Monday, June 20, 2011

I Am a Descendant...

I remember a playful delight over the idea of school. I remember youthful excitement and enthusiasm over learning. I remember thoughts, mullings really, wondering if there was more for me than the blind compliance hiding a quiet rebellion and masked by a façade of happiness worn by the elder peers I looked up to. I remember a dramatic move away from all I’d ever known around the age of twelve. I remember the unknown turmoil in being faced with the possibility of being fatherless. I remember hope. Hope in a renewed youthful excitement and enthusiasm over learning. I remember the day when I realized that it wasn’t so much the lessons I took such great delight in as the teachers who delivered them.

There is no comparing my story to that of Jan Amos Comenius. There is a certain thread in the thoughts and remembrances listed above that runs throughout his story as well. If I were desperate, I could pull out old nicknames and remind you that I once was called Amos in my younger days. If I were to point that out, I would of course fail to mention that it had nothing to do with the fact that I was “loving” as it did in Comenius’ case, but rather by the fact that I knew that Amos was a book in the Old Testament when no other of my peers did, and I never failed to remind them of my superior knowledge. Or, on another point of feigned comparison, I could recollect the fact that my paternal grandfather’s side of the family has deep Moravian roots stemming back to the founding of Old Salem in North Carolina. But if I were to point that out, I would of course fail to mention the fact that while my grandfather does have Moravian roots, the only real connection he has that I have found thus far with Old Salem—apart from living there—I fictitiously made up after reading the back of a Moravian Sugar Cake loaf giving a brief history of the Moravians settlement in Salem.

Let’s face it. My feeble attempt to connect my lineage to that of Jan Amos Comenius has thus far rivaled every Confederate-loving Southern American’s claim to be a direct descendant of William Wallace. And yet I continue my search along the genealogical and footnote trail knowing that one day I will be bettered by the search even to simply call Comenius a spiritual and educational ancestor.

Saturday, April 23, 2011

S4theD: Day 40



It's been a joy to journey back through some old musical haunts, share some current appreciations, and even gather some new tunes along the way. Thank you for joining me over the last 40 days of musical reflection.

I leave you with one last song in anticipation of tomorrow and in light of our redemptive standing secured by a Merciful Substitute.

Blessings to you and yours this resurrection weekend.


So Shall We Live
Saviour: The Story of God's Passion for His People
sung by: Steve Green, Larnelle Harris, Wayne Watson, Twila Paris, and Wintley Phipps


Light of the world with hope fills the sky
For gone is the power of the darkness
The tomb that held the Son of God
Breaks with a cry from heaven
"He who was dead is risen!
Up from the grave ascended!
The reign of death is ended!

"So shall we live, for His cross has gone before
Christ has spoken all our freedom
He's broken all our bondage
And opened God's heavens to man

O, saints rejoice and lift up your voice
For we bear the wounds of our Saviour
And just as Christ was crucified
We who are buried with Him
Are raised in newness with Him
We share His resurrection
Our blessed liberation

So shall we live, for His cross has gone before
Christ has spoken all our freedom
He's broken all our bondage
And opened God's heavens
He's opened God's heavens to man

So shall we live, and so shall we reign
In glory and power
Now and forever

So shall we live
Blessed is the name of the Lord
So shall we live
Blessed is the name of the Lord
AMEN

Friday, April 22, 2011

S4theD: Day 39



A year ago today my grandfather passed away. Dying Christians often have profound insights just before they pass from earth to heaven. Johnny Cash sure did. I think my grandfather would have liked this last Johnny Cash album which he put together before his own home-going...well...if we didn't tell my grandfather it was Johnny Cash I think he might have liked it!

Much to remember, much to ponder...but today really is a Good Friday.

Ain't No Grave
by Johnny Cash


There ain't no grave can hold my body down
There ain't no grave can hold my body down
When I hear that trumpet sound I'm gonna rise right out of the ground
Ain't no grave can hold my body down

Well, look way down the river, what do you think I see?
I see a band of angels and they're coming after me
Ain't no grave can hold my body down
There ain't no grave can hold my body down

Well, look down yonder Gabriel, put your feet on the land and see
But Gabriel don't you blow your trumpet 'til you hear it from me
There ain't no grave can hold my body down
Ain't no grave can hold my body down

Well, meet me Jesus, meet me. Meet me in the middle of the air
And if these wings don't fail me I will meet you anywhere
Ain't no grave can hold my body down
There ain't no grave can hold my body down

Well, meet me mother and father, meet me down the river road
And momma you know that I'll be there when I check in my load
Ain't no grave can hold my body down
There ain't no grave can hold my body down
There ain't no grave can hold my body down

Thursday, April 21, 2011

S4theD: Day 38



Jerusalem, My Happy Home
by James Jordan & The Voices of Anam Cara


Jerusalem, my happy home,
When shall I come to thee?
When shall my troubles have an end?
Thy joys when shall I see?

There David stands with harp in hand
As master of the choir:
Ten thousand times that man were blessed
That might this music hear.

There Mary sings Magnificat
With tune surpassing sweet,
And all the holy bear their part,
There sitting at her feet.

There Magdalen hath left her moan,
And cheerfully doth sing
With blessed saints, whose harmony
In every street doth ring.

Jerusalem, my happy home
God grant that I may see
Thine endless joy, and of the same
A true partaker be!
A true partaker be!

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

S4theD: Day 37

It's pouring down rain...again...the splish splash seems appropriate.

Splish Splash
by Little Richard


Splish Splash I was takin a bath
Long about a Saturday night
Rub Dub just relaxin in the tub
Thinkin everything was alright
Well I stepped outa the tub
Put my feet on the floor
I wrapped the towel around me
And I opened the door
And then a splish splash
I jumped back in the bath
Well how was I to know there was a party goin on!

They was a splishin and a splashin
Reelin with the feelin
Movin and a groovin
Rockin and a rollin
Hey yeah!

Bing Bang I saw the whole gang
Dancin on my living room rug
Yeah, flip flop they was doin the Bop
All the teens had the dancin bug
There was Lolipop with Peggy Sue
By Golly Miss Molly was even there too
Well a splish splash I forgot about the bath
I went and put my dancin shoes on, yeah!

I was a rollin and a strollin
Reelin with the feelin
Movin and a groovin
Splishin and a splashin
Yeah!

Yeah, I was a splishin and a splashin
I was a rollin and a strollin
Yeah, I was a movin and a groovin
We was a reelin with the feelin
I was a rollin and a strollin
Movin with the groovin
Splish Splash, Yeah
Splishin and a splashin
One time, I was a splishin and a splashin
I was a movin and a groovin
Yeah, I was a splishin and a splashin

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

S4theD: Day 36



Ok, before you judge (I promise I'll let you once you hear me out!) I have to tell y'all why I liked this song in high school. Really I only have two reasons: 1) I thought it was pretty cool that Scott Stapp wrote this song after he found out he was going to be a father. I never thought of it as sappy, so I liked it. Nothing like Butterfly Kisses which I absolutely HATED! And 2) In 1999, Creed was one of the first bands to introduce classical instruments into pop rock. I was hooked the moment I heard this hidden track on their album Human Clay. Their blending of cello and violin with bass and electric guitar left me with a passion that only Apocalyptica, Mannheim Steamroller, Trans Siberian Orchestra and the like have been able to slightly remedy.

