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When "Hello" Means "Goodbye"

How Adele's "25" explains the stages of a breakup.

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When "Hello" Means "Goodbye"
USA Today

Adele has always been known as a musical mastermind with a voice of an angel. Her album "21," released back in 2011, showed us her pain and her overwhelming feelings of abandonment. However, four long years later, she has blessed us with a new album. It's a new beginning. It's her moving on. The reason that "21" was so successful is because of how relatable it is. Everyone has had their heart ripped out of their chest and stomped on. With her new album, "25," Adele is rising from the ashes of her previous pain and shows the rest of us how to do it as well.

STEP 1: Knowing That You Have To End It, But Putting It Off

“Remedy”

It’s almost as if Adele is opening up her arms to console the lover that she is losing. I can actually feel my heart breaking a little bit when listening to this song, which allows me to put the pain that she felt while writing the song into perspective. She understands that they simply aren’t meant to be but, regardless of that, she’ll always want to be there for them and love them, which is a feeling that I know for a fact that most of us have been through.

STEP 2: Reflecting On The Relationship

“Water Under The Bridge”

This song definitely brings on the feelings in the same manner that "Hello" did (more on that later), but in a much more upbeat way. Adele realizes that it’s time to let go, but it’s hard to get back into the swing of being on your own. It makes you realize that any love or relationship that you have had can’t just be forgotten as "water under the bridge." It will always be acknowledged and a part of you. This song helps to show just how hard it is to walk away from something when part of you is telling you to stay.

STEP 3: Coming To Terms

“Love in the Dark”

This song represents the moment when you finally realize that you don't love the person standing in front of you and you realize how distant you’ve become. The love that you once knew has become lost in the dark and is irretrievable. The only difference, this time, is that you understand that you actually must leave, no matter what pain it brings. You begin to prepare yourself for the end that has been inevitable for so long and work up the courage to actually follow through with it this time around.

STEP 4: Saying Goodbye

“All I Ask”

You know that it’s time to say goodbye and you’re going to say it, regardless of how difficult it may be. However, there's something holding you back. You just want that last time in their arms, the arms that felt like home for so long. You find yourself wondering if you’ll ever let your heart out into the battlefield of love ever again. You make me cry every time, Adele. Where’s my ice cream?

STEP 5: Realizing What You Just Did

“Million Years Ago”

You worked up the courage to finally say goodbye to the one you once loved. Of course it was hard, but you did it. We’ve all been there at one time or another. It's been hanging over your head for so long and it's finally done. You spend your time regretting half of your decisions, despite the outcomes. You also realize that they did change you, for better or for worse.

STEP 6: Wanting To Run Back Into Their Arms More Than Anything

“I Miss You”

This song goes with the whole "person you miss at 2 a.m." sort of thing when you’re lonely. You try so hard to move past someone but, when the lights go out and you’re alone, everything comes back.

STEP 7: Grieving

“River Lea”

When you realize that you need to keep pushing forward, no matter how much you want to, this song is a must on repeat. No matter how much you want to and, at times, need to go back, you know that you can’t.

STEP 8: Moving On

“Sweetest Devotion”

We all know this song is about Adele's son, but it is also applicable to a situation when someone stumbles into your life suddenly and you end up loving them more than you love yourself. This is a song for when you know that you’ve moved on to much bigger and better things and I hope that all of you experience this light at the tunnel at the end of it all.

STEP 9: When You See Them With Someone New

“Send My Love (To Your New Lover)”

We all know that this is Adele’s big “f**k you” to the ex-lover that inspired "21." It has such an innocent, yet devious, message behind it. I feel as if this is the message that we all want that one ex to have. Once you mature and realize that you and your ex simply aren’t fit for each other then you can realize that you once did care about them and hope for the best for them, as well as hope that they grow out of their horrible habits.

STEP 10: Staying True To Yourself And Continuing To Move On

"Hello"

This single was released super early to help promote the album and you’re either lying or have a stone cold heart if you didn’t cry when you listened to this song for the first time. Even though it made a strong point to move on and leave the past in the past, it didn’t make us miss that one ex any less.

STEP 11: Looking Back On Everything

"When We Were Young"

I strongly identify with Adele’s rage even though I’m only in my teens. You watch your life pass you by. Most children spend their best and most prime years of their lives in school, stressing about everything and being able to enjoy next to nothing. We’ve been welcomed into a hookup culture and, for those with their hearts on their sleeves, it's incredibly painful. You begin to realize that, although you learned lessons, you wasted time and emotion on someone who may not have been worth it. Then, when the time comes to go out and make the most of your life, you’re too old and your life has literally passed you by. People only start to realize what little time they have left when it’s almost too late. Don’t worry Adele, we all understand your feelings.

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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