Singing Him Out
Lisa had a great idea. We met at Dad's bedside at 6:30, hymnals in hand. I brought Nathaniel. Jax, Lisa, me, then Jeff came to add a base note to our packsong. We sang Christmas hymns, we sang solid standards, we sang songs of comfort and hope in Christ. He turned his head slightly toward us. At "Silent Night" his eyes opened briefly. We sang loud, we sang in harmony, we sang from hearts both joyful and broken. And we said good bye and good night. I feel cleansed, and at peace. Each time we came to a hallelujah or a gloria, or some other such phrase praising the glory of god, it felt like we were amplified and echoed. More than once I looked up from music to fulling expecting to find those whose only job is praise, but my mortal eyes remained blind. We finished with "God Be With You Till We Meet Again" Do not think of the words, or your harmonies will not hold. Put your soul into each word, each phrase, mean it with all your hear, but do not think of the words. Your notes will slide into dissonance. Goodnight Dad. I shall miss you. If you are still there tomorrow, there are more songs I would sing you