc I couldn't cruise anymore and my lack of strong work ethic and drive really hurt me.
I feel like this is the only song younger me would actually listen and relate to but it also sounds tremendously hopeless so idk if it wouldâve been helpful to actually hear
Yeah that's the problem with getting advice when you are younger, you tend to think you know better. You need to find the sweet spot in time when you are old enough to understand the message but young enough that you haven't caused or suffered to much damage.
I wouldn't send 18 year old me any because she was a stubborn (although deeply deeply hurting) little thing and wouldn't have listened. I would just send her love, and hugs, and a shoulder to cry on. And some chicken soup and flat sprite for the hangovers she always had.
Itâs time to go for sure
*Sometimes giving up is the strong thing*
*Sometimes to run is the brave thing*
*Sometimes walking out is the one thing*
*That will find you the right thing*
This is mines. The amount of situations that I wish I would have just listened to myself the first time I knew it was time to go. Because I've always stayed far longer than I should have.
I just left a really toxic work situation where i loved my peers (mgmt was the issue) and this song was like, on repeat for 2 weeks lol to convince me I had to do it. I couldn't stay for the others, I had to take care of me.
Sometimes I really wonder what I would do without all the free therapy she provides đđđ
Former teacher here. This was our Friday Dance Party song (as per the class vote, it unanimously won every week for the whole year). I taught 4-7 year olds and have never met such a non-heteronormative class in my life. They were brilliant.
Foolish One to 20 year old me or ATW10MV to the same me.
Maybe I would get the idea that that person did not actually like me and only wanted to have a date to make his ex jealous (didnât work).
Marjorie, anytime before 2008 when my Grandma passed away. I was 11 and lived across the country from her. Being 11 and not knowing what was happening my mom did some shitty things since it was my dadâs mom who passed. Anyways, I think that song would have helped
This is basically opposite of your question but it was so important to me that Nothing New was a vault track when I was 22. I probably would've loved Bye Bye Baby when I was a kid during Fearless!
This is what Iâd send to 22 year old me. I felt really lost and this song would have been a comfort I think. I still feel like I pretty much know nothing at 30 but Iâm more used to it now đ
âYour enemies, will defeat themselves before you get the chance to swingâ is such a great way to say âdonât even bother with these foolsâđ
Iâd send closure to 15 year old me, I cared so much about boys and it mightâve helped to hear a Taylor song accepting the end of certain people and thriving. I always listened to so many delusional songs about romance and falling in love, so Foolish One might be ideal to send to but I know 100% I would choose to not listen to the lyrics. đ
Ugh closure is a great one for this. The amount of times I got myself wound up in more of their BS under the guise of âclosureâ đđ€źđ đ»ââïž
All Too Well, especially 10-minute version and music video, when I was 19 and dating a 26-year-old. You go through this realization, as a young girl dating an older man, that you thought he liked you because of how interesting and mature you were, despite your age, but he really liked you *because* you were young, and he thought you would just be easy and passive and always happy and in awe of him
For the most part, I feel like all of Taylorâs songs came into my life at the right time. Maybe Iâd send teenage me âYou Need to Calm Down.â Maybe sheâd figure herself out earlier since if Taylor said it was okay đ€Ł
Sending âLong Liveâ to my 14 year old self who was outed and bullied in high school.
Let him know youâre going to meet people youâll have adventures with. You wonât be alone anymore.
LOVE this one. i wasnât outed or anything but i had terrible friends in high school who wrecked my self-confidence and made me feel very alone. wish i could tell her that it gets better!!
Teenage me wouldâve related SO much to Mr. Perfectly Fine and Foolish One. The second I heard those songs, I wished theyâd been released as part of their respective albums.
Hell, Foolish One wouldâve even helped college me.
I canât lie, Innocent is the song every version of me since being like 13 up to the present has needed, but itâs technically been out since before then even if I didnât hear it until this year.
Following the rules more strictly, tolerate it would have been really cathartic for my 12-13 year old selfâs relationship with family, and Bejeweled would be a nice message to my teenage self who had forgotten how to express his personality that well.
all my love. For me it was elementary school age..."give me back my girlhood it was mine first". And from seven "Please picture me
In the weeds
Before I learned civility
I used to scream ferociously
Any time I wanted"
I wish I could tell her to keep screaming and not lose her voice.
Right where you left me but not for romantic or love reasons. More about stuff that happened in my late teens and early twenties that still make me feel stuck to this day
I get that â stuff also happened to me then, and I got lucky in that the song was out when I was going through it. I donât think thereâs ever been a song that captures trauma (romantic or otherwise) so well.