Ok, now you may judge.

With Arms Wide Open (Bonus Track)
by Creed


Well I just heard the news today
It seems my life is going to change
I close my eyes, begin to pray
Then tears of joy stream down my face

With arms wide open
Under the sunlight
Welcome to this place
I'll show you everything
With arms wide open
With arms wide open

Well I don't know if I'm ready
To be the man I have to be
I'll take a breath, I'll take her by my side
We stand in awe, we've created life

With arms wide open
Under the sunlight
Welcome to this place
I'll show you everything
With arms wide open
Now everything has changed
I'll show you love
I'll show you everything

With arms wide open
With arms wide open
I'll show you everything ...oh yeah
With arms wide open..wide open

If I had just one wish
Only one demand
I hope he's not like me
I hope he understands
That he can take this life
And hold it by the hand
And he can greet the world
With arms wide open...

With arms wide open
Under the sunlight
Welcome to this place
I'll show you everything
With arms wide open
Now everything has changed
I'll show you love
I'll show you everything
With arms wide open
With arms wide open

I'll show you everything..oh yeah
With arms wide open....wide open

Monday, April 18, 2011

S4theD: Day 35

Oh the irony. This was one of my favorite songs in high school. When I was tired of homework, mad at a teacher (yes, that happened on occasion), or desperately longing for spring or summer break I'd find myself singing along with and impersonating the wee British lads in their protest against education.

And now I'm a teacher. I wonder what song my kids sing when they're tired of homework, mad at me, or desperately longing for break?


Another Brick In the Wall, Part 2
by Pink Floyd


We don't need no education
We dont need no thought control
No dark sarcasm in the classroom
Teachers leave them kids alone
Hey! Teachers! Leave them kids alone!
All in all it's just another brick in the wall.
All in all you're just another brick in the wall.

We don't need no education
We dont need no thought control
No dark sarcasm in the classroom
Teachers leave those kids alone
Hey! Teachers! Leave those kids alone!
All in all it's just another brick in the wall.
All in all you're just another brick in the wall.

"Wrong, Do it again!"
"If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding. How can you
have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?"
"You! Yes, you behind the bikesheds, stand still laddy!"

Saturday, April 16, 2011

S4theD: Day 34



Now this is a great extended metaphor! Maybe not as pop and memorable as Tom Cochrane's Life Is a Highway, but pretty darn intriguing nonetheless. I do love me a good painted word picture!


Green Screens
by Sleeping at Last


If only worry could make it change,
Suddenly our world would take new shape;
On miles and miles of green screens
Love hangs on invisible strings.

So roll up your sleeves,
This could take some time.
Everything waits on assembly lines - but not here.
In the emergence of plan,
We'll be surrounded by hands.

The storyboard outlines our escape
And second guesses will be erased;
On the cutting room floor
Everything falls into place.

If only our futures could be tamed,
Suddenly our past would have no say.
And in the emergence of film, pouring overhead,
Our bodies relearn how to feel.
And somehow the screen embodies every ideal
As the orchestra so sweetly reveals,
And the background artist carries us there...
The conflict compliments repair.

We're all on the edge of our seats,
We're all on the edge of our seats
Until the end.

Friday, April 15, 2011

S4theD: Day 33



The Norwegians have done a pretty good job covering one of the most covered cover songs ever. I stumbled across this version by Espen Lind, Askil Holm, Kurt Nilsen & Alejandro Fuentes which has made me curious as to what these guys have done individually. Apparently they're super famous...in Norway. I think Kurt Nilsen has done a couple things with Willie Nelson. Any one ever heard of any of these guys?


Hallelujah
by Lind, Holm, Nilsen, & Fuentes


I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this
The fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you to a kitchen chair
She broke your throne, and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

There was a time you let me know
What's was going on below
But now you never show it to me, do you?
Remember when I moved in with you
The holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Maybe there’s a God above
But all I’ve ever learned from love
Was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you
It’s not a cry you can hear at night
It’s not somebody who has seen the light
It’s a cold and it’s a broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Thursday, April 14, 2011

S4theD: Day 32



I find it interesting that certain events evoke connections with certain descriptive song lyrics...whether or not those lyrics have anything to do with the event the mind connects them to. This week there have been some wasting time events, there have been some events that have felt like chasing cars in no particular direction, and there have been many a time when I've cried out "I need your grace". I don't think any of the events of my week were what Snow Patrol had in mind when they put together today's song, but they're images nevertheless are the ones my mind has gravitated to since early this morning.


Chasing Cars
by Snow Patrol


We'll do it all
Everything
On our own

We don't need
Anything
Or anyone

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me
And just forget the world?

I don't quite know
How to say
How I feel

Those three words
Are said too much
They're not enough

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me
And just forget the world?

Forget what we're told
Before we get too old
Show me a garden
That's bursting into life

Let's waste time
Chasing cars
Around our heads

I need your grace
To remind me
To find my own

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me
And just forget the world?

Forget what we're told
Before we get too old
Show me a garden
That's bursting into life

All that I am
All that I ever was
Is here in your perfect eyes
They're all I can see

I don't know where
Confused about how as well
Just know that these things
Will never change for us at all

If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me
And just forget the world?

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

S4theD: Day 31

Nine more days! This Lenten season has gone by really quickly!

The Wild Hunt
by The Tallest Man on Earth


There is a Crow Moon coming in while you keep looking out
It is the hollow month of March now sweeping in
Let's watch phenomenons arise out of the darkness now
Within the light she is my storm and heroine
And old machines abandoned by the ancient races stand
I hear them humming down below in Hollow Earth
Oh hell I guess I don't know why I will go under too
But just for now I let the spring and storm return

I left my heart to the wild hunt a-coming
I live until the call
And I plan to be forgotten when I'm gone
Yes I'll be leaving in the fall

And I will sleep out in the glade just by the giant tree
Just to be closer when my spirit's pulled away
I left a nervous little boy out on the trail today
He's just a mortal to the shouting cavalcade

I left my heart to the wild hunt a-coming
I live until the call
And I plan to be forgotten when I'm gone
Yes I'll be leaving in the fall

Let's open up the windows, have Satan departing now
And we'll be even when the blues fall down like hail
Hell I don't even care no more about cadejo now
If he's a white one or a black one on the trail

I left my heart to the wild hunt a-coming
I live until the call
And I plan to be forgotten when I'm gone
Yes I'll be leaving in the fall

Yes I'll be leaving in the fall

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

S4theD: Day 30

It's been an eventful day on all fronts. Today's song comes to fill the need of a little grounding. I needed to be reminded of these truths, of this hope, of this surety, of this Rock. And what better, more apt reminder than to hear these truths from the mouths of my own friends and community. What a gift!


O Christ Our Hope
Christ Community Church Choir
Good Friday Service 2006


O Christ, our Hope, our heart’s Desire,
Redemption’s only Spring!
Creator of the world art Thou,
Its Savior and its King.

How vast the mercy and the love
Which laid our sins on Thee,
And led Thee to a cruel death,
To set Thy people free.

But now the bonds of death are burst,
The ransom has been paid,
And Thou art on Thy Father’s throne,
In glorious robes arrayed.

O may Thy mighty love prevail
Our sinful souls to spare;
O may we come before Thy throne,
And find acceptance there!

