Writing Therapy is all about putting words together in some fashion. The process will often have a cathartic effect, or it may help you process your thoughts in a way that helps you to release pent-up feelings over an event from the past.

But words themselves can be helpful, even if we didn’t write them ourselves.

I took my dog Millie for a walk this evening. As we walked through a well-kept park, she went on her never-ending mission of identifying every smell she comes across. 

As she sniffed from tree to tree, I enjoyed one of my favorite podcasts for a while, then decided to unwind a little with some music.

When I am walking in nature I tend to go for something relaxing, such as baroque classical, as I know it will leave me in more relaxed state of mind, at peace with the world.

But on this occasion I fancied something different and just selected something pretty much at random.

The first track was one I’ve heard many times, but have never really listened to the lyrics. Maybe it was the calmness of the evening, with a barely a rustle to in the trees lining my walk, or it could have been that for the first time I was hearing this track through headphones rather than over the in-car system or our home hi-fi.

The song is called Better Days, and it is by a guy called Jon Allen, a UK folk singer. In 2014 he released a superb album titled Blue Flame, which is jammed to the rafters with songs of positivity and hope.

As Millie sat at the bottom of a tree, staring up at a squirrel who had shot up the trunk as soon as we’d come into earshot, I became engrossed in Better Days, the eighth track on this inspirational album.

The lyrics transfixed me. They related so perfectly to the trials and tribulations that bring so many to the Writing Therapy site.

I loved them so much I’ve typed them out for you below. 

I know you’re hurting now
And your hurt has cut you deep
But from the ruins of defeat
There’ll be a better day

I know it’s hard to see
Beyond the sadness that you feel
But change comes like a rolling wheel
And there’ll be a better day

Though you heart is breaking
And tears are in your eyes
Somewhere hope is waking

You will find your way
And the morning sun will rise
So don’t try so hard
Give yourself a little time
I know for sure you’re gonna find
There’ll be a better day

We all walk the line
We all bare the burden of regret
But don’t ever let your heart forget
There’ll be a better day

May forgiving angels
Mend your broken wings
Free you from the shadows
Fly you from the dark
To a dawn where the skylark sings
Yes the tide will turn
And you’ll rebuild those shattered dreams
It’s not as hopeless as it seems
There’ll be a better day


I think most us have had times where we genuinely thought we were in such a rut that there never would be any better days ... the better days were behind us, and all we could see ahead was doom, gloom, pain, anxiety, and sadness.

Listening to Jon Allen sing Better Days hammered home the whole ‘nothing is permanent’ mantra. Zero. Nada. Zilch. Absolutely nothing is permanent.

“It all goes away. Eventually, everything goes away.”

― Elizabeth Gilbert, Eat, Pray, Love

This is one track I can highly recommend you add to your positivity play list. It is hard to listen to the words of the song without acknowledging we all have tough times ... 

“We all walk the line
We all bare the burden of regret”

... and we need to remind ourselves that things take time to resolve, but eventually there will be a better day. 

“So don’t try so hard,
Give yourself a little time,
I know for sure you’re gonna find,
There’ll be a better day”


Here’s a link to a video of Jon Allen singing the song live in the studio.

Take four minutes to listen. It is a great song, with a truly positive message.

Another Jon Allen track, from the same album as Better Days, is one called Keep on Walking. This also has a positive message that is well worth internalizing, but I will save that for another blog post.

Here's wishing you many better days.