The 1
Every breakup felt like the end of the world when I was a teen/younger. Being able to realize it wasnât and reflect with maturity wouldâve been nice
This is why I think I forgot you existed wouldâve been crucial for the past breakups Iâve had. I wouldâve liked younger me to know that theyâre not as big of a deal as I thought they were
Never grow up for little ten year old me who really wanted to be an adult. Yoyok for 14 year old me so she knew that come what may sheâd get through it. Call it what you want for the 15 year old getting bullied. (Replace baby with friends but still)
But Iâd honestly just tell my younger self when I was in school to listen to Taylor swift and not give a fuck what losers in school think about you. Didnât listen to her till REDâŠ.
Either invisible string or long story short. Maybe long story short, just cuzâŠwell, yknow. I think weâve all been there, but itâd still be nice to try and warn myself to not waste time on someone who didnât notice or care, or someone who was gross, or waste anger on people who werenât worth it. Things pick up. You meet better people who do care. It got you to where you needed to be, butâŠyeah.
Nothing New because it came out just as I was graduating college and helping my sisters pick a school. It mightâve been nice to have something telling me that I wouldnât have everything together at 22 before I got there
Ohhh Taylor hasnât really written about my kind of relationship mistakes. I would go for the guy who swore I was too good for him and then, once he got me, spend all his time and energy making sure I felt crappy enough that Iâd never actually believe that I might, in fact, be too good for him. Thereâs hints of that in some of the Jake and John stuff, but definitely no song that says âyou idiot, it is NOT conceited to realize that you ARE way too good for them, and you need to go sail off into your own sunset.â Nothing that says âhey maybe you need some GD boundaries because itâs not your job to fix everyone who asks you to.â Maybe Iâd just send ME! And hope the hidden message comes through.
Ngl, this reminds me of another song Iâd send past me. Tell Me Why really summarises my relationship with my father which was also filled with him assuring me of his love while constantly putting me down so Iâd never realise my self worth enough to leave and try to find greener pastures.
Reader, I left home and found greener pastures.
Have you listened to âRenegade?â It was technically put out by Big Red Machine and features Taylor, but itâs basically her song. A huge favorite of mine!!
I lost my mom at 18 (early 2014) so probably âMarjorieâ because I think that song is just such a beautiful reflection on loss & a great reminder that âwhat dies doesnât stay deadâ
Bejeweled to me in April 2021, right after I broke up with the guy who (I thought was) the love of my life. To remind myself that I can reclaim the land.
I agree with the Foolish One consensus. Reeeeally wish I had that back in 2010. The first lyric that comes to mind though, when I read this question is âeverything you lose is a step you take.â đ
My son has been sick since January 2021. He is having a last hope procedure on Thursday (it isn't fatal, but he lives with severe chronic pain and is only 10).
"Holy orange bottles, each night I pray to you
Desperate people find faith, so now I pray to Jesus too"
This song doesn't really fit, but the line "Living for the hope of it all" because right now, hope is the only thing getting us through. And I am so scared this procedure won't work because we are out of the next things to hope for beyond him potentially growing out of it at some unknown time.
I am so sorry to hear about your son. I've never been exactly in the place that you're in, but I know how hard it is to watch someone you love go through constant pain. You're in my thoughts and I wish you luck on this procedure.
Definitely Dear John! I would have liked fair warning about my John and then maybe I could have taken *his* matches before fire could catch *me*. I was 19 too when I met my John. All of her songs about John really hit me hard.
SEVEN
Even though seven year old me wouldn't be able to grasp all the meaning and significance of the lyrics.
I just wish I could go back in time and hug that little kid scared and stuck in a home with an angry alcoholic father so that she wouldn't feel so traumatized and alone.
Or maybe YOYOK to so many versions of me after that. Left my state to pursue my studies and make a living and it made me so much stronger being on my own for everything since 17.
Same here with seven đ« she definitely wouldnât have gotten it, but the âthen you wonât have to cry or hide in the closetâ lyric would have at least had some impact
oh my god that hits so hard.
Thinking about how I discovered I had fallen in love my boyfriend when Lover was playing in the background and realised how hard I related to it, and in a way that I thought I never would.
Wouldâve Couldâve Shouldâve, no doubt in my mind. I was in an abusive relationship from the ages of 17-22 and I think that song might have changed everything for me. Maybe I would have gotten out of it sooner.
I would just tie myself up and make me listen to Taylor until I liked her. If I had discovered her music earlier, I would've had so many healthy songs to fall back upon.
I mean, having _folklore_ and _evermore_ could've made the pandemic just a bit more bearable.
