This weekend while I was at Linda's apartment I did a little bit of work on my Southern Renaissance article. I got to thinking about the three eras that the four pillars- Ransom, Davidson, Tate, and Warren- moved through the literary world. They were Fugitives- young with their whole lives ahead of them and thought they had answers to everything. Then they were Agarians- older, perhaps wiser, and ready to defend a dying way of life. Last they were the New Critics- trying to help others who were writing to not fall victim to the same snares that they had. Their eras portrayed life. A few songs came to mine but one really stuck in my head. All I could hear was "Don't you look back...."

Don't Stop

As sung by Fleetwood Mac

If you wake up and don't want to smile,
If it takes just a little while,
Open your eyes and look at the day,
You'll see things in a different way.

Don't stop, thinking about tomorrow,
Don't stop, it'll soon be here,
It'll be, better than before,
Yesterday's gone, yesterday's gone.

Why not think about times to come,
And not about the things that you've done,
If your life was bad to you,
Just think what tomorrow will do.

Don't stop, thinking about tomorrow,
Don't stop, it'll soon be here,
It'll be, better than before,
Yesterday's gone, yesterday's gone.

All I want is to see you smile,
If it takes just a little while,
I know you don't believe that it's true,
I never meant any harm to you.

Don't stop, thinking about tomorrow,
Don't stop, it'll soon be here,
It'll be, better than before,
Yesterday's gone, yesterday's gone.

Don't you look back,
Don't you look back.

The sermon at Linda's church put me in mind to this, too. It's about pressing on to the mark of the higher calling. It's about believing in yourself and not allowing others to steal your blessings. But it's also about living in the present while dreaming of a brighter future.