DVD Talk Forum - The Way

I heard this song today and it intrigued me enough to look up the meaning behind it. It's interesting, so i'm posting it.

Here's the lyrics in case you can't match the song up with the title:

"The Way" by Fastball
--------------------

They made up their minds
And they started packing
They left before the sun came up that day
An exit to eternal summer slacking
But where were they going without ever knowing the way?
They drank up the wine
And they got to talking
They now had more important things to say
And when the car broke down they started walking
Where were they going without ever knowing the way?

Chorus:

Anyone could see the road that they walk on is paved in gold
And it’s always summer, they’ll never get cold
They’ll never get hungry
They’ll never get old and gray
You can see their shadows wandering off somewhere
They won’t make it home
But they really don’t care
They wanted the highway
They’re happy there today , today

The children woke up
And they couldn’t find ’em
They left before the sun came up that day
They just drove off
And left it all behind ’em
But where were they going without ever knowing the way?

Anyone could see the road that they walk on is paved in gold
And it’s always summer, they’ll never get cold
They’ll never get hungry
They’ll never get old and gray
You can see their shadows wandering off somewhere
They won’t make it home
But they really don’t care
They wanted the highway
They’re happy there today , today (repeat)

---

Here's the story that prompted the song:

Quote:

Missing elderly couple found dead

DALLAS - A couple who left their east Texas home for a fiddling festival 15 miles away were found dead in their car in Arkansas, a wrenching end to two weeks of searching by police and relatives.

Lela and Raymond Howard, both in their 80s, apparently became disoriented and eventually drove their Oldsmobile off the road near Hot Springs, Ark., more than 350 miles from their home, police said. Their bodies were found Saturday in their car, which was hidden by dense brush.

Rhonda Alford, 43, one of Mrs. Howard's five grandchildren, said the woman's 57-year-old son had implored her to let him make the drive from Salado to Temple on June 28.

''He was begging her, 'Let me take you,''' Mrs. Alford said. ''She said, 'No, we know where to go. We go every year.'''

Family members said if there was any consolation, they found it in knowing the two were together when they died.

Quote:

This is based on the true story of Lela and Raymond Howard, an elderly couple from Salado, Texas who drove to a nearby family reunion and kept going. She had Alzheimer's disease and he was recovering from brain surgery. When they disappeared, a reporter from the Austin American-Statesman wrote a series of articles about the missing couple. Fastball bassist Tony Scalzo came up with the idea for the song after reading the articles (the band is from Austin). He says "It's a romanticized take on what happened" - he "pictured them taking off to have fun, like they did when they first met." However, he found out after writing the song that the couple had died. They were found at the bottom of a canyon in Arkansas about a three-day drive from their destination.