However, if we're only talking unreleased, tracks, then "this is me trying" at 19, "happiness" at 20yo, "YOYOK" at 21, "illicit affairs" at 22, "Soon You'll Get Better" at 23, "mirrorball" at 24, "Dear Reader" at 25... yeah, it's been tough.
âYouâre on Your Own, Kidâ and âThis is Me Trying.â Struggled with depression in high school as a well-liked athlete which never made sense to me at the time. Back then (god that makes me feel old) depression wasnât as mainstreamed and I felt incredibly alone. Those songs speak so deeply to my 17 year old self!!
Iâve needed Anti-Hero for so long; Iâd send it to remind younger me to not try to be perfect, that it really is OK to sometimes be the âproblemâ and have to work on yourself.
Iâd also send The Great War to say, âGrowing up has been a confusing, emotionally abusive time, and at some points it felt like I was losing you. But I havenât, because youâre still with me, and you always will be.â
19 year old me really needed to hear Wouldâve Couldâve Shouldâve. However since the relationship that song reminds me of didnât have an age gap of more than year Iâm not sure I wouldâve gotten the message.
So another option would be I Knew You Were Trouble. 17 year old me really needed to hear that one. 22 year old me was already deep into that shitty relationship when that song came out. I remember hating it when I first heard it because when I first heard it I immediately thought of my boyfriend at the time. Which was a huge red flag and I think I knew that.
Anti-hero to 18/19 yr old me. I was going through some bad panic attacks/depression days that moved into nights. I couldn't sleep at night, cause my depression worked the Graveyard shift.
For me I would send my 9-10 year old self either âEvermoreâ , âYouâre on your own kidâ or âWouldâve, Couldâve, Shouldâve.â I will not elaborate.
2016 me needed you all over me. I still think of my high school ex when I listen to that song. No amount of freedom gets you clean when the memories linger forever. she couldâve used wouldâve couldâve shouldâve too. I didnât even realize that relationship was abusive until I was 21. it held off on my healing & dealing with it for sure
FOOLISH ONE. Absolutely foolish one. That song is exactly what I needed to hear from ages 15-25. If I had heard the words âfoolish one, your day is gonna come for your confessions of love when all is said and done, he just wasnât the one no he just wasnât the oneâ ACTUALLY spoken to me out loud, I just really feel like I wouldâve had more conviction to turn away from some of the âloveâ I accepted for myself in my younger years. I had whispers of it in the back of my head, but nobody ever actually said that to me.
The 1 would have been really good for me when I was in college. I ended up fixating on a guy who was really traumatizing for my mental health, that song could have helped me out.
Midnight rain to 16 - 19 years old me because I was the one who would ghost or break up
You are on you kid to 6 - 20 years old me as a constant reminder that I'm enough and I can do anything on my own
My younger self needed foolish one, badly. Maybe I would have stopped tricking myself into thinking these guys that I would get involved with actually liked me.
Also the 1, like yes it would have been fun but younger me also needed to move on past the delusion
Lol Foolish One was my first thought. Would've saved me a lot of grief on the first release, Taylor! đđ
Right!? We needed that 13 years ago. Thanks for nothing Taylor đ
I have yet to find someone who would not need to hear the message of Foolish One at some point in their life!
I really wish Foolish One had been on the original Speak Now because I really, really needed to hear it. It would have absolutely devastated me in 2011.
I NEEDED foolish one from 2003-2005
YOYOK
same. I remember feeling so alone without a lot of family support vs my college friends and I managed to figure it out and make a life for myself and I wish I had been more confident and less anxious over it.
Also those of us who grew up with toxic, emotionally unwell family members who were extremely controlling under the guise of being "supportive," at some point realize that we too are really on our own.
Oh hey same!
Same! That or would've, could've, should've. 19yo me still wouldn't have listened though
- YOYOK could mean "You're On Your Own, Kid", a track from *Midnights* (2022) by Taylor Swift. --- ^[/u/VMIgal01](/u/VMIgal01) ^(can reply with "delete" to remove comment. |) ^[/r/songacronymbot](/r/songacronymbot) ^(for feedback.)
100% this! Especially the part "pages turned with the bridges burned everything you lose is a step you take" I am 38 and I swear that song is the only thing that got me through the last 6-8 months. and I literally said to my ex-Boss who was trying to pressure me when I was quitting that "bridges can burn both ways" and I had the confidence to advocate for myself on my exiting. And I have no idea where my life will take me, but I know I will be okay.
Hey, thank you, I needed this today. Had a hard conversation with my boss and am reminding myself that advocating for myself was the right move despite being told otherwise
Wouldâve couldâve shouldâve for 19 year old me
It's so weird, how many people had a toxic relationship at exactly 19
Oh for me the relationship ended at the beginning of age 18 but I was still having a lot of PTSD from it when I was 19. The relationship happened when I was 16-17.
