Ever get caught up in a situation so off-the-wall nuts that your mind discombobulates, making you incapable of uttering coherent sounds? When that happened to me recently, the first person I saw was my friend, Diane. Fortunately, with friends who understand you that well, words aren’t necessary. “I know,” she said, grabbing me for a quick hug, “Now go, go.”

That registered. Seconds later I was in the parking lot, my hands shaking so that I couldn’t find my clump of keys in a purse pocket no more than four inches wide and deep. Oblivious to the lightly falling rain, I dropped my unopened umbrella and everything else on the wet grass, clawed out my keys, then grabbed my soggy belongings and slung them across the driver’s seat at the passenger door. Finally I was off.

In times of frustration, confusion, and distress, most people instinctively know where to turn for comforting words of empathy that can calm their spirits and help them develop perspective.

I just press “scan.”

The radio can always be counted on to say the perfect thing when I’m vexed. This was no exception. “I got a feeling,” the Black-Eyed Peas announced, “that tonight’s gonna be a good night …” Immediately, I breathed a little easier. And it was a good night.

Has a randomly played song ever soothed your savage breast at exactly the right moment? Below are a few lyrics that have “spoken” to me at eerily appropriate times during different life stages. Had similar experiences? Then please share some of the songs that sang your life with their words.

 “Sometimes I wonder where I’ve been
Who I am, do I fit in
Make believin’ is hard alone
Out here on my own.”

—From “Out Here on My Own,” by Michael and Lesley Gore

“And I feel like I’m naked in front of the crowd
cause these words are my diary, screaming out loud,
and I know that you’ll use them however you want to.”

—From “Breathe (2 a.m.)” by Anna Nalick

“Out on the road that lies before me now,
there are some turns where I will spin.
I only hope that you can hold me now,
’til I can gain control again.”

—From “‘Til I Can Gain Control Again,” by Rodney Crowell

“I’m more than what you made of me,
I followed the voice you gave to me,
But now I gotta find my own.”

—From “Listen” lyrics by Anne Preven

“I’m tired of looking ’round rooms,
wondering what I’ve got to do,
or who I’m supposed to be.
I don’t want to be anything other than me.”

—From “I Don’t Want to Be,” by Gavin DeGraw

“That long black cloud is comin’ down;
I feel like I’m knockin’ on heaven’s door.”

—From “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,” by Bob Dylan

“It’s time to put out the fire and rise above the ash,
Find my way back home to that straight and narrow path,
Lift my spirits, oh so high, they’ll never touch the ground,
And speak with the wise men and say something profound.”

—From “Rise Above the Ash,” by Whitney Hogan 

“Well, I won’t back down.
No, I won’t back down.
You can stand me up at the gates of hell,
but I won’t back down.

“I’ll stand my ground, won’t be turned around.
And I’ll keep this world from draggin’ me down,
gonna stand my ground …
and I won’t back down.”

—From “I Won’t Back Down,” by Tom Petty