TheUglylucy4's video: 100 Years

"100 Years" was written by John Ondrasik and is the fourth track off of Five for Fighting's 2004 release...The Battle for Everything. Five for Fighting is actually Ondrasik's stage name although most of us would think that it is the name of the band he plays in. In reality, Five for Fighting is a one-man band. Obviously Ondrasik adopted the name Five for Fighting, an ice hockey term that means a five-minute major penalty for participating in a fight. Ondrasik is a lifelong fan of the National Hockey League's Los Angeles Kings. "100 Years" lyrically talks about aging and the struggles of life, from first love to mid-life crises to old age to death. The ages of reference in the ballad are 10, 15, 20, 22, 33, 45, 67, and 99. "100 Years" starts out with..."I'm 15 for a moment, Caught in between 10 and 20, And I'm just dreaming, Counting the ways to where you are". The years of innocence, the years of dreaming and a life not impacted with burdens of adulthood. The author ventures into a relationship in the lines..."I'm 22 for a moment, And she feels better than ever, And we're on fire, Making our way back from Mars". At 33, he is now becoming a family man (but just like anyone else)..."I'm 33 for a moment, Still the man, but you see I'm a "they", A kid on the way, babe, A family on my mind". The fourties brings about the author's mid-life crisis..."I'm 45 for a moment, The sea is high, And I'm heading into a crisis, Chasing the years of my life". Now in his sixties, he's just a wise old man..."Half time goes by, Suddenly you’re wise, Another blink of an eye, 67 is gone, The sun is getting high, We're moving on" And most likely moving on to death is what we come to understand in the ballad's closing phrase..."I'm 99 for a moment, And dying for just another moment, And I'm just dreaming, Counting the ways to where you are". Funny how the song ends with the reflection noted in the line "counting the ways to where you are". And isn't that what we do. We keep dreaming of the influence in our earlier years. Especially those influences we never obtain. Simply put, "100 Years" is the tale about a man who reminisces of the time when he was 15 and dreaming about finding the right girl and making a life for himself, something which remains with him until the end of his 100 years.