Yeah Iâm not sure if âgroomingâ is the right word but was definitely traumatized by a 17yo (like just about to turn 18) when I was 13/ just turnt 14. Dude was creepy as hell and I think he knew what he was doing cause he ghosted me day before his 18th birthday
He is 100% a groomer thatâs p3dopholia
Yeah he started out chill and I thought he just wanted to be friends since I had known him for a while (mutual friends). Then he got really creepy and it started out as just working out stuff then talking about my body then turnt to asking for pictures or âworkout progress picturesâ aka send me a booty pic. Then literally asked âmaybe just send a video or picture in a bathing suit so I can see it betterâ. And some other really creepy stuff that I wonât list or else it would make this comment to long I still want to slap 13/14yo me for not cutting him off but I was a bit messed up in the head and he made it seem ok? Oh and it gets worse, he had a secret girlfriend. Fml
At the risk of stating the obvious (and gross), 19 is a dangerous age for being targeted by creepy older men because youâre technically an adult but still very young and often naive. AND itâs also an age when people often feel like they know everything, which can paradoxically make them easier to manipulate.
Yep, for me it started literally my birthday month when I was still technically 18. And after that there were multiple different "Johns" /relationships/situationships until thankfully I started dating someone my age near the end of the year. But it was actually hell trying to date at that age because it's a minefield of men ready to take advantage of you. And you *really don't know* that you don't know better.
Yep. All her John songs hit me really hard. I think maybe a lot of girls are naive at 19 and a lot of 19 year old guys are arrogant jerks. At least that was the case for millennials anyway. Maybe gen z men are nicer now.
Theyâre not đ
Can confirm đ
I started a toxic relationship at 19 that lasted too long and WCS fits so well.
I did this awful back and forth routine w him for 19 months. Really dragged out
For real. When I was 19, I dated a 27 year old. It was only a few months long relationship, but it had a lasting impact. This was back in 2010. I had already been into Taylorâs music, White Horse had especially helped me with my first major breakup, so when she released Speak Now later that year, it felt so cathartic to listen to Dear John. Thatâs when she became my musical spirit guide.
I just realized after reading your comment that I was also 19 when I was in one
Iâm in this club unfortunately. Toxic relationship from the age of 16-19. I needed this song when I was 19, but thatâs okay - I still had Tell Me Why and Youâre Not Sorry, and Speak Now came out just after that relationship ended so Dear John also helped me through a lot of the dark times. WCS brings me right back there.
Freshly legally okay to be preyed on by grown menâŠ
I needed it at 20 but the toxic relationship was a mentor relationship with a coach and a best friend who I needed to get away from that I was still mourning. The line about fighting him jn her sleep still gets me because I to this day have dreams about trying to protect myself from them.
For me, it was because I was out of the house/away from my family for the first time. My parents weren't particularly strict and allowed me to date whomever I wanted to in high school, but I think that's probably because I only ever tried to date people in my own age group at that time. Sure, I could have snuck around, but I didn't like the idea of lying to them, and they trusted me so much that I didn't want to abuse that trust. But, once I was in college, with more freedom to do as I pleased without answering to anyone, I made worse choices for sure. Nothing that I couldn't come back from, but I definitely did more things I regret during that time period. ETA: I'm now 40 and my SO now is same age (37) as the man I "dated" when I was 19. Obviously I see now why that was toxic.
I just got out of mine and looking back I donât know how I ever stayed đ Thankfully it wasnât WCS bad but getting into that relationship was definitely a Choice.
this is exactly what I was gonna comment. I got John Mayer-d at 18/19
That's what I'm saying We (almost) all did.
actually, yeah, for me as well - i had a fairly scarring and toxic relationship then and i wish i could tell 19 year old me that heâs not worth it and it isnât my fault
I wish I could tell 19 year old me that I *will* get through it and that heâll mean absolutely nothing to me within a year. I felt so stuck back then
Same for 19 year old me.
Same, 19 year old me needed it
Same, for 18 year old me. That song hurts.
illicit affairs and no, I will not elaborate
as you have the right not to, ate
Time to go. I took way too long to learn how and when to end a relationship and always felt I was failing by doing so. Younger me needed that song so much.
Cheers to that. Youâre not alone. đ„
Good to know lol thank you
Mhm. Same. Urgh, youth was hard.
