Lyrics

This is just a fun blog to share some of my favorite Christmastime songs with you and to get you thinking about lyrics and how they can bring meaning to music.  Song lyrics are like poems, and songs are a marriage of words and music, two of my most favorite things. 

The lyrics of Christmas and holiday songs are special.  From the spiritual to the fun loving, all of them evoke certain images and feelings in anyone.  Even those who aren’t religious/spiritual, enjoy these songs because they resonate with joy, fun, love and hope. 

I have a lot of favorite Christmas carols and songs.  Some are favorites because of childhood memories.  Others are favorites for personal or spiritual reasons. 

A Christmas Carol favorite is Away in a Manger.  As a small child I loved that there was a lullaby for Jesus.  I remember singing it to my dolls at Christmas when I got ready for bed.

My parents had a number of albums of Christmas from different countries.  From the Christmas in England album I learned that there was another melody for Away in a Manger. This alternate melody has become my favorite.  The lyric remains the same.

Away in a manger no crib for a bed

The little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head.

The stars in the sky looked down where he lay

The little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.

The cattle are lowing, the poor baby wakes

But little Lord Jesus no crying He makes.

I love thee Lord Jesus look down from the sky

And stay by my cradle ‘til morning is nigh.

Be near me Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay

Close by me forever, and love me, I pray.

Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care

And fit us for heaven to live with Thee there.

What tremendous memories a song and its lyric can retrieve from hidden secrets that lie deep within each of us.  I find myself singing this song when I feel stressed or out of touch with my spiritual self.  There is a calm that comes from placing yourself  as a child at the feet of ones God.

My favorite Christmas fun song is Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.  This is the first holiday special I remember watching on television when I was little back in the 60’s. 

Nowadays, I love to sing this song with my daughter.  We’ve been signing it since she was tiny.  We always start by singing out the names of the reindeer, that’s her favorite part.

You know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen

Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen.

But do you recall the most famous reindeer of all?

Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer

Had a very shiny nose

And if you ever saw it

You would even say it glowed.

All of the other reindeer

Used to laugh and call him names

They never let poor Rudolph

Join in any reindeer games.

Then one foggy Christmas Eve

Santa came to say,

“Rudolph with your nose so bright

Won’t you guide my sleigh tonight?”

Then how the reindeer loved him

As they shouted out with glee,

“Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer

You’ll go down in history.”

Who doesn’t enjoy this simple story?  It’s one of many songs that were turned into television specials for children.  Some others include Frosty the Snowman and Santa Claus is Coming to Town.  These started out as fun children’s songs for the holiday and became endearing, long lasting holiday television shows.  If not for the gifted lyricists, these songs would never have been made into shows. 

Do you have a favorite holiday song, poem or story?  Do you return to that favorite every year to bring the memories, feelings and images back as part of your celebration?

Feel free to share with me in the comments.  I’d love to hear about your favorites.  Happy holidays!  Merry Christmas! Happy Hannukah!  Happy Kwanzaa!  And a pleasant greeting to all who celebrate in any way at this time of year!

Spiritual Inspiration

Without entering into a lengthy and probably controversial discussion of spirituality or beliefs, I want to discuss how I have been inspired and share some of my writing with you.  

My spirituality or feelings of connection with my God come at times when I am contemplative, under stress, relaxed or are unexpected.  During some of these times I find myself talking to him and even creating something in my mind.  Do you know those times when words just start to form and you have to write them down, those times when you are talking out loud to yourself?  Those are the times when I know I am being inspired to write.  So, I write.

Unfortunately, I can't remember exactly what was going on in my life when I wrote this, but I called it 'A Psalm' for a reason.  When I was first discovering my faith as a Christian, I read the Psalms A LOT!  I connected to them because they are poems, song lyrics, direct messages to God.  I wanted to have (and still want to have) a directed link to God.  David wrote many of the psalms as his expressions of great emotions toward God.  Sometimes he was angry, sometimes he doubted, sometimes he expressed deep faith and love.  The overall feeling of this psalm is a desire for connection, not wanting to be left behind or forgotten.  I can see a strong desire for hope and belonging.  Also, I believe that I needed spiritual strengthening.

A Psalm

By Kimberly L McClune, January 18, 2013

Diffused light from the bright morning star

Emanates through a maze of frosted branches.

