Peace Like a River

As sung by Paul Simon

Ah, peace like a river ran through the city
Long past the midnight curfew
We sat starry-eyed
Ooh, oh,we were satisfied
O-o-oh, And I remember
Misinformation followed us like a plague
Nobody knew from time to time
If the plans were changed
Oh, oh, oh, if the plans were changed.

You can beat us with wires
You can beat us with chains
You can run out your rules
But you know you can't outrun the history train
I seen a glorious day, aiee------

Ah, four in the morning
I woke up from out of my dreams
Nowhere to go but back to sleep
But I'm reconciled
Oh, oh, oh, I'm going to be up for a while
Oh, oh, oh, I'm going to be up for a while

Oh, oh, oh, I'm going to be up for a while


As I sat in the parish before mass today the song, Peace Like a River Flows, popped into my head. I can't say that I've ever heard the song, certainly I've never heard Paul Simon's version. But somehow after looking up the lyrics it seemed to fit.

The topic of the mass was marriage. The first reading came from Genesis. It's where God decided that it was not good for man to be alone. So, the priest said that the first idea he wanted to talk about was that most of the problems like depression stem from loneliness. I agree.

The second reading came from Hebrews I believe. It spoke of the marriage between the church and Christ. The second point was that in marriage the husband and the wife are presented with the unconditional love of God through the spouse. The third reading was from Mark, I think. It was about the law that Moses made concerning divorce. I read the bulletin this morning.

The third reading seemed to be the subject of the writing. I don't know who writes the little reading in our bulletin but it was really good. It spoke of how divorce used to be taboo, a cause for guilt and shame, and that how now it is become the norm. Well, I guess I'm a dinosaur. I didn't want a divorce. But there came a time when it could not be avoided.

I think a lot of my depression is from loneliness but it's also from feeling like a failure in my chosen profession. Then there is the issue of my health. I can't do a lot of the things I once did because I'm in pain all the time. I spend a lot of time in bed to ease the pain which means I sleep a lot.

Some days are better than others. There are actually days when I'm pain free and I feel so alive. Those are the days when I get the most done. I'm praying that I have more days like that.

I learned from Linda that she is going to tape my talk in November. That puts a little more pressure on me. I've been thinking about my truth for a while and trying to discern where the most changes in myself have occurred. I'm not really sure but I think I've evolved so much that it's hard to tell what came first. Does that make sense?