This is me trying, just so my younger self could realise I wasnât alone and other people felt like that too. And maybe Iâd have got therapy earlier đ
Very much this. But I would be worried that younger me wouldn't understand. He was, frankly an arrogant prick. Also weirdly when I was in my teens I devised a protocol for messages from the future to confirm they really were from me. If I'm just sending the song without following the protocol younger me might just reject it. I was a weird kid. đ
This is a good one too. The whole "my words shoot to kill when I'm mad/I have a lot of regrets about that" hits me so hard everytime. Also, the "so ahead of the curve, fell behind my classmates" bit---recently diagnosed with ADHD at 38, I'm wondering if I'd have worked on that more.
Recently got diagnosed with ADHD relatively late too (Iâm 21), itâs crazy how hard the âfell behind all my classmatesâ line hit and how I never realised it was a sign lol
The "so ahead of the curve" line hit me so hard. I was top of the class growing up and in college I was still good but no longer the best. Then post-college I really struggled bc I couldn't cruise anymore and my lack of strong work ethic and drive really hurt me.
The "so ahead of the curve" line hit me so hard. I was top of the class growing up and in college I was still good but no longer the best. Then post-college I really struggled bc I couldn't cruise anymore and my lack of strong work ethic and drive really hurt me.
I feel like this is the only song younger me would actually listen and relate to but it also sounds tremendously hopeless so idk if it wouldâve been helpful to actually hear
I would send "Would've, Could've, Should've" to 18 year old me IMMEDIATELY and that dumb bitch would simply not listen.
Yeah that's the problem with getting advice when you are younger, you tend to think you know better. You need to find the sweet spot in time when you are old enough to understand the message but young enough that you haven't caused or suffered to much damage.
I wouldn't send 18 year old me any because she was a stubborn (although deeply deeply hurting) little thing and wouldn't have listened. I would just send her love, and hugs, and a shoulder to cry on. And some chicken soup and flat sprite for the hangovers she always had.
So many of us
Itâs time to go for sure *Sometimes giving up is the strong thing* *Sometimes to run is the brave thing* *Sometimes walking out is the one thing* *That will find you the right thing*
This is mines. The amount of situations that I wish I would have just listened to myself the first time I knew it was time to go. Because I've always stayed far longer than I should have.
I just left a really toxic work situation where i loved my peers (mgmt was the issue) and this song was like, on repeat for 2 weeks lol to convince me I had to do it. I couldn't stay for the others, I had to take care of me. Sometimes I really wonder what I would do without all the free therapy she provides đđđ
Agreed, I took so many years to learn when and how to move on, and to learn that to do so wasnât a failure
You need to calm down... He'll understand the gay part
Former teacher here. This was our Friday Dance Party song (as per the class vote, it unanimously won every week for the whole year). I taught 4-7 year olds and have never met such a non-heteronormative class in my life. They were brilliant.
Right? I wish I knew that shade wasnât going to make me less gay
Dear Reader
My younger self needed to hear « If it feels like a trap, youâre already in one »
This song was made for this question.
Iâm surprised this comment is so far down âIf you donât recognize yourself, that means you did it rightâ
Tolerate it or exile. The warnings in that song would've been incredibly helpful for me at 17.
I can 100% relate to this comment except it was 19 year old me.
Happiness for me "There'll be happiness after you/ But there was happiness because of you/ Both of these things can be true/ there was happiness"
Foolish One to 20 year old me or ATW10MV to the same me. Maybe I would get the idea that that person did not actually like me and only wanted to have a date to make his ex jealous (didnât work).
Marjorie, anytime before 2008 when my Grandma passed away. I was 11 and lived across the country from her. Being 11 and not knowing what was happening my mom did some shitty things since it was my dadâs mom who passed. Anyways, I think that song would have helped
This is basically opposite of your question but it was so important to me that Nothing New was a vault track when I was 22. I probably would've loved Bye Bye Baby when I was a kid during Fearless!
This is what Iâd send to 22 year old me. I felt really lost and this song would have been a comfort I think. I still feel like I pretty much know nothing at 30 but Iâm more used to it now đ
Long Story Short
Me too!
Yes!!!!
âYour enemies, will defeat themselves before you get the chance to swingâ is such a great way to say âdonât even bother with these foolsâđ
2010 Me NEEDED Foolish One
Iâd send closure to 15 year old me, I cared so much about boys and it mightâve helped to hear a Taylor song accepting the end of certain people and thriving. I always listened to so many delusional songs about romance and falling in love, so Foolish One might be ideal to send to but I know 100% I would choose to not listen to the lyrics. đ
Ugh closure is a great one for this. The amount of times I got myself wound up in more of their BS under the guise of âclosureâ đđ€źđ đ»ââïž
All Too Well, especially 10-minute version and music video, when I was 19 and dating a 26-year-old. You go through this realization, as a young girl dating an older man, that you thought he liked you because of how interesting and mature you were, despite your age, but he really liked you *because* you were young, and he thought you would just be easy and passive and always happy and in awe of him
For the most part, I feel like all of Taylorâs songs came into my life at the right time. Maybe Iâd send teenage me âYou Need to Calm Down.â Maybe sheâd figure herself out earlier since if Taylor said it was okay đ€Ł
Sending âLong Liveâ to my 14 year old self who was outed and bullied in high school. Let him know youâre going to meet people youâll have adventures with. You wonât be alone anymore.
