Category Archives: Nature

Little Boat #Writephoto #Music

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Song on lyre.

1. My body is a little boat
That sails the raging seas,
Where illness, tension, pain and stress
Can get the best of me.
But Spirit guides my little boat
To everything I need.

2. My mind, it is a little boat
That sails a clouded sky.
When darkness falls, I see my fears
That vanish in the Light.
And Spirit guides my little boat
Through every stormy night.

3. My soul, it is a little boat
That sails eternally.
When I forget in trials deep,
To live my destiny,
The Spirit guides my little boat,
And I return to peace.

—
Apparently it’s boat week around here, as I’ve posted
The Skye Boat Song
and
The Arran Boat
already this week. 🙂

This third boat post is my response to
Sue Vincent’s #Writephoto Prompt, Clouded.

Bright Idea #Poem

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I had a bright idea once,
To get a little pet.
My nephews had a hermit crab,
And one fine day we met.

I put my finger in the cage,
A kind of little bowl.
I’m lucky when I pulled it out
The finger was still whole!

No hermit crab for me, it’s clear,
And no tropical bird.
A peacock, so I hear, is loud,
And must have the last word.

If not pets, then a garden full
Of flow’rs and fruits and trees,
Beginning with a lotus
And some pomegranate seeds.

The only baby’s breath I found
Was lost as my son grew.
Perhaps the pets and gardening
Are not my thing to do.

I had a bright idea once:
Don’t try to fit a mold!
Be happy in God’s plan for me:
Unique, authentic, bold!

—
My response to Linda Kruschke’s
Paint Chip Poetry Prompt #29: Long Lost

It Is Well with My Soul #Music

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“When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul.”

Horatio G. Spafford’s realization is as timely today as when he wrote this text in 1873. He wrote this poem after the devastating loss of his four daughters. Traveling to Europe with their mother, ahead of Spafford, their ship collided with another vessel and sank rapidly. Of Spafford’s family, only his wife, Anna, survived. This hardship came soon after the death of their 4-year-old son in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, along with the economic and property loss the family suffered due to the fire.

Philip Bliss, a friend of Spafford’s, originally named the melody “Ville du Havre,” after the lost vessel. This is possibly one of the most popular pieces Bliss composed.

If Spafford, at such a despairing time in his life, could look beyond it to the peace and safety of his own soul, then what an encouragement it is that we can choose to do the same!

I hope this zither arrangement allows the peace of your soul to flow from within you!

Seed of a Dream #Writephoto

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Every soul has the seed of a dream,
Planted within by the Spirit unseen.
Let it grow into a fruit-bearing tree
Over your path of life.

Your path may be winding through heather and hills.
You might become lost in the forest at will.
But seek and you’ll find it, the path to fulfill
The dream for your tree of life.

Repeat from beginning.

Seek and you’ll find it, the path to fulfill
The dream for your tree of life.

—
A song on lyre, written in response to
Sue Vincent’s #Writephoto Prompt, Dream.

Silver Reflection #Writephoto #Song #Poem

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Enjoy the silvery sound of the zither (plucked psaltery or lap harp).

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Lyrics

1. Water reflecting the twilight,
Silvery blessings unfold.
Nature is Life,
Day into night,
Look for the Light they hold.

2. You are a silver reflection,
Shining your state of mind.
The Spirit in you
Knows every Truth.
Seek It and you will find.

3. You’re the Creator’s reflection,
Prism of peace and love.
Already here,
Nothing to fear,
For as below, so above.

4. Water reflecting the twilight,
Silvery blessings unfold.
Nature is Life,
Day into night,
You are the Light they hold.

Nature is Life,
Day into night,
You are the Light they hold.
You are the Light they hold.

Poem

Silver reflection
As below mirrors above
Truth of your being.

—
Written for
Sue Vincent’s #Writephoto Prompt, Silver.

Remember (The LOA Song)

On Ukulele, from the album
And so it Is! Vol. 1

Rock of Ages #Music

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Here is another traditional hymn played on zither (also called a lap harp or plucked psaltery). “Rock of Ages” was written by Rev. Augustus Toplady in 1763. The lyrics are based on Psalm 94:22, which reads, “But the Lord is my defence; and my God is the rock of my refuge.”

Though the account is unverified, it is said that Toplady was caught in a storm in the gorge of Burrington Combe, located in England’s Mendip Hills. It is believed he found shelter in the cleft of a rock and wrote the lyrics in gratitude for the Rock (the Almighty) that saved him.

I hope you enjoy this arrangement, which has rolled chords most often heard on harp.

The Garden of Eden #Poem

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The Garden of Eden was quiet
With no rubber duckies in sight.
No great monsoon in the morning,
And no hot cocoa at night.

They didn’t need any kindling;
God grew every plant they could eat.
And yet we’re told they ate the one
That brought all us humans defeat.

So, Adam and Eve wore a fig leaf,
But oh no, that wasn’t enough!
I wonder… Would it have been different,
If there flourished one tree of cheese puffs?

—
This poem uses 6 of Linda’s 7 words for
Paint Chip Poetry Prompt #24

In the Garden #Music

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“In the Garden” is a much loved hymn, as I know from personal experience. It seems like one of those songs, hymns and Christmas carols in particular, that I was born knowing. I must have been so young when I first heard it, that the song is woven into the fiber of my childhood memory.

Although it’s a mystery when I learned the words, I vividly remember learning to play “In the Garden” on piano. It was a request from my uncle, Al, near the end of his battle with cancer. I not only learned the hymn, but recorded a cassette tape of myself playing it, along with other hymns. On our last trip to Connecticut from Pennsylvania, I was able to sing and play the song for uncle Al. It was a precious gift to him and is still a precious memory to me.

I hope you enjoy my zither arrangement of “In the Garden.” It was written by American songwriter C. Austin Miles in 1912 and is still very popular today.