"I've Been Lately Thinking"

 

            "I've been lately thinking about my lifetime, all the things 

       I've done and how it's been..."

That's a line from John Denver's song, Poems, Prayers, and Promises." I'm going to sing that song at a nephew's wedding in a couple of weeks. I'm very honored to have been asked for a few reasons:

• One reason is that I am very fond of them both as a couple because they have a deep love and respect for the environment and the wildlife thereof. 
• A second reason is that, at my age, it's a nice feeling to be considered as someone who can still contribute meaningfully to a younger generation's life in an area (music) which has meant so much to me all my life.
• And a third reason is that the song they have selected comes from a genre of music (John Denver) in which many young people have very little interest.  

That is not a statement, by the way, that is intended to be a criticism of anyone who is not a John Denver fan. I simply mean that that music is near and dear to me personally, and has been for many years. I went to several of his concerts at the Spectrum, for those of you who remember that great cathedral of music, now demolished for the sake of the bigger and better, so to speak.
 
But as I have been practicing the song, the line I quoted above has particularly stood out for me in that I find that to be a common occurrence for me these days--thinking about my life, what I've done and how it's been. It's not worth a book, that's for sure, but somehow it does me good to reflect on things. I suspect that some of you do the same thing. 

I don't do it wishing I could return to the past--far from it! I love the days I am living right now! The "good old days" that many people long for, never really existed in the first place. We can have a wonderful fondness for certain moments long ago, but, at the same time, there were other moments that weren't all that great. In fact, I don't know about you, but for me there are some things I could get re-embarrassed about were I to linger there too long. 

The idea of reflection for me involves a sense of gratitude and growth. I am grateful for the friends and family I've had, including all of those who are presently in my life. I am grateful for the opportunities that amazingly came my way almost effortlessly. I am grateful for experiences--both painful and joyous--that taught me something I might not have otherwise learned.

I keep a few different journals for different purposes. I won't go into the various reasons, but I find that every once in awhile, I'll refer to one or another of them and discover ways in which my thinking has changed, presumably for the better or how I made it through some difficult period of my life. I guess that's why some people write memoirs. 

The point is that our lives are meaningful stories that are continuing to unfold in sometimes surprising and even splendid ways. It's not likely that anyone will write a book about us or produce a movie about us for the big screen. Nonetheless when you think about it, each one of us is living and breathing within the history of the human family. Sound like too big of an idea?  Consider then how the world has evolved since the day you were born.

Just a thought.