O Christ, be Thou our lasting Joy,
Our future great Reward!
Our only glory may be it be
To glory in the Lord.

All praise to Thee, ascended Lord;
All glory ever be
To Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
Through all eternity.

Monday, April 11, 2011

S4theD: Day 29



Have I ever mentioned that I love music? Well, I do. A lot. And one of the smoothest most pleasant to listen to male voices I've ever heard happens to be one of my favorite male voices of those I've ever heard.


Unforgettable
by Nat "King" Cole & Natalie Cole


Unforgettable, that's what you are
Unforgettable though near or far
Like a song of love that clings to me
How the thought of you does things to me
Never before has someone been more

Unforgettable in every way
And forever more, that's how you'll stay
That's why, darling, it's incredible
That someone so unforgettable
Thinks that I am unforgettable too

No never before
has someone been more ooh

Unforgettable in every way
And forever more, that's how you'll stay
That's why, darling, it's incredible
That someone so unforgettable
Thinks that I am unforgettable too

Saturday, April 09, 2011

S4theD: Day 28

This song reminds me of first friendships.


Rag Doll
by Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons


When she was just a kid her clothes were hand me downs
They always laughed at her when she came into town
Called her rag doll, little rag doll
Such a pretty face should be dressed in lace

I'd change her sad rags into glad rags if I could
My folks won't let me cause they say that she's no good
She's a rag doll, such a rag doll
Though I love her so I can't let her know

Rag doll, I love you just the way you are

Friday, April 08, 2011

S4theD: Day 27



Yes, it's a blast from high school, but more than that it's just a plain 'ol nice song to play with the windows rolled down in the car on an 85 degree day. No, I'm not depressed. Yes, I do think it's cool that this song has Spanish in it!

Loser
by Beck


In the time of chimpanzees I was a monkey
Butane in my veins and I’m out to cut the junkie
With the plastic eyeballs, spray-paint the vegetables
Dog food stalls with the beefcake pantyhose
Kill the headlights and put it in neutral
Stock car flamin’ with a loser and the cruise control
Baby’s in reno with the vitamin d
Got a couple of couches, sleep on the love-seat
Someone came in sayin’ I’m insane to complain
About a shotgun wedding and a stain on my shirt
Don’t believe everything that you breathe
You get a parking violation and a maggot on your sleeve
So shave your face with some mace in the dark
Savin’ all your food stamps and burnin’ down the trailer park

Yo. cut it.

Soy un perdedor
I’m a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me?

Soy un perdedor
I’m a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me?

Forces of evil on a bozo nightmare
Ban all the music with a phony gas chamber
’cuz one’s got a weasel and the other’s got a flag
One’s on the pole, shove the other in a bag
With the rerun shows and the cocaine nose-job
The daytime crap of the folksinger slob
He hung himself with a guitar string
A slab of turkey-neck and it’s hangin’ from a pigeon wing
You can’t write if you can’t relate
Trade the cash for the beef for the body for the hate
And my time is a piece of wax fallin’ on a termite
That’s chokin’ on the splinters

Soy un perdedor
I’m a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me?
(get crazy with the cheese whiz)
Soy un perdedor
I’m a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me?
(drive-by body-pierce)
(yo bring it on down)
Soooooooyy....

(I’m a driver, I’m a winner; things are gonna change I can feel it)

Soy un perdedor
I’m a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me?
(I can’t believe you)
Soy un perdedor
I’m a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me?
Soy un perdedor
I’m a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me?
(schprechen sie deutches, baby)
Soy un perdedor
I’m a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me?
(know what I’m sayin’? )

Thursday, April 07, 2011

S4theD: Day 26

I recently went for one of my longest runs since November. Right about the time I started hurtin' and feelin' my lack of fitness this song came on my iPod. Imagine those first two lines as you're running down a "lonesome" road. The realization just hit you: trying to train for a half marathon in a month probably isn't the brightest thing you've ever done. Now you get the picture. Let's just say that this song, while I do like it for what it is, will not be appearing on any future running playlists!


Look Down That Lonesome Road
by Among the Oak and Ash


Look up, look down that lonesome road
Lay down your little head and cry my love
Hang your little head and cry

The darkest night I ever saw
Was the day I left my home my love
The day I left my home

The two best friends must part some day
And why not you and I my love
Why not you and I

Oh why oh why oh why my love
Why not you and I

Wednesday, April 06, 2011

S4theD: Day 25



A Thousand Years
by Sting

A thousand years, a thousand more,
A thousand times a million doors to eternity
I may have lived a thousand lives, a thousand times
An endless turning stairway climbs
To a tower of souls
If it takes another thousand years, a thousand wars,
The towers rise to numberless floors in space
I could shed another million tears, a million breaths,
A million names but only one truth to face

A million roads, a million fears
A million suns, ten million years of uncertainty
I could speak a million lies, a million songs,
A million rights, a million wrongs in this balance of time
But if there was a single truth, a single light
A single thought, a singular touch of grace
Then following this single point, this single flame,
The single haunted memory of your face

I still love you
I still want you
A thousand times the mysteries unfold themselves
Like galaxies in my head

I still love you
I still want you
A thousand times the mysteries unfold themselves
Like galaxies in my head
On and on the mysteries unwind themselves
Eternities still unsaid
'Til you love me

Tuesday, April 05, 2011

S4theD: Day 24

Most people know, I like odd things. My humor is odd, my tastes are odd, I'm odd. So humor me when I say that I like Julian Smith and appreciate his humor. As a former homeschooler and native Nashvillian I think he's pretty stinkin' clever and funny! For more clever lighthearted comedy visit Julian on YouTube. Even if you don't find him humorous you would at least appreciate his video Techno Jeep.

Red Eye Flashes Twice
by Julian Smith


This is a song for every person in the world...

Everybody's trying to get their picture looking nice,
But they act like a camera is some foreign device,
I've got somethin' to ask you and I'll keep it concise,
WHAT ARE YOU STUPID! Red eye flashes twice!

I was trying to snap a picture of my buddies, Bill and Bryce,
Bill takes lots of pictures, so he gave me some advice,
He moved before the second flash, "photographer" yeah right!
WHAT ARE YOU STUPID, BILL! Red eye flashes twice!

All your friends will hate your guts if you don't stand still,
Your family will disown your butt and probably have you killed,
If you have a girlfriend, which we all know you don't,
But if you do she'll leave you, and then you de-fin-ite-ly won't...
Have a girlfriend...

The famous person in this picture wasn't very nice,
I just wanted his picture, and his pizza slice,
With just one flash he walked away as if I had head lice,
WHAT ARE YOU STUPID! Heh... I've seen all your movies twice...

All your friends will hate your guts if you don't stand still,
Your family will disown your butt and probably have you killed,
If you have a girlfriend, which we all know you don't,
But if you do she'll leave you, and then you de-fin-ite-ly won't...

See it's much easier to just assume that the flash is gonna go two times and to just wait there for a second, rather than move and risk all these people in your life hating you forever and wanting you dead, because every time they look at their picture, they don't see the picture, they see, "Oh, there's 'So-and-So'. He ruined my picture IN FRONT OF THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT. I FREAKIN' HATE THAT GUY!"

