#life of lennon

[bitchinbarzal]

What are all the au tags?? can't seem to find them??

I’ll put them in the tags ✨🩷

[artylla]

now they're frightened of leaving it

everyone's weaving it

[spotlitehooker]

are you fucking kidding me

[starrysharks]

vanilla

[thewalrusespublicist]

So didn't realise that people didn't know about the John Lennon 1980 'dear one' thing. As we're all here though I wanted to mention that the phrase 'my dear one' potentially has a bit of a story arc when it comes to John's relationship with Paul. For those familiar with British English, 'my dear one' sticks out as it's not a used term of endearment at all. So where does it come from? It could be a non-straightforward Victorian throwback, but more likely its hearkening to the use of the phrase in Eastern meditation to denote your nearest and dearest. Great, already off to a sweet start (and lines up with Yoko having Paul on the next-of-kin list with Julian and Mimi when John died).

It POTENTIALLY gets a bit more layered than that though once you add in the idea of hugging meditation. Contrary to what Paul says (sorry Paul, I do believe you on most things, just not this) despite being 'Northern men' TM the Beatles were a huggy bunch. John mentions it in the 1967 Hunter Davies interview:

''We used to be embarrassed about touching each other. We’d do an elaborate handshake just to hide the embarrassment… or we did mad dances. Then we got to hugging each other. Now we do the Buddhist bit… arms around. It’s just saying hello, that’s all.''

As pointed out in @thecoleopterawithana and @monkberries amazing posts, the Buddhist bit is hugging meditation which became popular in the 1960s. In hugging meditation, you

''have to make him or her very real in your arms, not just for the sake of appearances, patting him on the back to pretend you are there, but breathing consciously and hugging with all your body, spirit, and heart. Hugging meditation is a practice of mindfulness. “Breathing in, I know my dear one is in my arms, alive. Breathing out, she is so precious to me.”''

We know physical touch was important to John. One of the plusses of being with Yoko was being affectionate with his best friend, he tells Paul that touching is good whilst hugging him and in the Get Back sessions he delightedly asks Paul about a vivid dream where he was touching Paul (whether platonic or romantic this always read to me as a blatant subconscious desire for increased intimacy with Paul). The desire for intimacy is still present in the 'Real Life/Love' demo in 1977 where John muses about holding a mysterious has-a-baby-expecting-another-lives-on-a-farm someone in his arms as if it was only yesterday (another piece of media I still cannot believe we have on tape).

With John's evident desire for physical intimacy in mind and the focus on holding dear ones in hugging meditation, I don't think it's too far to think that John would associate this term of endearment with a certain level of both physical and emotional intimacy. Whether its a slightly bittersweet ironic recollection of those times together in the late 60s or a sincere statement of their current relationship, Paul as his dear one could be seen as continuation of John's suppressed, resentful but ultimately present desire for reignited intimacy with Paul on multiple levels (again romantic? Platonic? Choose-your-own-adventure there, I'm not in charge of you).

Or I could be talking shit. Who knows? It's just fun to think about!

[thoughtkick]

When you do something noble and beautiful and nobody noticed, do not be sad. For the sun every morning is a beautiful spectacle and yet most of the audience still sleeps.

John Lennon

[neil-gaiman]

i’m 16 and i don’t know what to do with my life, what do you suggest for that?

Don't worry.

Think about things you want to do and try to head towards those things in life. Don't beat yourself up too hard if you don't get there. Where you wind up may be unexpected or unplanned but it might be a wonderful place.

It's okay for your interests to change. It's okay to find out what you enjoy by accident or coincidence. It's okay to do things to pay the bills.

All the older people you see out there were 16 once. Most of them had no idea what to do with their lives either. Somehow they made it through to where they are now.

[perfectfeelings]

Time you enjoy wasting was not wasted.

John Lennon

[stopandimagineloveforever]

John & Paul rehearsing "Two of Us" in LET IT BE

[javelinbk]

The Beatles meet Muhammad Ali in Miami, 18th February 1964

[bitchinbarzal]

Luna, How did mom and Dylan get together?

Dylan felt like a horrible person.

How do you come to a work event and end up with a crush on your teammates date?

Dylan kept his eye on you all night, following your every move until you and Rasmus sat down at the table with him.

“Dyl this is y/n! y/n this is my teammate Dylan Cozens!” Rasmus explains, Dylan almost falls to his knees when you smile.

You hold on your hand for him to shake “It’s so lovely to meet you! My brother has told me so much about you!”

Dylan’s face contorted into confusion “Brother?”

Rasmus laughs “Did i not tell you I was bringing my sister?”

“No!”

You roll your eyes “Ras… wait! Did you think I was his date?”

Dylan blushes “Yeah…”

Both you and Rasmus look at one another before you begin laughing.

Dylan found out the next day at practice from your brother that you had come to stay with him after a horrible breakup from your boyfriend back in Sweden.

Dylan spent the following months being friendly with you until you had declared to the boys you were going on a date.

His face fell but he said nothing, he had no right.

While you were on the date, Dylan was at Peyton’s house with a couple of the guys when his phone started ringing.

“Hello?”

“Dylan?” “y/n? What’s wrong?”

“Can you come pick me up please? This guy he’s scaring me-“

Dylan was leaving the house then, staying on the phone and driving to the restaurant you were at. When he found you, you hugged him so tight and mumbled thank you’s to him in Swedish.

He took you back to his apartment, let you change into something comfier and put on a movie before he text Rasmus.

y/n is at my place. I’ll explain at practice, but she’s safe don’t worry about her coming home tonight.

He was nervous for his teammates reaction but the text that followed was;

I know she’s safe with you cozey. don’t break her heart ok?

Dylan frowned, not sure what he meant until it settled.

He knew.

The following weeks you and Dylan hung out a lot. You took comfort in his presence.

Dylan was out with an injury and so he had invited you up to the box with him for a home game, the invite which you accepted.

You sat and watched him in admiration as he shouted through the game. Come intermission he’d disappeared to get you both a soda.

Once he’d returned there was a bunch of little kids playing hockey with the mascot, by the end The jumbotron showed a little girl with Sabretooth that read

Winner!!! Lennon wins!!

“That’s such a pretty name” you comment, taking a sip of your drink.

“Lennon?” Dylan questions and you hum in response.

“I think I’d like to name my daughter that” you add.

He smiles softly before he mumbles to himself

“Sounds like a plan”

Not quiet enough, you hear him and you smirk

“Cozen’s you have to ask me out before we name our children”

[doctorwhommm]

adding doctor who to the long tradition of media with absolutely shockingly bad beatles wigs

[dateinthelife]

16 August 1960

Due to Allan Williams' wrong turn, the van carrying the Beatles from Liverpool to Hamburg ends up in Arnhem, The Netherlands, and John Lennon steals a harmonica, apparently still up in the air about whether he wants to be a rock star or an international criminal.

[thepersonalwords]

As usual, there is a great woman behind every idiot.

John Lennon

[perfectquote]

When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.

John Lennon

[thoughtkick]

Count your age by friends, not years. Count your life in smiles, not tears.

John Lennon