A very large, intricate icicle has formed outside my window. It is growing down from the roof in a series of complicated bulges and icy fingers with drips on the end. The branches of the trees are coated in an icy glaze which suggests the street, and particularly the footpath, will be like a skating rink. It is Saturday. I wanted to go back through my photos and find something I was reminded of when writing my last blog post. It was this photo, taken in 2022 on a street in Ukraine.

In that context, wearing that hoodie – it was classic. I wondered if it was a hand printed design. Was the pointy thing at bottom left meant to be a missile? And yet, there was also something starkly less than amusing about it, particularly in a place like Ukraine in 2022. I think the inclusion of the f-word captures that part of it rather well.

C’est La Vie: “The iconic French phrase c’est la vie literally translates to “that’s life” or “such is life.” In other words, “This is how it is” – often with the implication that there’s nothing you can do about it.”

As the article I linked to above points out, this can be a good thing – signifying acceptance of the things we cannot change. It can also be negative. Too much “C’est La Vie” and we get passivity and little in the way of change. So, maybe “C’est La F****** Vie” actually isn’t a bad way to express the conflicting dual nature of this French phrase.

In honour of the saying, here is a selection of “C’est La Vie” songs:

• Khaled – ‘C’est La Vie’. A catchy blend of Arabic and French, with heartfelt lyrics. (Here’s the English version).

• Chuck Berry, ‘You Never Can Tell’: “C’est La Vie say the old folks, it goes to show you never can tell”. The story of a teenage wedding.

• B*Witched, ‘C’est La Vie’: a blast from the 90’s. This takes me back to my school days when come lunchtime everyone would transform into a Spice Girl or Backstreet Boy, or some other choreographed boy/girl group, like this one. C’est La Vie.

• Rudimental, ‘Free’: there are troubling undercurrents to this one that go beyond childhood bullying, the memories it leaves into adulthood and a wish to be free. “Whoa, C’est La Vie, maybe something’s wrong with me”.

And that’s all the C’est La Vie songs for today. Stuff popping up in my YouTube feed has reminded me that while this little musical interlude has been fun, there are other things that need attention. I am reminded of something the name of which I had forgotten. I looked it up and it’s called ‘Serenity Prayer’. The lines I was thinking of go something like this (there are different versions):

“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference”