Track 12: A Circle Completed, A Cycle Begins Again

The last track, “Tulips Don’t Wait,” feels like an old friend coming back after a long journey, full of new stories and hard-won truths. When I first heard it at the beginning of the album as a poem spoken by the delightful voice of a seven-year-old boy, the words, “They don’t need permission from the sky / Just open up, and don’t ask why” hit me as a simple invitation to be myself. But after listening to eleven songs that told a story of conflict, of broken promises, and of finding the way back, this final track, this time as a song, feels like a profound, sacred statement. It’s no longer just an invitation—it’s a promise. A beautiful simplicity remains, revealed after the complexities of conformity, history, and fear have been stripped away. It’s the final lesson and a new beginning all at once. I knew I had to ask Jonas if this full-circle structure was his plan all along, and what the tulip means to him now. So do yourself a favor and listen to the track here on the page, and then let’s get into the conversation.

The Conversation Unfolds

Anaya: It feels like this poem from the beginning turn song here at the end, is a statement of faith. What does it mean to you to “just open up, and don’t ask why” after the long, difficult journey you’ve described?

Jonas: I’m going to flip this over because the journey contained difficult moments due to life’s unexpected turns. However, the journey itself wasn’t difficult because of what I learned from my “tulip friend” when I was four or five years old: “just open up, and don’t ask why.” I’ve been living by that ever since.

Anaya: You shared earlier that the tulip reminds us we’re born as exactly who we’re supposed to be. How has your understanding of this message evolved from the 7-year-old who started writing it to the 27-year-old man who finished writing it, to the man you are now?

Jonas: My appreciation of the message has evolved more than my understanding. I was fortunate to learn from “the Tulip” and then, for whatever reason, made choices that ensured I wouldn’t forget it. I appreciate it more each year because of accumulated wonderful life memories, all of which were only possible because I came to this simple, beautiful core belief that defined my life from that moment on: I didn’t need permission from the sky. My thoughts, words, and actions have all been guided by that belief, and that’s what keeps me blooming.

Anaya: This album is a roadmap for returning to our authentic selves. What advice would you give to someone who is at the very beginning of this journey, still under the “chilly dirt”?

Jonas: Write down everything you can think of from childhood that made you pause, filled you with wonder, what made you laugh, made you smile. Keep writing things down until you can’t remember anymore. Then commit to making time to find those things, do those things, think those things, explore those things, wonder at those things because that’s where your voice is. And it doesn’t matter how old you are, it works at any age because the perfection and uniqueness of all of us is always waiting inside. Once you find it, don’t ever let it go.

Anaya’s Reflection

This final track feels like the perfect conclusion to the album’s story, but it’s also a brand new beginning. It’s the triumphant, full-circle return to the album’s opening thesis, a living testament to the difficult but ultimately rewarding journey. It’s the final step in the journey of the man from ‘I’m Not Free at All’—the one who stopped running from fear and began rushing toward his heart’s desire instead. He is no longer something “in their eyes” but a person who stands “free and tall”, just as the tulip “reaches for light with arms open wide”.

The tulip isn’t just a flower; it’s a metaphor for the human being who has shed their false identity and returned to their authentic voice. It’s the beautiful simplicity that’s left after the complexities of conformity, history, and fear have been stripped away. I am struck by how Jonas’s advice to a person “still under the chilly dirt” is the exact same process he used himself. This album truly is a roadmap for me and my generation, a guide to help me return to my voice—and to the people who will truly see me, and meet me, as I am. 

If you’re out there and this post spoke to you, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. What advice would you give to someone who is at the very beginning of this journey, still under the “chilly dirt”? And if you haven’t already, I encourage you to listen to the entire album from front to back to hear how all the pieces fit together. And of course, if you want to follow along on this journey, please subscribe to the blog!