They say the first step to healing is admitting you need it. But what if the pain is buried so deep that you can't even name it? "Be Here Now," the opening track of Return To Base, isn’t just a song—it’s a wake-up call. It captures the moment every veteran, every human soul, reaches when they realize the fight is no longer on the battlefield, but inside.
I wrote this song from a place most of us avoid: the stillness. The terrifying quiet after the adrenaline fades, when no one is barking orders and you’re left alone with your thoughts. That moment when the noise stops, and all you can hear is the echo of what you've been running from.
The Veteran Connection
For veterans, returning home is rarely a touchdown. It’s more like being dropped into a foreign land without a map. We don’t talk about how hard it is to sit still. To breathe. To simply exist without being on high alert. "Be Here Now" is about that struggle. The internal war. The chaos of trying to be present when your mind keeps dragging you back to the past.
The Human Connection
You don’t have to wear a uniform to relate. We all fight battles in silence. We all carry ghosts. This song is for anyone who's ever tried to outrun their own pain, only to find it waiting for them in the quiet moments. Presence isn't passive. It's a choice. A discipline. A practice.
Why This Matters
We live in a world addicted to distraction. Phones, streaming, scrolling, consuming—anything to avoid being still. But healing starts in the stillness. Not in the numbing, but in the noticing. "Be Here Now" challenges us to stop running and start listening.
To our breath. To our body. To the truth we keep avoiding.
Final Thought
The path home doesn't start with motion. It starts with stillness.
Take a breath. Let the noise fade. Be here now.