All your friends will hate your guts if you don't stand still,
Your family will disown your butt and probably have you killed,
If you have a girlfriend, which we all know you don't,
But if you do she'll leave you, and then you de-fin-ite-ly won't...
You'll be single, for the rest of your life.
And you won't have any pictures of yourself either...

Monday, April 04, 2011

S4theD: Day 23



Downtown Girl has probably been a Song for the Day on several different occasions, but this is simply my favorite Jim Fidler song with words. He has some great instrumental songs, but I still found myself coming back to this one...may be because it's a nice pick-me-up for a rainy, nasty, tornado-y day!

On another note, did y'all know that Jim Fidler is Christina Aguilera's cousin? There's your trivia for the day!


Downtown Girl
by Jim Fidler


Well, one fine day in the month of June,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
I figured that I'd write me a silly little tune,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

As she likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
She likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

Well, I took her to the tavern for to have a pint of beer,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
She was dancing and flirting with everybody there,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

As she likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
She likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

Well, we went to the regatta for to see the goings on,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
I looked the other way when I looked back she was gone,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

As she likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
She likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

Then I went to her house to meet her mother and her father,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
When I got to the door they confused me with another,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

As she likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
She likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

So, if you ever go out for to have a pint of beer,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
And you see her coming towards you, then you'd better steer clear,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

As she likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
She likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

As she likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl, she's a get around girl,
She likes waking up with her hair messed up,
She's a downtown girl for sure.

Saturday, April 02, 2011

S4theD: Day 22

Cheers to Baby Reategui!

OLE!
by Bouncing Souls


Ole, ole, ole, ole,
Ole, ole!
Ole, ole, ole, ole,
Ole, ole!

Bouncing souls no one can beat us
We drink beer and wear Adidas
Anywhere we get the itch
We're off to find a proper pitch
Lace your Sambas get on out
Off we go to kick it about
Win or lose we're having fun
We won't quit until we're done
We got heart when we play
Take you on any day!

Ole, ole, ole, ole,
Ole, ole!
Ole, ole, ole, ole,
Ole, ole!

Bouncing souls no one can beat us
We drink beer and wear Adidas
Anywhere we get the itch
We're off to find a proper pitch
Lace your Sambas get on out
Off we go to kick it about
Win or lose we're having fun
We won't quit until we're done
We got heart when we play
Take you on any day!

Friday, April 01, 2011

S4theD: Day 21



The Long and Winding Road
by The Beetles


The long and winding road
That leads to your door
Will never disappear
I've seen that road before
It always leads me here
Lead me to your door.

The wild and windy night
That the rain washed away
Has left a pool of tears
Crying for the day.
Why leave me standing here?
Let me know the way.

Many times I've been alone
And many times I've cried,
Anyway you'll never know
The many ways I've tried.

And still they lead me back
To the long, winding road
You left me standing here
A long, long time ago
Don't leave me waiting here
Lead me to your door.

But still they lead me back
To the long winding road
You left me standing here
A long, long time ago
Don't keep me waiting here
Lead me to your door.

Thursday, March 31, 2011

S4theD: Day 20



Every since yesterday and Kristin Chenoweth I've had stage music in my head. Here's a song from one of my favorite musicals--Gilbert and Sullivan's Mikado.


If You Want to Know Who We Are
by Gilbert and Sullivan


Chorus of Nobles:
If you want to know who we are,
We are gentlemen of Japan:
On many a vase and jar —
On many a screen and fan,
We figure in lively paint:
Our attitude's queer and quaint —
You're wrong if you think it ain't

If you think we are worked by strings,
Like a Japanese marionette,
You don't understand these things:
It is simply Court etiquette.
Perhaps you suppose this throng
Can't keep it up all day long?
If that's your idea, you're wrong,
If that's your idea, you're wrong,
If you want to know who we are,
We are gentlemen of Japan,

On many a vase and jar —
On many a screen and fan,
On many, many, many, many,
Many, many, many, many, a jar,
On vase and jar —
On screen and fan,

Nanki-Poo:
Gentlemen, I pray you tell me
Where a gentle maiden dwelleth,
Named Yum-Yum, the ward of Ko-Ko?
In pity speak, oh speak I pray you!

A Noble:
Why, who are you who ask this question?

Nanki-Poo:
Come gather round me, and I'll tell you.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

S4theD: Day 19

Best known as being the first Glenda in the Broadway musical Wicked, Kristin Chenoweth has ever since intrigued me with her varied musical and theatrical tastes and her just as varied musical and theatrical talent...not to mention her humor!

Taylor, the Latte Boy
by Kristin Chenoweth


There's a boy who works at Starbucks
Who is very inspirational.
He is very inspirational because of many things.

I come in at 8:11, and he smiles and says, "How are you?"
When he smiles and says, "How are you?"
I could swear my heart grows wings!

So today at 8:11
I decided I should meet him
I decided I should meet him
In a proper formal way.

So today at 8:11 when he smiled and said "How are you?"
I said "Fine, and my name's Kristin"
And he softly answered, "Hey."
And I said "My name is Kristen, and thank you for the extra foam…"

And he said his name was Taylor,
Which provides the inspiration for this poem:

Taylor the latte boy,
Bring me java, bring me joy!
Oh Taylor the latte boy,
I love him, I love him, I love him…

So I'd like to get my nerve up
To recite my poem musical.
He would like the fact it's musical
Because he plays guitar.
So today at 8:11, Taylor told me he was playing
In a band down in the village in the basement of a bar.

And he smoothly flipped the lever to prepare my double latte,
But for me he made it triple! And he didn't think I knew
But I saw him flip the lever, and for me he made it triple,
And I knew that triple latte meant that Taylor loved me too!
I said, "What time are you playing? And thank you for the extra skim…"
He said, "Keep the $3.55," because this triple latte was on him.

Taylor the latte boy,
Bring me java, bring me joy!
Oh Taylor the latte boy,
I love him, I love him, I love him…

I used to be the kind of girl who'd run when love rushed toward her.
But finally a voice whispered "Love can be yours, if you step up to the counter, and order."

Taylor, the latte boy
Bring me java, bring me joy
Oh Taylor the latte boy
I love him, I love him, I love him.

So many years my heart has waited,
Who'd have thought that love could be so caffeinated?
Taylor, the latte boy,
I love him, I love him, I love him.
I love him, I love him, I love him.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

S4theD: Day 18



Not gunna lie, I needed a laugh today, and whenever I think about this album I chuckle. Then whenever I think about the fact that Greg Wilbur gave me this album, I laugh. Don't worry, he thinks it's funny too! So the album is entitled The Roar of Love (today's song is the title track) and was meant to be a tribute to C.S. Lewis' first book in the Narnia series, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Let's just say it's, well, it's very 80's. I'd love to know what Lewis would think about this album!


