Each song is my favorite version. Click on it and you can hear the song as I think it should be sung.
Amazing grace how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I’m found
Was blind but now I see
Everyone knows this song. It is one of the most popular hymns that was ever written. However, I did not know the story behind it until a few years ago. John Newton, the captain of a slave trading vessel repents for his crimes against humanity. The song is evidence that humans can be redeemed from even the worst of crimes if they find the grace to seek forgiveness and redemption.
To fight for the right
Without question or pause
To be willing to march, march into Hell
For that Heavenly cause
A song that became popular because of the musical “Man of La Mancha.” The musical was based on the story by Cervantes “Don Quixote.” Outside of the Bible this might just be the most popular novel ever written. It is the story of an old man who believed in justice and righteousness and set about a task to rid the world of evil. A man who despite his age was going to do all that he could in his remaining years to set the world right.
Folks with plenty of nothing
They’ve got a lock on the door
Afraid somebody’s going to rob ’em
While they is out making more
What for?
This song is from the Gershwin Musical “Porgy and Bess.” It speaks to the virtue of having nothing and being satisfied with that. Being satisfied with love, song, and heaven. Not striving for the things in life that will never bring happiness but only worry and misery. I think it speaks to all of us who conditioned by Madison avenue want more and more until we die buried under all the stuff that we have spent our precious time accruing.
Because it is a celebration of courage!
It is the celebration of people with heart!
Let’s go, on guard! Let’s go! Let’s go! Ah!
Toreador, on guard! Toreador, Toreador!
And dream away, yes, dream in combat
From the famous opera Carmen by Bizet. The story of a soldier who sacrifices his life and career for the love of a frivolous but uber sexy woman. Carmen seduces Don Jose but ultimately leaves him for the fascinating and heroic Toreador Escamillo. Escamillo sings of what it is like to face death in the bull ring. His message is a message of courage for all of us. It harkens us to put aside our infatuation with life and take the kind of risks that make life worth living. To live without the risk of death is not to live at all.
Where have all the young girls gone?
Long time passing
Where have all the young girls gone?
Long time ago
Where have all the young girls gone?
Taken husbands every one
When will they ever learn?
When will they ever learn?
Pete Seeger is one of the greatest troubadours of all time. His career in singing and protesting injustice throughout the world lasted nearly eighty years. It was a loss for the world when he passed away in 2014 at the age of 94. Pete sang about racism, sexism, militarism and even a song about the brutality of boxing. He sang about narrow minded people that cared little or nothing about the world around them. In this song, he mourns for the soldiers that are caught up in the myopia of war. A new war every day bespeaking the “racket” that General Smedley Butler declared war to be. Don’t look for a “just” war. There are no just wars. Every war is an example of greed, stupidity, or shortsightedness. Pete knew this well and dedicated his life to singing the truth about war and man’s inhumanity to man.
Prohibitions, oaths, consecrations, vows that we may vow, swear, consecrate, or prohibit upon ourselves –
from this Yom Kippur until the next Yom Kippuer, may it come upon us for good –
regarding them all, we regret them henceforth.
They will all be permitted, abandoned, cancelled, null and void, without power and without standing.
Our vows shall not be valid vows; our prohibitions shall not be valid prohibitions;
and our oaths shall not be valid oaths
Even if I were Jewish, this is a very complex song to explain or interpret. I have looked at several interpretations of the words concerning vows and oaths taken. The major issues are what oaths and promises can be legitimately taken and expected to be followed and what oaths and promises can be forgiven. The distinctions between these two issues have created a great many controversies over the years. Some even claim that it was a Jewish way to get out of loans or money borrowed. This would lead to prejudice and misunderstanding on the part of non-Jews.
What I am impressed with by the song is the idea that we can be forgiven for oaths and vows that perhaps we should never have taken. We can all swear to things that we later regret. The idea of a day of forgiveness for these mistakes is very appealing to me. The relationship between Yom Kippur, the Jewish Holy Day of Atonement and the Kol Nidre is interesting. Yom Kippur begins in the evening, and the evening prayer (Maariv) is preceded by the special Kol Nidre prayer. I think this points to a strong bond between atonement and forgiveness both in terms of sin and in terms of vows and oaths that were taken. In any case, it is also a beautiful song to listen to.
Sometimes I feel like a motherless child
Sometimes I feel like a motherless child
Sometimes I feel like a motherless child
A long way from home
A long way from home
When I first heard this song on the Woodstock Festival album, I thought he made it for me. Somehow, for most of my life, I have felt like a motherless child. This is strange since I had a mom. Everyone described her as a saint. She was never mean or abusive to me. I remember during a counseling session confessing that I felt less when my mom died than I did when my father died. He was a mean abusive man who made my life hell. I dreamed of killing him but never got up the nerve to do it.