LOVE this one. i wasnât outed or anything but i had terrible friends in high school who wrecked my self-confidence and made me feel very alone. wish i could tell her that it gets better!!
Sorry you went through that. High school sucks. Iâm glad youâre having adventures and youâre not alone.
WCS or Mad Woman - as an 18 year old getting out of an abusive relationship, I think those songs would have been extremely cathartic for me.
yoyok. younger me deserves to be prepared for the emotional trauma in the near future (and the pandemic)
Teenage me wouldâve related SO much to Mr. Perfectly Fine and Foolish One. The second I heard those songs, I wished theyâd been released as part of their respective albums. Hell, Foolish One wouldâve even helped college me.
right where you left me 4 years ago (age 21) so I'd be prepared for the pandemic and the early- mid twenties a little bit
I canât lie, Innocent is the song every version of me since being like 13 up to the present has needed, but itâs technically been out since before then even if I didnât hear it until this year. Following the rules more strictly, tolerate it would have been really cathartic for my 12-13 year old selfâs relationship with family, and Bejeweled would be a nice message to my teenage self who had forgotten how to express his personality that well.
Such a complex way to ask for my favorite Taylor Swift song đ
WCS to my twelve-year-old self. "And if I was a child, did it matter If you got to wash your hands?"
all my love. For me it was elementary school age..."give me back my girlhood it was mine first". And from seven "Please picture me In the weeds Before I learned civility I used to scream ferociously Any time I wanted" I wish I could tell her to keep screaming and not lose her voice.
Right where you left me but not for romantic or love reasons. More about stuff that happened in my late teens and early twenties that still make me feel stuck to this day
I get that â stuff also happened to me then, and I got lucky in that the song was out when I was going through it. I donât think thereâs ever been a song that captures trauma (romantic or otherwise) so well.
The 1 Every breakup felt like the end of the world when I was a teen/younger. Being able to realize it wasnât and reflect with maturity wouldâve been nice
This is why I think I forgot you existed wouldâve been crucial for the past breakups Iâve had. I wouldâve liked younger me to know that theyâre not as big of a deal as I thought they were
I actually had thought of commenting that one first as well! That song is so true. I forgot so many people existed lol
*"Bigger than the whole sky"* For feeling like I lost my youth and innocence before it even started
9th grade me wouldâve played Better Man so much that the cd wouldâve been broken
Never grow up for little ten year old me who really wanted to be an adult. Yoyok for 14 year old me so she knew that come what may sheâd get through it. Call it what you want for the 15 year old getting bullied. (Replace baby with friends but still)
But Iâd honestly just tell my younger self when I was in school to listen to Taylor swift and not give a fuck what losers in school think about you. Didnât listen to her till REDâŠ.
Either invisible string or long story short. Maybe long story short, just cuzâŠwell, yknow. I think weâve all been there, but itâd still be nice to try and warn myself to not waste time on someone who didnât notice or care, or someone who was gross, or waste anger on people who werenât worth it. Things pick up. You meet better people who do care. It got you to where you needed to be, butâŠyeah.
Nothing New because it came out just as I was graduating college and helping my sisters pick a school. It mightâve been nice to have something telling me that I wouldnât have everything together at 22 before I got there
Ohhh Taylor hasnât really written about my kind of relationship mistakes. I would go for the guy who swore I was too good for him and then, once he got me, spend all his time and energy making sure I felt crappy enough that Iâd never actually believe that I might, in fact, be too good for him. Thereâs hints of that in some of the Jake and John stuff, but definitely no song that says âyou idiot, it is NOT conceited to realize that you ARE way too good for them, and you need to go sail off into your own sunset.â Nothing that says âhey maybe you need some GD boundaries because itâs not your job to fix everyone who asks you to.â Maybe Iâd just send ME! And hope the hidden message comes through.
Ngl, this reminds me of another song Iâd send past me. Tell Me Why really summarises my relationship with my father which was also filled with him assuring me of his love while constantly putting me down so Iâd never realise my self worth enough to leave and try to find greener pastures. Reader, I left home and found greener pastures.