The Roar of Love
by The Second Chapter of Acts


If he was alive again and we could touch his mane
His golden mane
Hold his face in our hands then we would know he's tame
Call his name

And we'll climb on the lion's back
And we'll fly away
Yes we'll climb on the lion's back
And we'll fly away, fly away, fly away

Lightning flashed into my eyes and I can see him now
See him now
Thunder broke inside my heart and I can feel him now
Feel him now

The roar of love is ringing out, ringing out thru the woods
Thru the woods
Aslan's raised from death to life and we will rise with him
Rise with him

And we'll climb on the lion's back
And we'll fly away
Yes we'll climb on the lion's back
And we'll fly away, fly away, fly away
Fly away, fly

Monday, March 28, 2011

S4theD: Day 17

Hold On
by Good Charlotte


This world, this world is cold
But you don't, you don't have to go
You're feeling sad, you're feeling lonely
And no one seems to care
You're mother's gone and your father hits you
This pain you cannot bear
But we all bleed the same way as you do
And we all have the same things to go through

Hold on, if you feel like letting go
Hold on, it gets better than you know

Days, you say they're way too long
And your nights, you can't sleep at all
Hold on
And you're not sure what you're waiting for
But you don't want to know more
And you're not sure what you're looking for
But you don't want to know more
But we all bleed the same way as you do
And we all have the same things to go through

Hold on, if you feel like letting go
Hold on, it gets better than you know

Don't stop looking, you're one step closer
Don't stop searching, it's not over
Hold on

What are you looking for?
What are you waiting for?
Do you know, what you're doing to me?
Go ahead, what are you waiting for?

Hold on, if you feel like letting go
Hold on, it gets better than you know

Don't stop looking, you're one step closer
Don't stop searching, it's not over

Hold on, if you feel like letting go
Hold on, it gets better than you know
Hold on

Saturday, March 26, 2011

S4theD: Day 16

Years May Come, Years May Go
by Herman's Hermits


Let's take a look behind and see what we can find
Last year has gone for everyone, past with time.
What happened to us then can happen once again
And what's it now to me? History.

Years may come, (years may come)
Years may go, (quickly go)
Some go fast, (very fast)
Some go slow, (oh so slow)
Some are good, (very good)
Some are bad, (very sad)
For each one, (for what comes)
Just be glad, (let's be glad)

Whenever I review
My loving times with you
I wouldn't change a single page
We've lived through
It wasn't always smooth
Sometimes we jumped the groove
We shared some tears,
And then loved again.

Years may come, (years may come)
Years may go, (quickly go)
Some go fast, (very fast)
Some go slow, (oh so slow)
Some are good, (very good)
Some are bad, (very sad)
For each one, (for what comes)
Just be glad, (let's be glad)

Some heartaches I don't doubt
Life's sure to dish us out
We'll beat the lot and that is what
Life's all about.
What ever may come true
Ahead for me and you
Someday it all will be
Memory

Years may come, (years may come)
Years may go, (quickly go)
Some go fast, (very fast)
Some go slow, (oh so slow)
Some are good, (very good)
Some are bad, (very sad)
For each one, (for what comes)
Just be glad, (let´s be glad)

Years may come, (years may come)
Years may go, (quickly go)
Some go fast, (very fast)

Friday, March 25, 2011

S4theD: Day 15



The Devil Went Down to Georgia
by Charlie Daniels


The devil went down to Georgia, he was looking for a soul to steal.
He was in a bind 'cos he was way behind: he was willin' to make a deal.
When he came across this young man sawin' on a fiddle and playin' it hot.
And the devil jumped upon a hickory stump and said: "Boy let me tell you what:
"I bet you didn't know it, but I'm a fiddle player too.
"And if you'd care to take a dare, I'll make a bet with you.
"Now you play a pretty good fiddle, boy, but give the devil his due:
"I bet a fiddle of gold against your soul, 'cos I think I'm better than you."
The boy said: "My name's Johnny and it might be a sin,
"But I'll take your bet, your gonna regret, 'cos I'm the best that's ever been."

Johnny you rosin up your bow and play your fiddle hard.
'Cos hells broke loose in Georgia and the devil deals the cards.
And if you win you get this shiny fiddle made of gold.
But if you lose, the devil gets your soul.

The devil opened up his case and he said: "I'll start this show."
And fire flew from his fingertips as he rosined up his bow.
And he pulled the bow across his strings and it made an evil hiss.
Then a band of demons joined in and it sounded something like this.
When the devil finished, Johnny said: "Well you're pretty good ol' son.
"But sit down in that chair, right there, and let me show you how its done."

Fire on the mountain, run boys, run.
The devil's in the house of the risin' sun.
Chicken in the bread pan, pickin' out dough.
"Granny, does your dog bite?"
"No, child, no."

The devil bowed his head because he knew that he'd been beat.
He laid that golden fiddle on the ground at Johnny's feet.
Johnny said: "Devil just come on back if you ever want to try again.
"I told you once, you son of a "gun", I'm the best that's ever been."

And he played fire on the mountain, run boys, run.
The devil's in the house of the risin' sun.
Chicken in the bread pan, now they're pickin' out dough.
"Granny, will your dog bite?"
"No, child, no."

Thursday, March 24, 2011

S4theD: Day 14

Get Ready
by Rare Earth


Never met a girl could make me feel the way that you do
You're alright
Whenever I'm asked what makes a my dreams real
I tell 'em you do
You're outta' sight

Well twiddley dee, twiddley dum
Look out baby 'cause here I come

I'm bringing you a love that's true
Get ready, get ready
Start makin' love to you
Get ready, get ready
Get ready, 'cause here I come
Get ready, 'cause here I come

You wanna' play hide and seek with love, let me remind you
You're alright
Lovin' you're gonna' miss, and the time it takes to find you
You're outta' sight
Well fee fi, fo fo fum
Look out baby, 'cause here I come

I'm bringing you a love that's true
Get ready, get ready
Start makin' love to you
Get ready, get ready
Get ready, 'cause here I come
Get ready, 'cause here I come

Baby all my friends shouldn't want me to, I think I'll understand
You're alright
Hope I get to you before they do, 'cause that's how I planned it
You're outta' sight

Well twiddley dee, twiddley dum
Look out baby 'cause here I come

I'm bringing you a love that's true
Get ready, get ready
Start makin' love to you
Get ready, get ready
Get ready, 'cause here I come

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

S4theD: Day 13



Constant
by Francesca Battistelli


I’m just a little bit afraid of where I’m going
And it feels like a hurricane is blowing over
Though I can’t find the ground below
I’ve lived enough to know
I’ve lived enough to know

You’re my constant in every moment
Constant
You’ve never failed me
All my life
You have never left my side
You are my constant

Okay I really don’t like change but I can’t stop it
I’m moving forward anyway with the promise
You are the anchor for my soul
That’s all I need to know
That’s all I need to know

You’re my constant in every moment
Constant
You’ve never failed me
All my life
You have never left my side
You are my constant

Before I was a thought on earth
You knew me then and You gave me worth
When all of this is said and done
You will be the One I’m standing on

You’re my constant in every moment
Constant
You’ve never failed me
All my life
You have never left my side
You are my constant

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

S4theD: Day 12

Portobello Road
from the soundtrack to Bedknobs and Broomsticks


Portobello Road, Portobello Road
Street where the riches of ages are stowed.
Anything and everything a chap can unload
Is sold off the barrow in Portebello road.
You’ll find what you want in the Portebello road.

Rare alabaster? Genuine plaster!
A filigreed samovar owned by the czars.
A pen used by Shelley? A new Boticelli?
The sniper that clipped old King Edward’s cigars?

Waterford Crystals? Napoleon’s pistols?
Society heirlooms with genuine gems!
Rembrandts! El Greco’s! Toulouse-Letrec’os!
Painted last week on the banks of the Thames!

