Plötzlich ist es wieder September
Suddenly it's September again – "September" by Bruckner
With the Ferienzeit now officially over in Germany and new routines and schedules once again underway for most of us, I’m once again amazed at just how quickly the frenzy of Alltag (everyday life) rushes back – Termine (appointments), E-Mail-Nachrichten, requests, reminders, and – at least here in Baden-Württemberg – an abrupt return to chilly and gray Herbstwetter (fall weather). It doesn’t seem to take much before our lives and thoughts are once again spinning on high gear. I’m not sure if I currently have more tabs open on my computer or in my brain!
And yet, I find myself still warmed by recent memories of sunny family travels (Prague was a big highlight for us this summer), as well as anticipation for the Gemütlichkeit (coziness) of the fall and winter seasons to come.
“September” by German indie duo Bruckner (no, not that Bruckner) creatively captures this feeling of a life and mind spinning out of control, brought only to rest by golden memories of a time past – in this case, sunny September days spent waiting on waves alongside someone dear. (One can only assume that these sunny September waves were found somewhere other than Germany, but that’s beyond the point.)
Und dann bist da du, und plötzlich ist es wieder September
And then there you are, and suddenly it's September again
Wir warten auf Wellen und schlafen in deinem Bus
We wait for waves and sleep in your bus
Dann bist da du, und es gibt nichts mehr zu ändern
Then there you are, and there's nothing left to change
Du lachst mir einfach nur zu
You just smile at me
Alles kann passieren und nichts davon muss
Anything can happen and none of it has to
Im September
In September
The song is chock-full of clever lyricism, with lines like:
Meine Gedanken brauchen Blindenhunde
My thoughts need guide dogsIch kann nicht schlafen also leg ich mich ins Internet
I can't sleep so I go online (literally - “I lay myself on the Internet”)
And there’s even a reference to Germany’s ever-present Apotheken, or pharmacies, while searching for a relief from life’s Kopfschmerzen (headaches) -
Wo ist die Apo-Apo, ich brauch mein Ibu-Ibu
Where is the (Apotheke), I need my (Ibuprofen)
Die Daily Dose: 800 mg
The daily dose: 800 mg
Underpinning the message of memories holding us fast in the midst of life’s chaos, the bridge repeats one of the song’s most poetically striking couplets:
Auch wenn nichts für immer bleibt
Even if nothing stays forever
Es wird für immer so gewesen sein
It will have been like this forever
Now, I have to admit something here. I’ve been working on my German for the past 10 years (with near-daily usage for the last five), and I am still only vaguely aware of how to properly use gewesen, the past participle of German’s all-star verb sein (to be). I’m fairly confident I have never once used this word correctly in the wild, and remain somewhat mystified and impressed when a German casually drops it in everyday conversation.
Needless to say, I’ll leave the grammatical deep-dive on gewesen for another day in the distant future (maybe I need to read one myself?), but will point out that this particular construction – “Es wird immer so gewesen sein” – utilizes a somewhat rare verb form called Futur II, or Future Perfect, which indicates that something will have been completed by a certain point in the future. Here, it’s used to sum up the song’s main idea – even when nothing remains the same in life, our most beautiful moments and memories will still have taken place and will continue to bring us joy and warmth.
And it also just goes to show – it’s not necessary to understand everything about a language to successfully use it regularly, or to appreciate poetic beauty. (Though I promise to keep working on it!)
Here are a few additional words from “September” to add to your vocabulary list:
der Klingelton / die Klingeltöne - the ringtone(s)
der Blindenhund / die Blindenhunde - the guide dog(s)
plötzlich - suddenly
wieder - again
die Welle / die Wellen - the wave(s)
ändern - to change
zulachen - to laugh at someone (or to smile from a distance)
passieren - to occur / to happen
die Pupille / sie Pupillen - the pupil(s)
der blinde Fleck - the blind spot
kapitulieren - to capitulate / to surrender
bleiben - to stay / to remain
And for a slightly more laid-back version of “September” that’s also chock-full of *fall vibes*, check out the Songpoeten Session version of the song here.
Wishing you wonderful memories and minimal headaches this week,
Jessica
P.S. – If you enjoyed this post, please consider clicking “like” and/or sharing it with someone else who may be interested in German music, language, and culture! Ganz lieben Dank!
From the Sprachmelodie Archives 🎵
For more about months of the year in German, check out "April" by Tim Bendzko. And you can find more music by Bruckner (on Sprachmelodie’s very first post!) here.
Discover more German Music and Language
Check out Sprachmelodie's Spotify and Youtube accounts for playlists of all songs featured so far on the blog.