This week we held our collective breath while watching the events unfolding in Boston. Dismayed by the senseless violence (and the recent failure of our government to act in accordance with the majority of Americans’ opinions regarding background checks), friends and family members reiterated fear and worry about what appears to be an increasingly vicious culture.
We can debate the roots of the apparent rise in violence (as I did in an earlier post), but at this point I feel the better route is to look to healing. We offer our sympathies to the families who lost someone beloved in the mayhem. The men and women in law enforcement, who swiftly acted and captured the perpetrators, have won our esteem and congratulations. The brave residents who vigilantly helped those officers by obeying the lockdown, and calling in tips, have earned our respect. If anything positive can be taken away from the tragedy, it is the confirmation that, when we act together to reach a goal, we can overcome great odds and do amazing things. Such a confirmation gives us hope as we move forward and face another day.
With the foregoing in mind, I looked at songs about hope and peace for this week’s Sunday Love Song. An obvious choice is John Lennon’s Imagine. While the melody and lyrics are truly beautiful, I wanted something a little less expected. U2’s Pride, John Mayer’s Waiting on the World To Change, and Cat Stevens’ Peace Train all came to mind. But I’ve decided to highlight the Dixie Chick’s I Hope. Funny, actually, that my recent song choices have leaned a little country, which is NOT a genre I favor. But since what I feel at the moment is hope for a safer tomorrow for everyone, the lyrics of this song seemed apt.
I Hope
Sunday morning, I heard the preacher say,
Thou shall not kill
I don’t wanna hear nothing else about killing
And that it’s God’s will
‘Cause our children are watching us
They put their trust in us
They’re gonna be like us
So let’s learn from our history
And do it differently
I hope, for more love, more joy and laughter
I hope, we’ll have more than we’ll ever need
I hope, we’ll have more happy ever after
I hope, we can all live more fearlessly
And we can lose all the pain and misery,
I hope, I hope
Oh, Rosie, her man he gets too rough
That’s all she can say, is he’s a good man
He don’t mean no harm
He was just brought up that way
[refrain]
There must be a way to change what’s going on
No, I don’t have all the answers
[refrain]
I hope, I hope, I hope
Take a listen here (video courtesy of thesignsteam channel on Youtube, which contains some nice images):
Did you like the song?
I hope you all start the new week with renewed commitment to enjoying the life we’ve been given, and to helping our kids build a future with less violence and more compassion.
xo-jamie