But why did I mourn my father’s death more than my mom’s. My counselor recommended I read “Drama of the Gifted Child.” She explained that a mother’s role is to protect her children and clearly my mom did not. I never blamed her because I felt that she was living in her own hell with my father. Nevertheless, I felt more like I never had a mom. Hearing Richie Havens’ song, I felt like someone understood.
When you find the bluebird of happiness
You will find perfect peace of mind
Knowing there’s a bluebird of happiness
And when he sings to you
Though you’re deep in blue
You will see a ray of light creep through
And so remember this, life is no abyss
Somewhere there’s a bluebird of happiness
Growing up with a father who loved opera, I was bound to hear Jan Peerce sing many of his repertoire. He sang many wonderful songs. However, this was my favorite. I guess you could almost say that this song was pop, but it would never be recognized as such by today’s kids. The “Bluebird of Happiness” spoke to my desire for peace of mind. I had only to find the bluebird and all my sorrows and fears, and unhappiness would vanish. I searched many years for this strange bird. I have not found it yet but perhaps I am closer than ever before.
Up and down the guards are marching,
No one, no one can get through.
Flight would mean a sure death facing,
Guns and barbed wire block our view
But for us there is no complaining,
Winter will in time be past.
One day we shall rise rejoicing.
Homeland, dear, you’re mine at last.
No more the peat bog soldiers (Die Moorsoldaten)
Will march with our spades to the moor.
No more the peat bog soldiers
Will march with our spades to the moor.
I first heard this song by the fabulous Paul Robeson. I was astounded. He is so versatile. He spoke out for liberty and justice no matter what language his songs were in. Parts of this song are in English and parts in German. Paul sounds like a native German speaker. I looked up the history of this song and found that it was one of the most popular protest songs of all time in Europe. It tells of the men in a concentration camp getting marched off each morning to work harvesting peat in the peat bogs.
This song was written by prisoners in Nazi labor camps in Lower Saxony, Germany. With their shovels and pails, they euphemistically refer to themselves as “The Peat Bog Soldiers.” These camps were established as soon as the Nazis gained power as a place to put their political enemies. Many of not most of the men and women in these camps would die. Nevertheless, they remained hopeful that someday Hitler’s reign would end, and they could march home in rejoicing. Can we remain as hopeful in the crisis facing us today? I ask myself that each morning when I wake up.
I am a truthful man from the land of the palm trees
Before dying I want to share these poems of my soul
My verses are a clear green, and they are a flaming crimson
I grow the white rose in June as in January
For the sincere friend who gives me his hand
And for the cruel one who would tear out my heart with which I live
I do not cultivate thistles nor nettles I cultivate a white rose
Guantanamera, guajira, Guantanamera
This song is one of the most popular songs of all time. Few people would not recognize the tune and lyrics. Not only has it been sung by hundreds of singers all over the world, but it has been featured in movies and other venues. For instance: “The song is played in The Godfather Part II, at the café in Havana where Michael Corleone talks with his brother Fredo Corleone. Richard Stallman wrote and sang a version titled Guantanamero, a commentary on the Guantanamo prison and the War on Terror.” — Wikipedia
Over the years, what started as a love song has evolved into a song about freedom and justice. A song supporting class equality and freedom for the poor. To me it also signifies seeking co-existence with our enemies as well as with our friends. Besides the moral significance, it is hauntingly beautiful. Parts of it are sung in Spanish and parts in English depending on the singer.
Well, there you have my top ten favorite inspirational songs. I would love to hear what your favorite songs are as well. Feel free to leave comments, lyrics, tunes or whatever you like. Just be sure to let us know what Key you want us to sing it in. 😊
There are going to be those of you who will say that the title of this blog is preposterous. A few years ago, I would have called “Bullshit.” Funny how aging changes ones perspective. I asked four friends all over the age of 70 what they thought about my proposition. They all nodded sagely and said that they agreed 100 percent. I then went to my spouse Karen who as a Home Care nurse spent many years working with the elderly. I expected her to deny my proposition. I was quite surprised when she also agreed. I asked her why. She explained as follows:
I mentioned this to some running friends of mine. One of the younger ones asked me what I had done to prevent falling or to somehow adjust my attitude so that I could continue running. I explained that over the years I had started running with knee pads, elbow pads, shatterproof glasses, and hand guards like roller bladers used. I had the best trail running shoes that I could afford. He asked if I would be willing to look for some new ideas so that I could return to the mountain trails. I told him that I appreciated the offer but that I was finished with running rocky mountain trails.
