“Cottage By The Sea”

Play clip Cottage By The Sea

We live in Los Angeles, actually, in the East San Fernando Valley, close to Burbank. We are about ten miles inland, so although our climate is affected by the ocean breezes, we are not close enough to fully appreciate them on a day-to-day basis. About two years ago I was at a conference in Santa Monica, and on my lunch break, I walked the three blocks from the hotel to the Pacific. It had been a long time since I had gone to the beach, and it was such an amazing experience. It was a partly sunny day with just a hint of cloud cover, the ocean was green and glorious and the gulls were circling overhead, making their distinctive sounds. I could smell the saltwater and feel the rhythm of the ocean waves in sync with my own heartbeat. I couldn’t believe we lived so close to all this beauty, and yet were separated from it every day. I thought, “It’s like turning your back on God!”. So a couple of years later, that whole experience came back to me, and I began to ruminate on the idea of living by the sea. Art and I shared thoughts about the kind of home we could envision. A beautiful “cottage by the sea” – nothing grand, but a warm, sturdy little house “hard by” the water’s edge. A place where we could grow old together. That’s how this song, reminiscent of a sea chantey, was born.

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COTTAGE BY THE SEA

WE FOUND A COTTAGE BY THE SEA
BUILT IN NINETEEN-TWENTY-THREE
WITH STURDY WINDOWS, WALLS AND FLOOR
AND ROSES ALL AROUND THE DOOR
WE SHOUTED OUT, “WE’LL TAKE IT”!
AND SIGNED THE DOTTED LINE
WE KNEW THAT WE WOULD LIVE THERE
UNTIL THE END OF TIME

WE PAINTED IT IN WINTER WHITE
BATHED IN EARLY MORNING LIGHT
WE PLANTED IT IN TREES AND SOD
IT MADE US FEEL SO CLOSE TO GOD
THEN WE HAD THE CHILDREN
THEN WE LET THEM GO
YOU THINK THEY’LL STAY FOREVER
BUT YOU NEVER REALLY KNOW

AND OH – WHEN THE TIDE COMES UP WE SAY
“IF IT GETS TOO WILD
WILL IT SWALLOW US SOMEDAY”?

OUR BEACH IS GETTING SMALLER NOW
IT DOESN’T MATTER, ANYHOW
SOME DAY IT’S GOING TO DISAPPEAR
AND WE’LL BE SWEPT AWAY FROM HERE
BUT ON SOME DISTANT SHORELINE
ANOTHER FAMILY
WILL SIGN ON FOR FOREVER
IN THEIR COTTAGE BY THE SEA

AND OH – WHEN THE TIDE
COMES UP THEY’LL SAY
“IF IT GETS TOO WILD
WILL IT SWALLOW US SOMEDAY”?

WE FOUND A COTTAGE BY THE SEA. . .

© Art and Robin’s Music, 2007