I sing in the car. It passes the time when I’m between home and wherever. Sometimes I know all the words; other times, well, let’s just say I try. I particularly enjoy the tunes from the 70s and 80s. Like most, when I hear songs from my youth, I’m transported back in time. I recall where I was, what I was doing, and with whom I was with, usually.
Recently, I was on my way home from a visit with my mother, listening to the 70s channel on Sirius XM Radio, when Jim Croce’s classic Time In A Bottle came across the airway. I’ve heard this song many times, but I never really listened to its message. Of course, I joined in. Then, I stopped. It was as if I was hearing the lyrics for the first time.
If I could save time in a bottle
The first thing that I’d like to do
Is to save every day
‘Til eternity passes away
Just to spend them with you
If I could make days last forever
If words could make wishes come true
I’d save every day like a treasure and then
Again, I would spend them with you
But there never seems to be enough time
To do the things you want to do, once you find them
I’ve looked around enough to know
That you’re the one I want to go through time with
If I had a box just for wishes
And dreams that had never come true
The box would be empty, except for the memory of how
They were answered by you
But there never seems to be enough time
To do the things you want to do, once you find them
I’ve looked around enough to know
That you’re the one I want to go through time with
All of us, at some point in time, grieve. I think about the people who allowed me to be the benefactor of their love and their friendship. And, even though some are no longer here, I continue to reap the benefit. I’ve had incredible mentors in my life, folks who encouraged me when I needed an extra push to move forward. There’s nothing like hearing, “You can do this, I’m pulling for you,” or, my personal favorite, “You’re a West Virginia girl, you can do it.” (There’s a story behind that one, maybe I’ll share it one day.) How different would life be if time awarded us with a more extended stay?
Songwriters compose history. Though raw at times, the lyrics pierce our hearts and leave us longing for the drumbeats of yesterday. Many artists’ work strikes a personal cord. After I left my childhood home, I felt alone, and I found myself running against the wind. There were days where I felt as if I was being trampled by wild horses. I suffered under the guise of the pretender. My soul ached for a time that no longer existed. When life as I knew it ceased, I lived for a season within the confines of the sounds of silence.
A wise and beloved man (my dad) said that if time did not move us forward, we’d all grieve ourselves to death. I find no truer statement, as I’ve journeyed through the growing pains of my young adulthood. The road that brought me to where I am today offered many forks. Some days I traveled my life’s road with caution and blind faith. I prayed, at the very least, for a safe outcome. Other times, I plowed a path as crooked as the West Virginia roads that I learned to drive on.
Life, like time, moves forward. As I continue on my journey, I know that time cannot be stopped, only savored.
I thank you for taking time to read my blog; it is my prayer that you are blessed after reading my ramblings.
Dear God, I Am... 