Our Founding Fathers wrote a Big Lie and African Americans have been paying for it ever since. Women and other minorities were not even mentioned in the Big Lie, but it applied to them as well. Lies can be committed because people believe things that do not mesh with reality. Lies are a coverup for many government actions that our politicians do not see as palatable for the public. The Gulf of Tonkin incident, the overthrow of Salvador Allende, the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq are only a few of the lies that have been fed to the American people. Of course, our politicians would have us believe it is for our own good. The really sad part is that the media is always complicit in these lies by reporting them with little or no verification of their truthfulness. Some of these lies fall into what I call the “Realm of Taboos.” Taboos are a good place to look for Big Lies.
So, we tell a Big Lie that age does not matter. And we have no one willing to challenge that lie. However, it is not only physical aging that puts people at a disadvantage, but mental aging as well. Many older people are stuck in a past generation of ideas and values that are no longer relevant today. Values and cultures change over time and people born in the 40’s and 50’s are less likely to understand and adapt to the changes that daily life brings. If you can only see the “Good Old Days”, you may be suffering from old age. The average age of Nobel Prize winners when they conducted their prize-winning research is 44.1 years. As for writing, “According to experts, we start becoming more creative and prolific in whatever field of art or study we work, around the age of 25. Most people reach their peak after the age of 35 or in their 40s. This is when they produce their most valuable work. After the age of 45, most artists’ prolificity starts slowly declining.” — 
Love is a word used in many semantic constructions. People associate love with sex, marriage, partnership, and other types of relationships between human beings. It is also common for the word love to be associated with inanimate objects and other animals. For instance, people say “I love my car” or “I love my dog.” These uses of the word trivialize the meaning of love. Romantic novels (think Romeo and Juliet) portray love as undying or “dying” passion but seldom show the hard work required to keep love burning. TV and movies feature continuous images of love based more on lust rather than what real love is. Even Jesus the greatest prophet of love did not get the idea of love right.
Jesus gave one example of “true love” but missed the most significant example in his life. Jesus said, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” — John 15:13. Many soldiers have given up their lives to save others in the course of war. Often these soldiers were friends with the men they died for. However, to say that they loved them is quite off the mark. A number of years ago, I dove into a river to save a guy who was being dragged down the St. Croix River by its current. He did not know how to get out of the current and was fighting it instead of going with it. I swam out and brought him to shore. He was very grateful. I risked my life for this man. I did not know this man and I certainly did not love him. Many acts of heroism have been done by people out of a sense of responsibility or compassion, but I would not call these “acts of love.”
I propose that the greatest acts of love are to stand by someone when the world is bent on destroying them and you risk being destroyed along with them. The love of a mother for a son convicted of a heinous crime is one of these acts. Jesus’s mother Mary stood by the cross and watched her son die, never deserting his side. I am sure she suffered insults and criticisms and was blamed for his behavior. A mother who will feel love for her son or daughter no matter how grievous the crimes they have done is committing an act of love.
A few months ago, the news carried a story about a young man who had been in and out of trouble. He went into a dinner with a gun, robbed several patrons and was shot in the back as he was leaving. No charges were brought on the shooter. As it turned out the gun that he used in the robbery was a water pistol. The mother was questioned as to her thoughts. She did not attack her son’s killer, nor did she defend her son’s behavior. She did wonder if he really needed to be shot in the back as he was leaving. I was struck by the mother’s sadness and love for her son. It did not matter that he was a bad kid or that the whole of the media was gleeful about his being shot in the act; his mom’s (like Mary’s) love remained firm.
One of the most common tropes in movies and shows concern what I call the “Two Ships Passing in the Night Love Model.” Individuals who seem to resonate with each other go about their daily business and never tell the other person how they feel. This has been a part of so many shows that I have watched that I am losing count. You sit there and wonder episode after episode if they will ever say anything before it is too late. It is frustrating as you want them to get together and say, “I love you.”
I thought about this problem for a while. Many would say it was just a writer’s trick to get you to keep coming back for the next episode. You get hooked on whether or not they will ever consummate their love either physically or emotionally. It is a rather good hook but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it was really art mimicking life. I have been guilty of the same behavior and many people I know have also been guilty of the same behavior. We fail to say I love you when it counts the most. We can say that we love our new shoes or that we love our cat easily enough, but we have a hard time telling friends and relatives that we love them. We often abbreviate the sentiment with “Love you” or we use the term generically. “See you later folks, love all of you.” The simple act of looking someone in the eyes and saying “I love you” is perhaps one of the most difficult tasks that many of us face.
