"America"

One of the songs North River Sing is doing this fall is Simon & Garfunkel's “America”. I’ve known this song as long as I can remember; my dad was a fan and played the original record and cassettes he dubbed from it. And I remembered a realization I had years ago about the first two lines:

“Let us be lovers, we’ll marry our fortunes together / I’ve got some real estate here in my bag”

When I was a kid and learned that “real estate” was property like houses and buildings, I interpreted this as him having deeds to property in his bag, and that was the fortune he was bringing to the marriage.

And no. He’s poor. He’s got empty space in his bag and can carry some of her stuff.