Time, time, time
See what’s become of me
While I looked around for my possibilities
I was so hard to please
But look around
Leaves are brown
And the sky is a hazy shade of winter
Hear the Salvation Army band
Down by the riverside’s
Bound to be a better ride
Than what you’ve got planned
Carry your cup in your hand
And look around you
Leaves are brown, now
And the sky is a hazy shade of winter
Hang on to your hopes, my friend
That’s an easy thing to say
But if your hopes should pass away
Simply pretend
That you can build them again
Look around
The grass is high
The fields are ripe
It’s the springtime of my life
Seasons change with the scenery
Weaving time in a tapestry
Won’t you stop and remember me
At any convenient time?
Funny how my memory skips
Looking over manuscripts
Of unpublished rhyme
Drinking my vodka and lime
I look around
Leaves are brown
And the sky is a hazy shade of winter
Look around
Leaves are brown
There’s a patch of snow on the ground
Look around
Leaves are brown
There’s a patch of snow on the ground*
It’s not winter yet. About a month to go, officially. But here, where I live, we’re on the brink, or dare I say, precipice. I label it as such because I’m not the biggest fan of winter. Truth be told, I have not in my past been an eager participant in December through March. Literal coldness which I do not enjoy because I prefer warm weather.
I went for a run this morning. The temperature was in the forties and the sky was, as described in the lyrics above, a hazy shade of winter. Cloudy, gray. The wind was blowing. It wasn’t my idea of a beautiful day. I managed though. Bundled up and quickly warmed once I started, it was a good experience. I find running in the cold easier than the heat.
The moon! Last week the moon was spectacular and I hope you experienced it.
The weather. It can change so abruptly. Yesterday it was over seventy degrees here. Sunny. Pleasant. Today….well see above.
I think about the weather, actually nature, often and how no matter what, I can’t change it. Okay, so maybe that’s not completely true. Climate change. Dropping litter in the creek. Only you can prevent forest fires. Human interaction with the environment…. But I’m talking overall. I cannot, by myself cause the rain to come or the snow to fall. Nature operates on its own. I cannot will the sun to shine.
Sometimes there is a really big surprise. Like the moon last week. Or snow falling perfectly on a Sunday afternoon. Sunshine when you have time to take a walk and enjoy. And even though I didn’t ask for it or have anything to do with it coming to be, I have to pause and be thankful and feel a bit of awe.
And I think that’s how life, as a whole, is as well. A reflection of creation. So very much I can’t control. But if I look around, there is an abundance of potentials. Just being, remaining while moving.
Observe. Pay attention. Be alert.
Easy to overlook though. Miss entirely. Or to be so engrossed in trying to find an answer I completely fail to notice the truth, the obvious, the best. Or the realization that what I thought was the best, isn’t.
If your hopes should pass away
Simply pretend
That you can build them again
Can I build my hopes again? I think I’m doing that and it’s frightening because who is in control of my hopes? Me? If so, will I blow it? Someone else? A combination, most likely.
Hear
Carry
Hang on
Pretend
Build
Notice. Allow. Listen. Explore. Engage. Look. Look. Look. Look. Look. Look. Look around.
*I grew up in the home of a Simon & Garfunkel fan….my dad. Hence the above song, I suppose. Please listen (click below) and realize it is not original to The Bangles, because to think such would be almost a sin….at the very least a travesty. Again….I grew up in the home of a…
A Hazy Shade of Winter
written by Paul Simon
Upon a Sunny Day 
