• From Rolling Home by Eric Andersen
Truth, with all its far out schemes,
Lets time decide what it should mean;
It's not the time but just the dreams that die.
And sometimes when the room is still,
Time with so much truth to kill,
Leaves you by the window sill so tied
Without a wing, to take you high,
Without a clue to tell you why.
Chorus: But I don't know, I ain't been told,
Everybody wants a hand to hold.
They're so afraid of being old,
So scared of dying, so unknown
And so alone, rollin' home.
• Rolling Home lyrics
Time leaves us without any way to know why we're so alone and lonely, so afraid and scared (I didn't write to last week's scared prompt) of… everything, probably. But aging and dying are reasonable stand-ins for everything else we fear.
As songwriter musician Eric Andersen reminds us, time doesn't die, our times don't end. Well, our time on earth eventually does end, but while we're still here our options are open and generous. Endless? No, not for anyone. But somehow we sometimes lose those dreams. (Do you know how and why? Think about it!) Without a dream, we can't go far. Without a dream, we can't claim hope. Without our dreams, our days become routine, often bordering on unbearable.
Dreams energize us. Hitch your life to a star! Your own, your family's, your partner's, even the star-struck dreams and aspirations of the company you work for. Andersen says we're all alone, yet we're rolling home. Isn't homecoming our ultimate desire? A place of belonging, of safety, of overall well-being. A place that celebrates our dreams. A place with everything we need, a place without judgment, fear, loneliness, sorrow; a place and space without… fill in your fears.
Langston Hughes poetry reminds us (no, commands us):
Hold fast to dreams
for if dreams die
life is a broken winged bird
that cannot fly.
I stand tall on the barren Earth
ReplyDeleteagainst the fear and pain.
Every day sees hope's rebirth,
and here I will remain,
though the bitter wind may blow
and though my body fails.
I have endured enough to know
that dreams are what prevails,
and so, these dreams, they will not die
like bird with broken wing.
They may be bandaged but they'll fly,
and in their flight will bring
more confidence each passing day
to take me through the laden fray.
I enjoyed reading this. Dreams are great. But, I do love my routine. "A place without judgment, fear, loneliness, sorrow; a place and space without… fill in your fears"-sounds like heaven to me. God bless, G
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