Interpretation of “My old troubles” by Kadinelia

2026-02-17

For this entry in the “interpretations” series, I have picked the remix of a traditional song by Kadinelia. Kadinelia is a musical duo that draws inspiration from many genres, blending them with ancient motifs to deliver art that is refreshingly new yet unmistakably familiar.

Their upbeat rendition of My old troubles is a case in point: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lyxHHlX6z0. There is the guitar and what sounds to me like elements of American country music, though it also captures the primordial spirit of a Dionysian festival. Compare it to a more traditional interpretation, which is also nice in its own way: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBNAhwaeyss.

Below are the lyrics, my faithful translation of them, and comments on the substantive points.

Also read my interpretation of The birds fooled me by Kadinelia (2024-12-28).

Τα παλαιά μου βάσανα

Ερμηνεία:  Καντινέλια
Στίχοι:    Παραδοσιακό
Μουσική:   Παραδοσιακό


Τα παλαιά μου βάσανα
περά- καλέ περάσανε και πάνε
Τα τωρινά γικήκανε
φιθκιά καλέ φιθκιά για να με φαν

Λελαλε κι αμάν αμάν
τα παλαιά μου βάσανα

Άνθρωπε γλέντα τη ζωή
μην εί- καλέ μην είσαι πλεονέκτης
Γιατί στο χώμα που πατάς
είσαι καλέ είσαι ένας επισκέπτης

Λελαλε κι αμάν αμάν
άνθρωπε γλέντα τη ζωή

Τα βάσανα μου τραγουδώ
τον πό- καλέ τον πόνο μου γλεντίζω
Κι όπως τον εύρω τον καίρο
ετσά καλέ ετσά τον αρμενίζω

Λελαλε κι αμάν αμάν
όπως τον εύρω τον καιρό

My old troubles

Singer:  Kadinelia
Lyrics:  Traditional
Music:   Traditional


My old troubles
they pa- dear they passed and they go
My current ones became
snakes dear snakes to eat me

Lelale and aman aman [expressions of joy and woe]
my old troubles

Human enjoy your life
do be dear do not be greedy
Because on the ground you stand on
you are dear you are a guest

Lelale and aman aman
human enjoy your life

I sing my troubles
my pai- dear my pain I enjoy
And however I find the times
thus dear thus I navigate them

Lelale and aman aman
however I find the times

This song is a celebration of flow and lightness. It is about not dwelling on what has transpired: letting go of the past woes and success stories to deal with the prevailing conditions as they unfold. The prerequisite is to understand that you do not take anything with you. Not the good parts. Not the bad ones. Time is inexorable. It goes by and you are powerless to stop it. What once defined you is taken away before your eyes, sometimes in tiny increments, at others in large chunks.

Flow is about dealing with the world as-is. Learn from the past, but do not remain preoccupied with it. Bring to the present the parts that are relevant and forgo the rest. There is no going back to rectify your mistakes. It is impossible to replay those states of affairs, giving you the opportunity to do things differently. Whatever lingering doubts or regrets about a world that no longer exists are forever burdensome. Same principle for the future. It is common to invest all your hopes in some potential outcome that is not a direct consequence of your deeds. You anticipate it, thinking that it will finally deliver to you all you ever desired. If that happens, it turns out that you actually wanted something else. And if it does not happen, the meantime is spent ignoring or bemoaning your condition. Your attention span has shifted away from the immediate circumstances, making it almost impossible to appreciate what is available to you.

Lightness is the emotional state you have once you start going with the flow. You recognise that experiences belong to their place and time. As such, you do not make an attempt at clinging on to them. They stay, but you continue. Life is a little bit like travelling the world on foot. All you have is a backpack with provisions. Your physical limitations mean that you cannot afford to carry anything else, no matter how much your heart desires it. And if you commit the mistake of putting more weight on your shoulders than what is sustainable, you will experience unending torment.

Kadinelia invites you to change how you deal with negative feelings. What someone said about you is often inconsequential. Yet if you keep revolving around it, doubting your abilities, and loathing your self for not being good enough, then the negativity gets amplified. It becomes a force so preponderant that it makes you act in a disjointed fashion.

Singing and dancing, among other physical activities, are effective remedies for overthinking. It is no coincidence that Dionysos (Dionysus) is more than just the god of festivities: he is also related to reanimation, resurrection, and rebirth. By participating in the festival or, more generally, by getting “out of your head” you do something in zest. It is engrossing and immersive. We call such activities “recreational” because they effectively reinvigorate us, remaking us as it were.

The challenge, then, is to find joy in what is in your milieu. Start with the little things. Pay close attention to them. Take note of what you think their positive qualities are. If it is only negatives you notice, make it a challenge to come up with a better design for at least some of them. How would you improve them? Try that in earnest. The very work on such a project is already channelling your vitality towards something other than the negativity you had discerned.

The general idea is to work on your situational awareness. To be able to describe what is around you and how you feel in the moment. This empowers you to quickly spot the aspects of the world that can have a benign effect on you. Whatever you do though, remember that you are but a guest on this earth. Do what you must while you can. And do not take yourself too seriously.