MOUNTAIN RIVER OCEAN
G R A V I T Y I N M O T I O N
Lyrics
Up winding roads that never stop
I try to reach the mountaintop
To be the cream of this ol' crop
To see as far as I can see
I reach for stones that break away
The sky grows cloudy, dark and gray
The peak still seems so far away
It turns, and runs away from me
Mountain, river, ocean
This is gravity in motion
I reach, I slip, I cry in pain
Wondering if I should try again
And with the melting of the snow
A little stream begins to flow
I track it down and watch it grow
To see where it will carry me
The river flows, I let it lead
We rush downhill with urgent speed
I pray, please take me where I need
But it just casts me out to sea
Mountain, river, ocean
This is gravity in motion
I climb so high but fall so low
Wonderin' where this journey goes
The waves come crashing with the tide
They toss me round from side to side
I fight the pull, I swim, I try
I know not where they carry me
The waves and I begin to blend.
No longer foes, my deep blue friend,
Our rhythm plays out without end.
The ocean flows inside of me.
The highs, the lows, they come and go
All I can do is ride the flow
About the Journey
I wrote this song at the end of 2024, after years of ups and downs—a year where I felt like I tried everything but didn't quite get anywhere. It's a feeling many of us face: that the climb doesn't necessarily lead to a peak, but just back into the cycle itself. It made me think about the circle of life and all sorts of circles that happen throughout life.
The track took on a new life in October 2025 during our global remix contest. Hearing hundreds of people translate these words into Italian, Spanish, Korean, and Hebrew brought me to tears. It was the same journey reflected back in a dozen different tongues: the realization that we don't control our destiny.
Whether it's the mountain outside Palm Springs where I reflect, the rivers of memory, or the waves of Miami, nature has always been my mirror. We climb, we fall, or we simply choose a different path. In the end, we learn that the river might cast us out to sea one day, and all we can do is find the rhythm within the flow.
“Returning to the foot of the mountain / I find the pine trees / Greener than ever.”
— Ryokan
“The mountains are calling and I must go.”
— Muir
“Deep in the mountains, the snow has melted; The stream flows full.”
— Ryokan
“This world is a mountain, and our actions are shouts that echo back to us.”
— Rumi
“The snow is melting into music.”
— Muir
“I have climbed the mountain of Truth. Now, I sit in the cave of my heart.”
— Kabir
“Be like a mountain in the face of wind; melt like snow when Sun appears.”
— Rumi
“My house is buried in the mountains, year after year, no news from the world.”
— Ryokan
“How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains!”
— Muir
“The river flows, I let it lead... it just casts me out to sea.”
— MRO
“Mountain, river, ocean. This is gravity in motion.”
— MRO
“The waves and I begin to blend. No longer foes, my deep blue friend.”
— MRO