Portobello road, Portobello road!
Street where the riches of ages are stowed
Anything and everything a chap can unload
Is sold off the barrow in Portobello road.
You’ll meet all your chums in the Portobello road

There’s pure inspiration in every creation.
No cheap imitations, not here in me store.
With garments as such as was worn by a Duchess.
Just once at some royal occasion of yore.

In Portobollo Road, Portobello Road
The fancies and fineries of ages are showed.
A lady will always feel dressed a la mode
In frillies she finds in the Portobollo road.

“Burke’s Peerage;” “The Bride Book;” “The Fishmonger’s Guidebook;”
A Victorian novel, “The Unwanted Son;”
“The History of Potting”, “The Yearbook of Yachting,”
The leather bound “Life of Attila the Hun.”

Portobello Road, Portobello Road
Street where the riches of ages are stowed
Artifacts to glorify our regal abode
Are hidden in the flotsam in Portobello Road
You’ll find what you want in the Portobello Road

Tokens and treasures, yesterday’s pleasures
Cheap imitations of heirlooms of old
Dented and tarnished, scarred and unvarnished
In old Portobello they’re bought and they’re sold

Portebollo Road, Portobello Road
Street where the riches of ages are stowed
Artifacts to glorify our regal abode
Are hidden in the flotsam in Portobello road.
You’ll find what you want in the Portobello Road

Monday, March 21, 2011

S4theD: Day 11

Down By the Riverside
by The Blind Boys of Alabama


I'm gonna lay down my burden down by the riverside

Down by the riverside, down by the riverside

I'm gonna lay down my burden down by the riverside

I'm gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

Well, I'm gonna put on my long white robe

Down by the riverside

Down by the riverside, down by the riverside
I'm gonna put on my long white robe

Down by the riverside

I'm gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more
I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

Well, I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield

Down by the riverside

Down by the riverside, down by the riverside
I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield

Down by the riverside

I'm gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

I ain't a-gonna study war no more

Saturday, March 19, 2011

S4theD: Day 10

It's spring break. So while this song is in eager anticipation of my trip to my cabin in the woods (which makes me smile) it is also a cheerful note to begin a short break. I will not be able to send out a S4theD again until Thursday--due to a lack of internet availability--I will nevertheless take note of the songs that pop up in my mind each day and post them later.


Smile
by Uncle Kracker


You're better then the best
I'm lucky just to linger in your light
Cooler then the flip side of my pillow that's right
Completely unaware
Nothing can compare to where you send me
Lets me know that it's ok
Yeah it's ok
And the moments when my good times start to fade

You make me smile like the sun
Fall outta bed
Sing like a bird
Dizzy in my head
Spin like a record
Crazy on a Sunday night

You make me dance like a fool
Forget how to breathe
Shine like gold
Buzz like a bee
Just the thought of you can drive me wild
Oh, you make me smile

Even when you're gone
Somehow you come along
Just like a flower poking through the sidewalk crack and just like that
You steal away the rain and just like that

You make me smile like the sun
Fall outta bed
Sing like a bird
Dizzy in my head
Spin like a record
Crazy on a Sunday night

You make me dance like a fool
Forget how to breathe
Shine like gold
buzz like a bee
Just the thought of you can drive me wild
Oh, you make me smile

Don't know how I lived without you
'Cuz every time that I get around you
I see the best of me inside your eyes
You make me smile
You make me dance like a fool
Forget how to breathe
Shine like gold
Buzz like a bee
Just the thought of you can drive me wild

You make me smile like the sun
Fall outta bed
Sing like bird
Dizzy in my head
Spin like a record
Crazy on a Sunday night

You make me dance like a fool
Forget how to breathe
Shine like gold
Buzz like a bee
Just the thought of you can drive me wild
Oh, you make me smile
Oh, you make me smile
Oh, you make me smile

Friday, March 18, 2011

S4theD: Day 9


When I Get Where I'm Going
by Brad Paisley
featuring Dolly Parton


When I get where I'm going
On the far side of the sky.
The first thing that I'm gonna do
Is spread my wings and fly.

I'm gonna land beside a lion,
And run my fingers through his mane.
Or I might find out what it's like
To ride a drop of rain

Yeah when I get where I'm going,
There'll be only happy tears.
I will shed the sins and struggles,
I have carried all these years.
And I'll leave my heart wide open,
I will love and have no fear.
Yeah when I get where I'm going,
Don't cry for me down here.

I'm gonna walk with my grandaddy,
And he'll match me step for step,
And I'll tell him how I missed him,
Every minute since he left.
Then I'll hug his neck.

Yeah when I get where I'm going,
There'll be only happy tears.
I will shed the sins and struggles,
I have carried all these years.
And I'll leave my heart wide open,
I will love and have no fear.
Yeah when I get where I'm going,
Don't cry for me down here.

So much pain and so much darkness,
In this world we stumble through.
All these questions, I can't answer,
So much work to do.

But when I get where I'm going,
And I see my Maker's face.
I'll stand forever in the light,
Of His amazing grace.
Yeah when I get where I'm going,
Oh, when I get where I'm going,
There'll be only happy tears.
Hallelujah!
I will love and have no fear.
When I get where I'm going.
Yeah when I get where I'm going.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

S4theD: Day 8





Song of the Backwoods
by The Wolfe Tones



Click Here for Song

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

S4theD: Day 7 (I'm a teacher...I'm calling it "research")

Never Say Never
by Justin Bieber
featuring Jaden Smith


See I never thought that I could walk through fire.
I never thought that I could take the burn.
I never had the strength to take it higher,
Until I reached the point of no return.

And there's just no turning back,
When your hearts under attack,
Gonna give everything I have,
It's my destiny.

I will never say never! (I will fight)
I will fight till forever! (make it right)
Whenever you knock me down,
I will not stay on the ground.
Pick it up,
Pick it up,
Pick it up,
Pick it up up up,
And never say never.

I never thought I could feel this power.
I never thought that I could feel this free.
I'm strong enough to climb the highest tower.
And I'm fast enough to run across the sea.

And there's just no turning back,
When your hearts under attack,
Gonna give everything I have,
Cause this is my destiny.

I will never say never! (I will fight)
I will fight till forever! (make it right)
Whenever you knock me down,
I will not stay on the ground.
Pick it up,
Pick it up,
Pick it up,
Pick it up, up, up,
And never say never.

Here we go!
Guess who?
JSmith and Jb!
I gotcha lil bro.

I can handle him.
Hold up, aight?
I can handle him.

Now he's bigger than me,
Taller than me.
And he's older than me,
And stronger than me.
And his arms a little bit longer than me.
But he ain't on a JB song with me!

I be trying a chill
They be trying to side with the thrill.
No pun intended, was raised by the power of Will.

Like Luke with the force, when push comes to shove.
Like Cobe with the 4th, ice water with blood.

I gotta be the best, and yes
We're the flyest.
Like David and Goliath,
I conquered the giant.
So now I got the world in my hand,
I was born from two stars
So the moon's where I land.

I will never say never! (I will fight)
I will fight till forever! (make it right)
Whenever you knock me down,
I will not stay on the ground.
Pick it up,
Pick it up,
Pick it up,
Pick it up, up, up,
And never say never.