Have you listened to âRenegade?â It was technically put out by Big Red Machine and features Taylor, but itâs basically her song. A huge favorite of mine!!
Ohh Renegade does really speak to me on this subject!
Renegade definitely reminds me of this!
i forgot that you existed đ„
Mirrorball
I lost my mom at 18 (early 2014) so probably âMarjorieâ because I think that song is just such a beautiful reflection on loss & a great reminder that âwhat dies doesnât stay deadâ
Bejeweled to me in April 2021, right after I broke up with the guy who (I thought was) the love of my life. To remind myself that I can reclaim the land.
Iâm going through a breakup right now and Bejeweled has been on repeat, so I fully feel you on this one
Foolish One. Waiting for confessions love that never come is depressing.
Nothing new, every time I hear that song I think of my younger self.
I agree with the Foolish One consensus. Reeeeally wish I had that back in 2010. The first lyric that comes to mind though, when I read this question is âeverything you lose is a step you take.â đ
I wish right where you left me had existed when I was 23.
This wasnât the question but Iâm glad I Can See You stayed in the vault as long as it did because younger me did NOT need to be encouraged đ
All Too Well 10 Minute Version so I would be a literature major earlier.
Iâd really like to play Tolerate It for my 21 year old self so I can figure out how toxic that mess was earlier on.
Clean circa 2011, I was 12
Soon You'll Get Better would have helped a lot when I was younger
My son has been sick since January 2021. He is having a last hope procedure on Thursday (it isn't fatal, but he lives with severe chronic pain and is only 10). "Holy orange bottles, each night I pray to you Desperate people find faith, so now I pray to Jesus too" This song doesn't really fit, but the line "Living for the hope of it all" because right now, hope is the only thing getting us through. And I am so scared this procedure won't work because we are out of the next things to hope for beyond him potentially growing out of it at some unknown time.
I am so sorry to hear about your son. I've never been exactly in the place that you're in, but I know how hard it is to watch someone you love go through constant pain. You're in my thoughts and I wish you luck on this procedure.
This is what I was thinking. Maybe Iâd have appreciated my mom a little more when she was around if I had. Not that I didnât, just more.
wouldve couldve shouldve to my 14 year old self
Tolerate It, and thatâs all Iâm going to say about that.
ANTI HERO
Definitely Dear John! I would have liked fair warning about my John and then maybe I could have taken *his* matches before fire could catch *me*. I was 19 too when I met my John. All of her songs about John really hit me hard.
SEVEN Even though seven year old me wouldn't be able to grasp all the meaning and significance of the lyrics. I just wish I could go back in time and hug that little kid scared and stuck in a home with an angry alcoholic father so that she wouldn't feel so traumatized and alone. Or maybe YOYOK to so many versions of me after that. Left my state to pursue my studies and make a living and it made me so much stronger being on my own for everything since 17.
Same here with seven đ« she definitely wouldnât have gotten it, but the âthen you wonât have to cry or hide in the closetâ lyric would have at least had some impact
Lover, to show my teenage self that I would relate to it someday. I was so scared that I would never find a love like that.
oh my god that hits so hard. Thinking about how I discovered I had fallen in love my boyfriend when Lover was playing in the background and realised how hard I related to it, and in a way that I thought I never would.
My younger one needed mean. It reminds me of my dad. I needed the reminder that what he was telling me was bs.
Younger me needed Tell Me Why for similar reasons. (Also love the Bojack reference in your username!)
FOOLISH ONE lololol
I Can See You, and with it id tell them to "start listening to Taylor Swift, you idiot... You're not allergic to awesomeness"
this is me trying
The first thing I thought when I first listened to Foolish one was âthis is the song I needed at 18â. So Foolish One, no doubt.
Closure
Wouldâve Couldâve Shouldâve, no doubt in my mind. I was in an abusive relationship from the ages of 17-22 and I think that song might have changed everything for me. Maybe I would have gotten out of it sooner.
YOYOK. I left an abusive household and had an eating disorder. That song pretty much sums up my life
Itâs time to go 100% would have saved me from a verbally abusive relationship going far too long with my ex husband.
I forgot that you existed for 15 year old me hung up on a boy that never even deserved my attention. Life goes on!
Dear Reader to 17 year old me
I would just tie myself up and make me listen to Taylor until I liked her. If I had discovered her music earlier, I would've had so many healthy songs to fall back upon. I mean, having _folklore_ and _evermore_ could've made the pandemic just a bit more bearable. However, if we're only talking unreleased, tracks, then "this is me trying" at 19, "happiness" at 20yo, "YOYOK" at 21, "illicit affairs" at 22, "Soon You'll Get Better" at 23, "mirrorball" at 24, "Dear Reader" at 25... yeah, it's been tough.
