Miss Independent

Kelly Clarkson

I’d never considered myself to be an “independent” person prior to going to college and meeting Jay (who later on became my husband). I’d always been dependent on some sort of adult figure, be it my parents, nurses or doctors, to guide me along and take care of me. I soon started realizing, however, how guarded I was when it came to guys. I’d had a boyfriend my senior year in high school, which lasted about six months, and while I enjoyed it while it lasted, I can’t say that I fully gave my whole heart to him. I always kept a part of my heart protected for fear of getting hurt. I’d had a negative experience in my past with a man, which caused me to be more guarded later on in life. I was always content with being single and who I was individually. I might have dreamed about one day meeting the perfect guy and getting married, but it was a dream that I never really thought would come true. Anytime a guy would seemingly try to flirt with me or attract my attention it would turn me off immediately. That’s where the “miss if you wanna use that line you better not start” comes into play. Besides having trust issues with guys, I knew that there was something else that almost any guy would be driven away by, and that was my disorder. What guy would be crazy enough to take on a woman who had a life-long disorder that involved so much? I just didn’t believe it could happen. Well, it did obviously, or I wouldn’t be married right now. I still remember first falling for Jay and how scared yet excited I was. I wanted to run away because I didn’t know how to handle the feelings I was having nor did I want to rush into things too quickly, and yet, I just couldn’t stop thinking about him, and I couldn’t deny that connection that I felt every time we were together. At first I pushed myself away from Jay, but after some encouragement from one of my friends at the time who told me to “at least give him a try”, I did just that and it was one of the best decisions I’ve made. So for me this song is about letting down your guard and stepping off that scary cliff and just letting yourself fall… in love.

Miss independent
Miss self-sufficient
Miss keep your distance, mmm

Miss unafraid
Miss out of my way
Miss don’t let a man interfere, no

Miss on her own
Miss almost grown
Miss never let a man help her off her throne, so

By keeping her heart protected
She’ll never, ever feel rejected
Little miss apprehensive
Said, ooh, she fell in love

What is this feeling taking over?
Thinking no one could open the door
Surprise, it’s time, to feel what’s real
What happened to miss independent?
No longer need to be defensive
Goodbye, old you, when love is true

Miss guided heart
Miss play it smart
Miss if you wanna use that line, you better not start, no

But she miscalculated
She didn’t want to end up jaded
And this miss decided not to miss out on true love, so

By changing a misconception
She went in a new direction
And found inside, she felt a connection
She fell in love

What is this feeling taking over?
Thinking no one could open the door
Surprise, it’s time, to feel what’s real
What happened to miss independent?
No longer need to be defensive
Goodbye, old you, when love is true (when love is true)

When miss independent walked away
No time for love that came her way
She looked in the mirror and thought, today
What happened to miss no longer afraid?
It took some time for her to see
How beautiful love can truly be
No more talk of why can’t that be me
I’m so glad I’ve finally seen

What is this feeling taking over?
Thinking no one could open the door
Surprise, it’s time to feel what’s real
What happened to miss independent?
No longer need to be defensive

Goodbye, old you, when love is true (when love is true)