I will never say never! (I will fight)
I will fight till forever! (make it right)
Whenever you knock me down,
I will not stay on the ground.
Pick it up,
Pick it up,
Pick it up,
Pick it up, up, up,
And never say never.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

S4theD: Day 6














Jackson
sung by HEM


We got married in a fever, hotter than a pepper sprout,
We've been talkin' 'bout Jackson, ever since the fire went out.
Jackson, gonna mess around,
We're goin' to Jackson,
Look out Jackson town.

Come on down to Jackson; go on and wreck your hell.
Play your hand you big-talkin' man, make a big fool of yourself,
In Jackson, see if I care
We're goin' to Jackson; go on comb your hair!

When they find me down in Jackson I'll be dancin' on a Pony Keg.
Follow me 'round like a scalded hound,
Tail between your legs,
In Jackson, baby that's a fact,
We're goin' to Jackson ain't never comin' back,
Ain't never comin' back, ain't never comin' back.

We got married in a fever.
We got married in a fever.

Monday, March 14, 2011

S4theD: Day 5 (No Lyrics)



Enter Sandman
a variation of a Metallica song
by Apocalyptica


Click Here to Play Song





Saturday, March 12, 2011

S4theD: Day 4

Twang
by George Strait


When I get off of work on Friday
After working like a dog all week
I go to meet the boys for a cold one
At a little joint up the street
They got a jukebox in the corner
Full of old country tunes
Feed it five dollars worth of quarters
Is the first thing I always do

'Cause I need a little twang
A little hillbilly bending on some guitar strings
Some peddle steel whining like a whistle of an old freight train
To get that foot stomping honkey tonkin' feeling going through my veins
I need a little twang, twang, twang

Well, I like a lot of kinds of music
I try to keep an open mind
Depending on the mood to strike me
If I'm gonna stay till closing time
So when I wanna lift my spirits to get me feeling worth a dang
I know I'm gonna have to heart it
'Cause I gotta have some Hank to hang

'Cause I need a little twang
A little hillbilly bending on some guitar strings
Some peddle steel whining like a whistle of an old freight train
To get that foot stomping honkey tonkin' feeling going through my veins
I need a little twang, twang, twang

I need a little twang, twang, twang

Friday, March 11, 2011

S4theD: Day 3












Great Gettin' Up Mornin'
by Mahalia Jackson


Fare ye well, fare ye well
Fare ye well, fare ye well
fare ye well
Well in that great gettin up morning
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
In that great gettin up morning
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
In that great gettin up mornin
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Well, in that great gettin up morning
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Let me tell ya bout the comin of judgement

(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Let me tell ya bout the comin of judgement
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Let me tell ya bout the comin of judgement
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Let me tell ya bout the comin of judgement
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
God going up and speak to Gabriel
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
God goin up and speak to Gabriel
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Pick up your silver trumpet
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Pick up your silver trumpet
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Blow your trumpet Gabriel
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Blow your trumpet Gabriel
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Lord, how loud shall I blow it
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Lord, how loud shall I blow it
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Oh, to wake the chirrun sleepin
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Oh, to wake the chirrun sleepin
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
fare ye well,fare ye well
fare ye well,fare ye well
fare ye well
(repeat)
They be comin from every nation
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
They be comin from every nation
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
On their way to the great carnation
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
On their way to the great carnation
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Dressed in a robe so white as snow
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Dressed in a robe so white as snow
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Singin, oh, I been redeemed
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
Singin, oh, I been redeemed
(fare ye well,fare ye well)
In that great gettin up morning
(fare ye well,fare ye well)

Thursday, March 10, 2011

S4theD: Day 2

Babylon
by David Gray


Friday night I'm going nowhere
All the lights are changing green to red
Turning over TV stations
Situations running through my head
Well looking back through time
You know it's clear that I've been blind
I've been a fool
To open up my heart
To all that jealousy, that bitterness, that ridicule

Saturday I'm running wild
And all the lights are changing red to green
Moving through the crowds I'm pushing
Chemicals all rushing through my bloodstream
Only wish that you were here
You know I'm seeing it so clear
I've been afraid
To tell you how I really feel
Admit to some of those bad mistakes I've made

If you want it
Come and get it
Crying out loud
The love that I was
Giving you was
Never in doubt
Let go your heart
Let go your head
And feel it now
Let go your heart
Let go your head
And feel it now
Babylon, Babylon, Babylon

Sunday all the lights of London
Shining, sky is fading red to blue
I'm kicking through the Autumn leaves
And wondering where it is you might be going to
Turning back for home
You know I'm feeling so alone
I can't believe
Climbing on the stair
I turn around to see you smiling there
In front of me

If you want it
Come and get it
Crying out loud
The love that I was
Giving you was
Never in doubt
Let go your heart
Let go your head
And feel it now
Let go your heart
Let go your head
And feel it now
Let go your heart
Let go your head
And feel it now
Let go your heart
Let go your head
And feel it now

Babylon, Babylon, Babylon, Babylon, Babylon

Wednesday, March 09, 2011

40 Days of Lent, 40 Days of Song

In the spirit of adding on for the season of Lent, not just taking away or fasting, I have decided that one of the things I am going to add is a quiet moment of musical reflection for each of the next 40 days. Several years ago--in the slower days of life--I sent out to a small group of family and friends what I came to call the S4theD, the Song for the Day. My intention then was to pause in the middle of my day and play whatever prominent, inspiring, or fantastical song came to mind that day with the lyrics in front of me, and to share that fun by sending song and lyrics out to my small group. The exercise became, for me at least, a revelation of just how little I listen to the message of songs and how caught up I became in the catchy tunes.

While all those things will likely hold true for the current exercise of S4theD during this Lententide, the main goal I have is to simply pause on a daily basis. Pause and recall a tune that God used to carry my heart and mind through a difficult time. Pause and reflect on lyrics that remind me of a dear friend. Pause and relish the fact that there is both a hope and a future. My goal is simply to pause and see what becomes of the act.

Float On
by Modest Mouse


I backed my car into a cop car, the other day.
Well he just drove off, sometimes life's ok.
I ran my mouth off a bit too much, oh what did I say.
Well you just laughed it off, it was all ok.

And we'll all float on, ok.
And we'll all float on, ok.
And we'll all float on, ok.
And we'll all float on any way, well.

A fake Jamaican took every last dime with a scam.
It was worth it just to learn some sleight-of-hand.
Bad news comes don't you worry even when it lands.
Good news will work its way to all them plans.
We both got fired on exactly the same day.
Well we'll float on good news is on the way.

And we'll all float on, ok.
And we'll all float on, ok.
And we'll all float on, ok.
And we'll all float on, alright.
Already we'll all float on.
No, don't you worry, we'll all float on.
Alright, already, we'll all float on.
Alright, don't worry, we'll all float on.

Alright already we'll all float on.
Alright already we'll all float on.
Alright don't worry even if things end up a bit too heavy.
We'll all float on...alright. Already we'll all float on.
Alright already we'll all float on, ok.
Don't worry we'll all float on.
Even if things get heavy, we'll all float on.

Alright already we'll all float on.
(Alright)
Don't you worry we'll all float on.
(Alright)
All float on....

