Arends began her career as a songwriter at Benson Music Publishing. In 1995, Carolyn began touring and releasing albums as a singer and guitarist. Her debut release that year (I Can Hear You) was released through Reunion Records. "I Can Hear You" reached number 37 on Billboard Magazine's Contemporary Christian Chart in 1996. "Feel Free" peaked at number 10 on the chart in 1997. More recently her albums have been distributed by Signpost Music (Steve Bell's label). She is the winner of two Gospel Music Association Dove Awards and six GMA Canada Covenant Awards. Carolyn co-hosted the 29th Annual Covenant Awards in 2007.
Her website is www.carolynarends.com
in between
Carolyn Arends Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Frozen in time we smile
Neatly hung in the hall
Moments caught like old hair styles
Summer trips far away
Homecoming King and Queen
But can these pictures really say
What happened in between
Chorus:
In between our finest days
And all the ones we waste away
In between the dreaming and the coming true
In between the lines we draw
And all the ones we cross we are
Heroes, we are villains, we are everything
In between
We remember the highs
We can't forget the lows
But we spend most of our lives
Somewhere in between them both
We become who we are
Without even noticing
Over breakfast dishes and bedtime prayers
And what we do in between
Chorus:
In between our finest days
And all the ones we waste away
In between the dreaming and the coming true
In between the lines we draw
And all the ones we cross we are
Heroes, we are villains, we are everything
In between
Chorus:
In between our finest days
And all the ones we waste away
In between the dreaming and the coming true
In between the lines we draw
And all the ones we cross we are
Heroes, we are villains, we are
Lovers, we are leavers we are
Skeptics or believers, we are everything
In between
The lyrics of Carolyn Arends’ “In Between” contemplate the moments that pass by unnoticed in our lives, those “in between” moments that happen between the highs and lows of life. The photographs on the wall may capture the smiling faces of family members during a summer trip or the homecoming king and queen, but they don't tell the whole story. These photos don't display the ups and downs in the middle, the times that make us who we are. It's easy to remember the highest highs and the lowest lows, but we spend most of our lives in the in-between moments.
Arends’ chorus uses repetition and variation to reinforce the message of the song: “In between” the moments of our lives we experience great joy and deep sorrow, we pursue our dreams and accomplish seemingly impossible goals, we draw lines and cross them. We are everything in between. The song’s sentiment is especially poignant when considering our current climate of the pandemic, civil rights inequalities, and political division. We are all living somewhere in between right now, wondering what is past us and what is to come.
Overall, Carolyn Arends’ “In Between” is a reminder to pay attention to the smaller moments in our lives. The in-between moments matter and make up the majority of our time on earth. These moments shape our identity and mold us into the heroes, villains, lovers, leavers, skeptics, and believers we are today.
Line by Line Meaning
Photographs on the wall
Pictures hanging on the wall
Frozen in time we smile
Capturing frozen moments of time where we are smiling
Neatly hung in the hall
The pictures are hung in an organized and attractive manner in the hallway
Moments caught like old hair styles
Like hairstyles that change over time, the photographs capture moments that are now in the past
Summer trips far away
Trips that took place in the summer months and were far from home
Homecoming King and Queen
Capturing the moment of being crowned a King and Queen of a high school dance
But can these pictures really say
However, do pictures ever really tell the whole story?
What happened in between
What happened in the moments between when these pictures were taken?
In between our finest days
The moments between our best and worst days
And all the ones we waste away
The moments that we don't appreciate or use well
In between the dreaming and the coming true
The moments between the aspirations and when they become a reality
In between the lines we draw
The moments between achieving our goals or crossing our own boundaries
And all the ones we cross we are
We are defined by the moments when we have crossed our own boundaries
Heroes, we are villains, we are everything
We are complex and can be both good or bad, everything in between
We remember the highs
We remember the moments where we felt on top of the world
We can't forget the lows
We cannot forget the moments where we felt our lowest
But we spend most of our lives
However, we spend a large amount of our time
Somewhere in between them both
In the moments where we are neither at our best or at our worst
We become who we are
We develop our true selves
Without even noticing
It happens without us even realizing it
Over breakfast dishes and bedtime prayers
These moments happen in everyday life, such as doing the dishes or saying bedtime prayers
And what we do in between
In the moments between our daily routines and major life events
Lovers, we are leavers we are
We can be both lovers and leavers, initiating change
Skeptics or believers, we are everything
We can be skeptical or believe in things wholeheartedly, showing the shades of our personalities
Lyrics © CAPITOL CHRISTIAN MUSIC GROUP, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Capitol CMG Publishing
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind