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A Rhyme and a Reason

For the children and the flowers

At my sister’s on Christmas Day we started talking about American singer-songwriter John Denver. Seeing him in concert years ago inspired my brother-in-love to get a 12-string acoustic guitar and start playing and singing. Naturally, John Denver songs are among his favorites and especially at gigs.

We sat around the dining room table singing “The Eagle and the Hawk” for one. We also debated whether “Rocky Mountain High” was really about a spiritual awakening and after I sang the first verse, my twenty-five-year-old nephew concurred. Now that’s my nephew.

Then I told everyone around the table that Denver’s “Rhymes and Reasons” is one of my most beloved songs so we started singing. And then I cried.

Here are the lyrics.

So you speak to me of sadness
And the coming of the winter
Fear that is within you now
It seems to never end

And the dreams that have escaped you
And the hope that you’ve forgotten
You tell me that you need me now
You want to be my friend

And you wonder where we’re going
Where’s the rhyme and where’s the reason
And it’s you…