… like the first morning,
Blackbird has spoken, like the first bird
Praise for the singing, praise for the morning,
Praise for them singing, fresh from the Word.
This Gaelic folk tune from long ago was joined together with words written by Eleanor Farejon and was first published in an English hymnal in 1931. We know it best from the rendition made popular by Cat Stevens in the 1970s, leading to its inclusion in several hymnals and often sung in worship services. After becoming a pop star Stevens converted to Islam (he is now known as Yusuf Islam), and went on his own spiritual quest for some years before returning to music.
I’ve sung it as a solo in churches a few times, and many times alone and with groups. But the image that comes most readily to mind is dancing this lilting folk melody with Judy whenever it happens to come on the radio or when I put the recording on the phonograph and turn up the volume. Yes, we still do have a turntable!
The words prompt me to savor the quiet of the early morning as songbirds gently greet the new day while I meditate. But for most of my life early rising meant starting a new day with a to do list and getting on with the many demands of the day. Little time for contemplative prayer and silence when we were raising the family, had jobs to go to, or I made a rush to the airport for another trip.
Now in retirement and old age it is easier to take in “the sweetness of the wet garden” and appreciate hints of God’s regenerating energy. Just this week we left the heat of the desert here in New Mexico and went high into the mountains to camp below towering Ponderosa pines where we enjoyed the coolness of the morning where warm sunlight appeared through the branches after a gentle rain. Add to that the joy of spending days in the mountains with our youngest grandchild, Colin, trying to keep up with his enthusiastic appreciation in his own way of “God’s recreation of the new day”. As the old beer commercial said, “it doesn’t get any better than this”!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Rifby1tVE8