Fingers of illumination pattern the blue tinted ground.

A glowing countenance gracefully peers from beyond

Bearing a measure of hope to my longing my soul.

Oh, light that brings peace and love

Renew my spirit, fill the depths of my soul!

Shine your light in and through me.

Reveal your truth to my hardened heart.

Shower me with fulfillment and joy!

Do not deny a weakened spirit.

Open a portal to the inner sanctuary

Hardened by disappointment and fear.

Pour out your soothing balm to cleanse

And heal the wounds left by an ordinary life.

Oh, mighty and righteous giver of peace,

Wondrous lover of needy and aching hearts,

Let your love reign in my gasping soul,

Lift up my wounded spirit,

Wash me clean of all wrongdoing.

Heavy heart, wounded and sore

Hold fast to that one remaining thread of hope.

Don’t loose your grip, but cling to it

As if nothing in the world can move you.

For this is the path to enlightenment.

Hope does not fail, love does not leave

Peace is never far away.

All around are signs of faith and healing.

Open the heart, the mind and the spirit

And all shall enter in, together at last.

Whether you are Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, or have any other faith, we can all relate to similar spiritual needs.  We want the belonging and the comfort of a faith in something greater than ourselves.  I encourage you to embrace your spirituality as it relates to writing and see what you come up with when you bring the two together.  Writing as an expression of yourself, for some, is the only way to write.  For others, writing can be a way to escape yourself.  

Been Writing Again

Amid my job searching and grant writing internship work I have had a few moments of inspiration creatively. Here are a few poems I came up with since the first of the year.  Also, I submitted more poems to Poetry Quarterly in hopes of being published again.

Clay

By Kimberly L McClune

January 3, 2013

When I am wet, my heart is open

Pliable and easy,

Smooth and bendable.

Mold me with Your spirit

Shape me into Your will

Make me in Your image.

I am Yours

I exist for You

I was created by You.

But when I am dry, I am hard

Coldness seeps in

My heart is closed.

I resist You

Push You away, 

Turn my back on You.

I let fear overwhelm me.

My spirit shudders, fades,

I cower inside, afraid.

My soul is dry, hard clay

Stiff and unyielding

Crumbling,

Chipping,

Cracking.

Rain on me!

Make me supple again

Soft and flexible

Bend and shape me

Make me useful,

A jar to hold Your spirit. 

This piece was written in a moment of spiritual searching.  As you can see, I was asking God to make me His own and help me to not rely on my own powers and understanding, but His.  I found great peace in creating this.

Melody and Lyric

By Kimberly L. McClune

April 5, 2013

Wordless

Lilting tones

Spilling over eardrums,

Slipping into the soul,

Married with sweet harmonies

Create moods in notes

And rhythms.

Stealing upwards

Toward the sky

Happy sounds lift spirits,

To soar with angels,

Carried on melodic themes

And intonations.

Words

Letter formed

Gripping the heart

Touching the soul.

Carefully chosen rhymes

Stories of love

And heartbreak,

Reaching inside

Pulling at thoughts

Tugging at memories.

Told to open hearts,

Tales of sorrow

And joy.

This piece was written specifically for my former Music Professor at Lycoming College who is retiring this year after teacher there for 37 years.  He was very special and I wanted to create something to share with him on his retirement.  This was sent in a package along with some photos and the next poem to be placed in a memory book for him and his family.

On a Song

By Kimberly L. McClune

October 4, 2010

Taking flight,

Soaring in your heart over memories,

Hopes and dreams.

Reaching into yourself,

One moment flowing into another.

Time, captured by a tune,

Lost inside the melody

Held by the words,

Glint of a dream

Shadow of a tear.

While I recently sent this and the previous poem to my college for the memory book, I had written it a few years ago to recount my feelings and thoughts after listening to a particular;y touching song.  Music is an important part of my life, so is writing.  When the two are put together into a song, it is especially moving for me in most cases.  Both of these previous poems have been submitted to Poetry Quarterly as well.

I have written some other pieces since the first of the year, but I don't want to cram too much into this post.  Would that I could spend more time on poetry and stories.  I have several stories and many poems started and in various stages of completion.  Oh that the things that call me away from writing would do themselves so that I could just write and write and write.  Alas, this is but a dream.

I hope that you enjoy these pieces and will watch for another post soon with a few more recent works.