Wednesday, September 9, 2009

In which I find my anthem.


Two things happened the day before we returned to The Seagull Republic.

First, we received a mail from Shona in which she wrote, about my blog, "... we are answerable to God for our care of the earth. It is our responsibility to undo as much as we can the damage already done, and to make our contribution in creatively saving the planet and enriching its future. You two are doing your share, thanks!! [I did not post this on your blog, because] I did not want to put people off with my God sentiments. However, I think I am moving more and more towards a sense that this is what God is about."

Which is exactly what I believe and then some.

Second, I was driving to the store to stock up on provisions for our trip to The Republic and happened to hear "Rocky Mountain High" by John Denver on my satellite radio. Now, I haven't heard this song for years and even when I was listening to John Denver regularly way back when (LOVE his songs) I don't think this was a favourite of mine. My only excuse is I was young and stupid back then. Because it is EXACTLY about me, the whole thing, although maybe it wasn't entirely at that time. It even brought tears to my eyes. I do not apologise for this sappiness at all.

I was so desperate to listen to it again that I immediately headed for the nearest mall, and hauled out an HMV gift card I've been carrying around for well over a year. Out of several JD albums, I picked his "Definitive All-time Greatest Hits". And I've been playing track 6 ever since. Well, I did listen to the others eventually, but only because en route to Cortes Island I thought my long-suffering husband might go insane listening to the same track over and over, which is what I do when I'm learning the words to a song prior to working out the chords so I can accompany myself on the guitar. I mean, JD is not for everyone. I remember when he was at the peak of his career they made jokes about his squeaky-clean image like "John Denver took a bath and the soap got clean".

And that is how I found my anthem, hippy child that I am.

"You can talk to God and listen to the casual reply"... just love it. Here are the words; they speak for themselves.

Rocky Mountain High

He was born in the summer of his 27th year
Coming home to a place he’d never been before
He left yesterday behind him, you might say he was born again
You might say he found a key for every door

When he first came to the mountains, his life was far away
On the road and hanging by a song
But the string’s already broken and he doesn’t really care
It keeps changing fast and it don’t last for long

But the Colorado Rocky Mountain High
I’ve seen it raining fire in the sky
The shadow from the starlight is softer than a lullabye
Rocky Mountain High (Colorado), Rocky Mountain High (Colorado)

He climbed cathedral mountains, he saw silver clouds below
He saw everything as far as you can see
And they say he got crazy once, and he tried to touch the sun
And he lost a friend but kept his memory

Now he walks in quiet solitude the forests and the streams
Seeking grace in every step he takes
His sight has turned inside himself to try and understand
The serenity of a clear blue mountain lake

And the Colorado Rocky Mountain high
I’ve seen it raining fire in the sky
You can talk to God and listen to the casual reply
Rocky Mountain High (Colorado), Rocky Mountain High (Colorado)

Now his life is full of wonder, but his heart still knows some fear
Of a simple thing he cannot comprehend
Why they try to tear the mountains down to bring in a couple more
More people, more scars upon the land

And the Colorado Rocky Mountain high
I’ve seen it raining fire in the sky
I know he’d be a poorer man if he never saw an eagle fly
Rocky Mountain high

Its a Colorado Rocky Mountain high
I’ve seen it raining fire in the sky
Friends around the campfire and everybody’s high
Rocky Mountain High (Colorado), Rocky Mountain High (Colorado)
Rocky Mountain High (Colorado), Rocky Mountain High (Colorado)

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