But what is true love anyway? Is loving a person in the same ballpark as loving your dog or your new shoes? Would you give up your life for your cat or your shoes? There are many elements that are part of true Love. A life without true love is rather sad but more common than many people realize. How many people do you know who took marriage vows only to divorce within ten years or less? How many of these people were willing to go to a marriage counselor before they divorced? How many of them just gave up on the other person before giving them a chance to change or giving themselves a chance to change? My elements of true love include:
I think of the places I have been. Their memories come randomly. Sometimes I remember being 16 at the New York Worlds Fair in 1964. Roaming around by myself with no particular agenda. The Vatican Pieta exhibit really made an impression on me. Then it was my year in Biloxi, Mississippi. Scuba diving off Ship Island whenever I could get a break from my Air Force duties. Unalakleet, Alaska where I spent a year on a remote mountain top off the Bering Sea. Dating Eskimos and Indians who were the first women I ever really cared about. After leaving Alaska for Wisconsin, I developed a whole new family to start life with as a responsible father and husband.
There are many lists of “places” to see but much fewer lists of great events to see. Events are harder to find. Some occur every year like the Newport Jazz Festival and others are one off events like the Woodstock Music Festival. We frequently do not find out about events until they are over. In our travels, Karen and I have discovered posters of local events. Generally, they are not within our travel dates, or they have already occurred. Sometimes though we have been lucky enough to “trip” over an event and attend it. On occasion, it has been through the advice of local people who have told us about the event.
In one of my blogs, I noted the distinction between being a tourist and being a pilgrim. One definition of a tourist is “A person visiting a place for pleasure.” My definition of a pilgrim is non-religious. You do not have to be on a sacred mission to be a pilgrim. I propose the idea of a pilgrim as someone who takes part in the cultures they are visiting. Someone who is not looking in from the outside like at a visitor to a Hawaiian Luau but someone who joins the celebrants. They say there are three types of people. Those who do not know that there is a parade. Those who watch the parade. Those who are in the parade. Tourists are watchers. Pilgrims are in the parade. In many of our travels, Karen and I have managed to “be in the parade” at least for a short while.
We have so many memories of friends met during travels. Friends such as Alex and Heidi in Cervelló, Spain enriched our lives and made our trip to Spain more than memorable. Xibo and Mary were friends we met on our Chinese trip in 1989. They accompanied us on several adventures in China. Years later, we helped them to emigrate to the USA. They now live in San Francisco with their daughter, son-in-law and three grandchildren. In Seoul, we attended a birthday party for our grandson Sam after our adopted Korean daughter Susan found her birth mother. A year after Sam was born, we traveled back with Susan to Korea for the celebration of his one-year birthday with Susan and her birth family.
A “Last Man Standing Bottle” includes some of the most interesting people I ever met in Frederic, Wisconsin. We would gather every weekday in the town library to discuss books, politics, guns, cars, ideology, and any other ideas brought up. We agreed 10 years ago to create this iconic “Bottle” for our coffee group. Since putting the Old Granddad Bourbon in a beautiful case with a pendant that had our names on it, four of our members have passed away. The group disbanded with the advent of Covid and was never resurrected. The bottle now sits in a case at the Frederic Train Museum along with many other relics from Frederic. I am 76 years old and the youngest of the three remaining bottle members. The shadows of Dick, Jerry, Brian, and Ken periodically go through my mind. I remember each of them so vividly in respect to ideas, but their physical aspects are just lingering shadows who periodically are guests of my thoughts.
When we are born, we are compared to growth charts and Gesell Developmental schedules. for our development. Lag behind and your parents will be worried. As we grow up, we get compared to sisters, brothers, cousins, and others. Who has not heard the comment “You are just like your father,” or “your sister had straight A’s when she was your age.” In school, we will be tested from kindergarten through college on a variety of measures designed to see how we stack up. Each state will routinely rate the children in a school district or region to compare to other children in the country. Children and schools are then ranked and rated from best to worst. Everyone with any eyes and a brain knows that the school districts with the most money will almost always have the highest rated schools.
About fifteen years ago, I wanted to test out a hypothesis. Forbes Magazine each year publishes its list of 200 richest people in the world. It gives a great deal of information about each person such as schooling and net worth. I wanted to test whether or not a college degree made a difference in net worth. I added up the overall net worth of all college graduates and compared it to the overall net worth of all those who did not complete college. About fifty five percent of the Forbes richest people had either a bachelor’s degree or a master’s degree. The remaining forty five percent either did not enter college or did not finish college. Who do you think earned more money? Imagine my surprise to find that the average net worth of non-college degreed rich people was 3.5 billion dollars compared to 2.5 billion dollars for degreed people. All the hype on college degrees may just help make colleges richer.
Aging Capriciously 