Monday, February 28, 2011

Thomas Smythe Day

On this day in 1901, G.K. Chesterton wrote one of his most profound works. In just over 1,500 words Chesterton is able to capture at once man's restlessness with this fallen world and his longing for home. In just over 1,500 words he weaves together a narrative that is at once allegory and plain-'ol-just-how-it-is realism. In just over 1,500 words Chesterton chides the rebellious nature of our human hearts while simultaneously calling us towards the beautiful goodness and truth our hearts rebel against. In just over 1,500 words Chesterton spins us a yarn of simplistic depth, and I for one am eternally grateful.


Homesick At Home: The Story of Thomas Smythe
by G.K. Chesterton


One, seeming to be a traveler, came to me and said, “What is the shortest journey from one place to the same place?”

The sun was behind his head, so that his face was illegible.

“Surely,” I said, “to stand still.”

“That is no journey at all,” he replied. “The shortest journey from one place to the same place is round the world.” And he was gone.

Thomas Smythe had been born, brought up, married, and made the father of a family in the Smythe Farmhouse by the river. The river enclosed it on three sides like a castle: on the fourth side there were stables and beyond that a kitchen-garden and beyond that an orchard and beyond that a low wall and beyond that a road and beyond that pinewood and beyond that a cornfield and beyond that slopes meeting the sky, and beyond that—but we must not catalogue the whole earth, though it is a great temptation. Thomas Smythe had known no other home but this. Its walls were the world to him and its roof the sky.

This is what makes his action so strange.

In his later years he hardly ever went outside the door. And as he grew lazy he grew restless: angry with himself and everyone. He found himself in some strange way weary of every moment and hungry for the next.

His heart had grown stale and bitter towards the wife and children whom he saw every day, though they were five of the good faces of the earth. He remembered, in glimpses, the days of his toil and strife for bread, when, as he came home in the evening, the thatch of his home burned with gold as though angels were standing there. But he remembered it as one remembers a dream.

Now he seemed to be able to see other homes, but not his own. That was merely a house. Prose had got hold of him: the sealing of the eyes and the closing of the ears.

At last something occurred in his heart: a volcano; an earthquake; and eclipse; a daybreak; a deluge; an apocalypse. We might pile up colossal words, but we should never reach it.

Eight hundred times the white daylight has broken across the bare kitchen as the little family sat at breakfast. And the eight hundred and first time the father paused with the cup he was passing in his hand.

“That green cornfield through the window,” he said dreamily, “shining in the sun. Somehow, somehow it reminds me of a field outside my own home.”

“Your own home?” cried his wife. “This is your home.”

Thomas Smythe rose to his feet, seeming to fill the room. He stretched forth his hand and took a staff. He stretched if forth again and took a hat. The dust came in clouds from both of them.

“Father,” cried one child. “Where are you going?”

“Home,” he replied.

“What can you mean? This is your home. What home are you going to?”

“To the Smythe Farmhouse by the river.”

“This is it.”

He was looking at them very tranquilly when his eldest daughter caught sight of his face.

“Oh, he is mad!” she screamed, and buried her face in her hands.

He spoke calmly, “You are a little like my eldest daughter,” he said. “But you haven’t got the look, no, not the look which is a welcome after work.”

“Madam,” he said, turning to his thunderstruck wife with a stately courtesy, “I thank you for your hospitality, but indeed I fear I have trespassed on it too long. And my home—“

“Father, father, answer me! Is not this your home?”

The old man waved his stick.

“The rafters are cobwebbed, the walls are rain-stained. The doors bind, the rafters crush me. There are littlenesses and bickerings and heartburning here behind the dusty lattices where I have dozed too long. But the fire roars and the door stands open. There is bread and raiment, fire and water and all the crafts and mysteries of love. There is rest for heavy feet on the matted floor, and for starved heart in the pure faces, far away at the end of the world, in the house where I was born.”

“Where, where?”

“In the Smythe Farmhouse by the river.”

And he passed out of the front door, the sun shining on his face.

And the other inhabitants of the Smythe Farmhouse stood staring at each other.

Thomas Smythe was standing on the timber bridge across the river, with the world at his feet. And a great wind came flying from the opposite edge of the sky (a land of marvelous pale golds) and met him. Some may know what that first wind outside the door is to a man. To this man it seemed that God had bent back his head by the hair and kissed him on the forehead.

He had been weary with resting, without knowing that the whole remedy lay in sun and wind and his own body. Now he half believed that he wore the seven-leagued boots.

He was going home. The Smythe Farmhouse was behind every wood and beyond every mountain wall. He looked for it as we all look for fairyland, at ever turn of the road. Only in one direction he never looked for it, and that was where, only a thousand yards behind him, the Smythe Farmhouse stood up, gleaming with thatch and whitewash against the gusty blue of morning.

He looked at the dandelions and crickets and realized that he was gigantic. We are too fond of reckoning always by mountains. Every object is infinitely vast as well as infinitely small.

He stretched himself like one crucified in an uncontainable greatness.

He felt like Adam newly created. He had suddenly inherited all things, even the sun and stars.

Have you ever been out for a walk?

The story of the journey of Thomas Smythe would be an epic. He was swallowed up in huge cities and forgotten: yet he came out on the other side. He worked in quarries, and in docks in country after country. Like a transmigrating soul, he lived a series of existences: a knot of vagabonds, a colony of workmen, a crew of sailors, a group of fishermen, each counted him a final fact in their lives, the great spare man with eyes like two stars, the stars of an ancient purpose.

But he never diverged from the line that girdles the globe.

On a mellow summer evening, however, he came upon the strangest thing in all his travels. He was plodding up a great dim down, that hid everything, like the dome of the earth itself.

Suddenly a strange feeling came over him. He glanced back at the waste of turf to see if there were any trace of boundary, for he felt like one who has just crossed the border of elfland. With his head a belfry of new passions, assailed with confounding memories, he toiled on the brow of the slope.

The setting sun was raying out a universal glory. Between him and it, lying low on the fields, there was what seemed to his swimming eyes a white cloud. No, it was a marble palace. No, it was the Smythe Farmhouse by the river.

He has come to the end of the world. Every spot on earth is either the beginning or the end, according to the heart of man. That is the advantage of living on an oblate spheroid.

It was evening. The whole swell of turf on which he stood was turned to gold. He seemed standing in fire instead of grass. He stood so still that the birds settled on his staff.

All the earth and the glory of it seemed to rejoice round the madman’s homecoming. The birds on their way to their nests knew him, Nature herself was in his secret, the man who had gone from one place to the same place.
But he leaned wearily on his staff. The he raised his voice to heaven.

“O God, who hast made me and all things, hear four songs of praise. One for my feet, because they are sore and slow, now that they draw near the door. One for my head, because it is bowed and hoary, now that Thou crownest it with the sun. One for my heart, because Thou hast taught it in sorrow and hope deferred that it is the road that makes the home. And one for that daisy at my feet.”

He came down over the hillside and into the pinewood. Through the trees he could see the red and gold sunset settling down among the white farm-buildings and the green apple-branches. It was his home now. But it could not be his home till he had gone out from it and returned to it. Now he was the Prodigal Son.

He came out of the pinewood and across the road. He surmounted the low wall and tramped through the orchard, through the kitchen garden, past the cattle-sheds. And in the stony courtyard he saw his wife drawing water.