Saturday, July 11, 2020

Rhyme and Reason

As is most often the case, the inspiration for today’s post came from a song. I listen to my collection of (thousands) of ‘favorites’ on my old, old iPhone which is basically functioning as an iPod-you remember those, right?-that I listen to while driving.  I don’t need Sirius or XM radio.  There is no waiting or skipping through unwanted tunes until something wonderful plays.  The hardest part is not saying to myself. “Oh yeah, this is my favorite song!” every time a new one begins. So, here it is.  It brings back so many wonderful memories of high school, times with my two best friends and our hopes for creating a better world. We were so idealistic and the thoughts and music of John Denver encouraged that in a beautiful way.  We had many musical ‘heroes’ and he was one of them.  We even did a pictorial slide show essay using one of his songs for our English Humanities class in 11th grade.  I miss him....

Singer, poet, naturalist, husband, father, son of Life....


For you speak to me of sadness and the coming of the Winter


Fear that is within you now that seems to never end
And the dreams that have escaped you and the hope that you’ve forgotten


You tell me that you need me now and want to be my friend



And you wonder where we’re going,
Where’s the Rhyme and where’s the reason..


And it’s you cannot accept that it is here we must begin


To seek the wisdom of the children

And the gentle way of flowers in the wind..



For the children and the flowers are my sisters and my brothers




Their laughter and their loveliness could clear a cloudy day




Like the music of the mountains and the colors of the rainbow




They’re a promise of the future 


And a blessing for today....





So, as Crosby, Stills, and Nash advised..
Teach your children well...


And the song that I am singing 
Is a prayer to non believers
Come and stand beside us
We can find a better way....

Today’s post brought to you by Linda Hill’s SoCS prompt and it was song. The prompt says to look at the first picture nearest you should be the basis for your post. My children and grandchildren surround me in i ages.  I think I have it covered.   Happy Free 48 everyone!


12 comments:

  1. Beautiful, Cheryl. I loved John Denver's music and it was a sad day when we lost it.

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  2. They're still making iPods, which are a lot like old, old iPhones without the phone capabilities, but you can run apps on them.

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    1. Thanks John. That’s good to know. I’m rather attache to this relic. :)

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  3. This is beautiful, Cheryl. I was so sad the day we lost John Denver. His music spoke to us in a way that was universal. There was no denying his message, and we need that right now. CSN (and sometimes Y) were another talented group with messages most refused to hear.

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    1. So true. Dylan, Guthrie, Mamas and the Papas, even Janis were truth tellers with a string message about living. Have you ever listened to music by This Frontier Needs Heroes? They are really good as well. Thanks for leaving me encouraging words.

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  4. Both those songs could be an anthem for today.

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    1. The message is timeless and universal Pam. Thanks!

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  5. I believe the first song I ever heard of his was Country Roads when I was in my American accent training back in 2003. However, my all time favorite country song is 'Neon Moon' by Brooks & Dunn. I also love 'One Boy, One Girl' by Collin Raye and 'Sugar' by Maren Morris.

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    1. Hi Sharukh! Thanks for dropping by! I am not much of a new age country fan. I am still lost in the old stuff when I listen. We always considered John’s style more of folk or soft rock music, like John Prine, Kris Kristofferson, and Dan Fogelberg. We just saw Willie Nelson in concert back in February. He’s 87! He did a great job too.

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    2. I'll listen to these artists you mentioned.

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    3. I hope you do. Their songs have depth and meaning. John Prine recently passed away due to Covid complications at an advanced age. He was great. Listen to his Hello in There and I Remember Everything, which was his last recording. So nice talking with you, my friend.

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