IN TIMES LIKE THESE
There have never been times like these in my lifetime. There is a song I wrote while waiting to hear the news of a friend’s condition. It was sort of a writing meditation that took the form of this song. It applies to today – to these days. Here are the lyrics and a home recording of it.
IN TIMES LIKE THESE
In times like these we see what truly matters
In times like these we learn what we believe
In times like these what holds fast and what shatters
In times like these
In times like these we find who we can lean on
In times like these discovering what we need
In times like these what goes away what goes on
In times like these
Bridge
In times like these I take time to remember
People I have met all the things that we’ve gone through
How lucky I have been and how grateful that I am
To love and to be loved by the likes of you
In times like these I find I’m extra thankful
In times like these for blessings I’ve received
In times like these I am steadfast and hopeful
In times like these
One of the things that I am reminded of each day of self-quarantining and social-distancing is how much we have in common – that we are all in this together – that grace is more important than grievance – no matter how much more common grievance is than grace.
YOU ARE NOT ALONE
During times like these I am hoping that you remain healthy and okay. If a song could help, please reach out…
Please let me know what kind of song you’d like to hear, if I’ve got such a song, I will send it to you by e-mail. It also might be possible to connect via FaceTime or Skype.
Let’s stay in touch.
GRATITUDE
For the last couple of weeks as far as social contact it’s been my wife and me. We are staying connected with those we care about through e-mail and FaceTime and phone calls. This time has been a reminder of how lucky I am to be sharing this time - this life - with Pat. When we were first starting out we had sort of an inside, well, not a joke exactly, but we would say that being together was as good as being alone. For a couple of introverts we meant that as a compliment. Pat is a dear friend – a wise counsel – a caring partner – and my great love.
Here is a song and some recent photos of her including some taken when we did the video of “Remembering the Dream.”
IN THIS TOGETHER
After the March Muse Letter, one of the subscribers – Ron Luginbill – reached out to me. Ron was more forgiving of the President’s rants at the last National Prayer Breakfast than I was. Among the things I learned in our virtual “conversation” is that we can disagree without being disagreeable – that I do not consider being mean or mean-spirited normal and neither does Ron– and that a shared love of folk music can be a powerful uniting force. Thank you, Ron.
Here is a photo of him with The Brothers Four he shared with me (click to see full photo). The photo was taken 25 years ago. That’s him in the middle and him holding the photo. I’m just to his left before my hair turned. I don’t know why the group was in sports jackets. We look pretty good. And young.
“DREAMING” AND SONGWRITING
Pat and I are doing our best to see these times as an opportunity. With few distractions it has been a good time to be a songwriter. I am currently working on songs about Mike McCoy and me – about our 55-year friendship and musical partnership. I will be sharing the process with you in future Muse Letters and Posts and hopefully new recordings that are planned for the Summer.
“Remembering the Dream” continues to be processed and should be ready to share soon.
Stay well.
Remember in our isolation, we are all in this together.