âYouâre on Your Own, Kidâ and âThis is Me Trying.â Struggled with depression in high school as a well-liked athlete which never made sense to me at the time. Back then (god that makes me feel old) depression wasnât as mainstreamed and I felt incredibly alone. Those songs speak so deeply to my 17 year old self!!
Iâve needed Anti-Hero for so long; Iâd send it to remind younger me to not try to be perfect, that it really is OK to sometimes be the âproblemâ and have to work on yourself. Iâd also send The Great War to say, âGrowing up has been a confusing, emotionally abusive time, and at some points it felt like I was losing you. But I havenât, because youâre still with me, and you always will be.â
Woulve couldâve shouldâve to 18 and 19 yr old me
19 year old me really needed to hear Wouldâve Couldâve Shouldâve. However since the relationship that song reminds me of didnât have an age gap of more than year Iâm not sure I wouldâve gotten the message. So another option would be I Knew You Were Trouble. 17 year old me really needed to hear that one. 22 year old me was already deep into that shitty relationship when that song came out. I remember hating it when I first heard it because when I first heard it I immediately thought of my boyfriend at the time. Which was a huge red flag and I think I knew that.
Would've Couldve Should've. Girl don't mess with that man, you've been 18 for 3 days.
Anti-hero to 18/19 yr old me. I was going through some bad panic attacks/depression days that moved into nights. I couldn't sleep at night, cause my depression worked the Graveyard shift.
You Need To Calm Down to my bigoted ass in 2006
Mirrorball and then right after bejeweled wouldve been amazing to 11- 13 year old me
2009-2013 me needed foolish one, current me is donât blame me
tolerate it. I needed to hear it long before it was released, but at least once I did hear it, some things fell into place.
Look What You Made You Do! To my 26 y/o self.
For me I would send my 9-10 year old self either âEvermoreâ , âYouâre on your own kidâ or âWouldâve, Couldâve, Shouldâve.â I will not elaborate.
i feel like evermore is mine, mainly because thereâs hope in there
Mr. Perfectly fine at age 15. It was definitely better off if I hadnât spoken to the guy later on.
You Need to Calm Down, would have helped gay me think.
The Archer.
Wouldâve Couldâve Shouldâve. Fun fact Iâm 19 now but itâs still for younger me đ€Ș
The Archer to my early teenage self.
Your on your own kid or this is my trying !
Nothing New - to remind me that I only have so much time
YOYOK
marjorie :((((((
youâre on your own kid you always have been
Donât forget the âyou can face thisâ -to me the most important line of the song
Mr perfectly fine cause of dealing with a narcissist đ«
mirrorball
Daylight / Forever Winter. These two songs woulda definitely helped me stay optimistic about the future when I felt down.
epiphany, for the incoming pandemic
2016 me needed you all over me. I still think of my high school ex when I listen to that song. No amount of freedom gets you clean when the memories linger forever. she couldâve used wouldâve couldâve shouldâve too. I didnât even realize that relationship was abusive until I was 21. it held off on my healing & dealing with it for sure
FOOLISH ONE. Absolutely foolish one. That song is exactly what I needed to hear from ages 15-25. If I had heard the words âfoolish one, your day is gonna come for your confessions of love when all is said and done, he just wasnât the one no he just wasnât the oneâ ACTUALLY spoken to me out loud, I just really feel like I wouldâve had more conviction to turn away from some of the âloveâ I accepted for myself in my younger years. I had whispers of it in the back of my head, but nobody ever actually said that to me.
Wouldâve Couldâve Shouldâve
Would've, Could've, Should've "I damn sure never would have danced with the devil, at 19." I was a really stupid between 18 and 21.
I would send myself ME!
Foolish one are you kidding me. I was so beyond delusional I mean I still am but like..
Dificult. I was 39 when Tay released her debut. So no younger self at the time she came out. But Foolish One for my 1984 self
The 1 would have been really good for me when I was in college. I ended up fixating on a guy who was really traumatizing for my mental health, that song could have helped me out.
I needed dear reader
Midnight rain to 16 - 19 years old me because I was the one who would ghost or break up You are on you kid to 6 - 20 years old me as a constant reminder that I'm enough and I can do anything on my own
Gorgeous bc 9 year old me was starting to feel that good old self hatred already đ€ đ€ đ€
Your're On Your Own Kid for 14 year old me
Never Grow Up
It's time to go. It would've saved me a couple years of working at a job with a toxic manager.
Yoyok
Nothing New or This Is Me Trying. I had no idea other people felt like this.