17 seconds of compassion
17 seconds of peace
17 seconds to remember love is the energy
Behind which all is created
17 seconds to remember all that is good
17 seconds to forget all your hurt and pain
17 seconds of faith
17 seconds to trust you again
17 seconds of radiance
17 seconds to send a prayer up
17 seconds is all you really need
This is the poem that was included in the liner notes for this song. The song is an instrumental that’s literally 17 seconds long and I feel that the whole album needs to be listened to in order to fully take this last song in. Adore is about loss (the loss of a mother, the loss of a lover, the loss of friends and collaborators) and the process of carrying on. Corgan says in his poem that “17 seconds is all you really need” to find that peace after loss, but is it really? What if more time is needed? 17 seconds is short. This song is short. The abrupt end is too jarring. Abrupt endings in life are too painful and it leaves you thinking, “What now?” Well, 17 seconds is all you’re going to get because life moves on. Shit hurts, but you have to move. on.