Northernly, the books tell the story, the music lets you hear itWe Were Never Really Here: Revisited, streaming nowVinyl pressed to order in the shopNorthernly, the books tell the story, the music lets you hear itWe Were Never Really Here: Revisited, streaming nowVinyl pressed to order in the shop
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Northernly · We Were Never Really Here · Track 2

Dreams

Broke, in love, and building a whole world out of cardboard guitars and library books — a song about having nothing and calling it everything.

Listen · Revisited

3:25

The remade version of “Dreams”: new melody, new arrangement, same story.

Keyboard controls: Space or K to play and pause, Left and Right arrows to seek five seconds, J and L to seek ten seconds, Up and Down arrows to change volume, M to mute, Home and End to jump to the start or end.

0:00 / 3:25

Lyrics

Well, I don't have a damn dollar to my name,
So let's just pretend that we have everything.
We'll make cardboard guitars and sing our songs,
Move to the bedroom, flip over the mattress, make a stage.
We'll stand atop it and play for everyone.
Oh, we have everything.

And I'll move from job to job to make sure we have enough,
And we both know that sometimes this is rough.
Well, I swear that one day we'll make it through,
Because between us, we have everything.
Oh, darlin', we have everything.

Oh, oh, oh.

Well, I don't have a damn dollar to my name,
And I know you want to leave these southern states.
So let's go to the store, we'll buy a book,
And imagine all the places we want to see.
We'll start in Japan and make our way to Italy,
We'll go to the heart of the city.
Oh, we have everything.

And I'll move from job to job to make sure we have enough,
And we both know that sometimes this is rough.
Well, I swear that one day we'll make it through,
Because between us, we have everything.
Oh, darlin', we have everything.

I know this isn't what you wanted,
I know you're tired and haunted.
This is the best that I can do,
I promise we'll make it through.

And I'll move from job to job to make sure we have enough,
And we both know that sometimes this is rough.
Well, I swear that one day we'll make it through,
Because between us, we have everything.
Oh, darlin', we have everything.

Share this poem

All songs on We Were Never Really Here

  1. 01Cup of CoffeeLyrics →
  2. 02DreamsLyrics →
  3. 03JulyLyrics →
  4. 04Silent ThoughtsLyrics →
  5. 05We Were Never Really HereLyrics →
  6. 06Day Late and a Dollar ShortLyrics →
  7. 07How Did We End Up HereLyrics →
  8. 08If Death do Us PartLyrics →
  9. 09Your MedicineLyrics →
  10. 10Your GloryLyrics →
  11. 11Bad CoffeeLyrics →
  12. 12Better TomorrowLyrics →
  13. 13Static Between RoomsLyrics →
  14. 14DaylightLyrics →
  15. 15Still StandingLyrics →

Questions

Where can I stream this song?+

Dreams is available on Spotify, Apple Music, and SoundCloud as part of We Were Never Really Here. Album links are available above and on the release page.

Can I buy the vinyl?+

We Were Never Really Here is pressed on vinyl and shipped from the United States. Each record is made to order, with production taking 3-5 business days before shipping.

What album is this from?+

This song is track 2 on We Were Never Really Here, released in 2025.

Content care+

Northernly songs are trauma-informed and include reflections on grief, abuse, and recovery. Move slowly. Skip what you need to. Crisis hotlines and survivor resources are at /resources.

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A free digital edition of the first six parts of Letters I'll Never Send, plus one new poem or letter each week.

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