posted
I think most of you are aware that I was in a band for a while. What most of you probably aren't aware of is that the singer of that band has been suffering from a rare and malignant for of cancer. Yesterday morning he went to sleep and he has not awakened since. It's likely that this is the end of his life. The last thing he said to his wife was "I love you." He is in no pain. I thought I would post a song he wrote about the inevitability of death and the hope that he, as a Christian, had for it's meaning. I have it here. It is downloadable at www.mp3.com/thetouch if you want a copy yourself (it's actually quite upbeat).
Crossing Borders Lee Caropresi
From this world to the next: Just a breath away Fold your arms and rest, Don't think of what to say Years are drifting past Like clouds across the sky And when it rains at last, That's no time to cry- You're crossing borders
Waking from a dream, Walking on the waves Short as this life seems, It's too long to be a slave I can see some light Just across the clearing Step out of the night and Find your freedom here- You're crossing borders
Crossing borders, leave behind the old Crossing borders, ashes into gold From dust to dust or faith to faith, Mercy or no quarter We will always be crossing borders
Abandon all hope of just standing still It never has worked and it never will Choose you this day peace or disorder: Either way you're still crossing borders
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How do I download the song? "Shadow of a Doubt" and "Passion Play" have a link to download but "Crossing Borders" does not..
Posts: 1056 | Registered: Mar 2002
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posted
Thanks, again, y'all, for all the kind words and for putting up with me bumping this topic and stuff. I wrote a little tribute to my time with Lee and I wanted to post it here as a cap to the thread:
Much has been made of how small and insignificant humans are, how small and insignificant the Earth, or even the Solar System are in comparison with the rest of the Universe.
Today I am in awe of how huge the small things are.
I stood, a few inches from death as a DART train rushed by me and thought nothing of it. We do this all the time, standing on roadsides and near train tracks... we seem blissfully unaware of the adventure we are on, of the power and might of the vehicles speeding around us as we wait at a traffic light or drive smoothly down the highway. I stood today in the place I was married, a park in Plano, and thought, "that's where it happened-- a 7 minute ceremony on this simple spot, and lives changed, some of them even created, as a result of that moment." The small things, the local places, the quiet words spoken with sincerity rather than force; these things make worlds shiver and the entire Universe turn upside down... because the Universe only has the meaning that *we* give to it... the Universe is nothing without us-- without minds to view it, perceive it, and try to understand it. When we stand in awe of the huge distances and the burning suns and the nightime majesty of the Milky Way, we merely fear our own shadow, cast over the vast emptiness of space.
I say all this because I contemplated another small thing, today. I thought about the immense talent of an unknown singer, pouring his soul out in a few select bars in one city. He had big dreams, to be sure, but he never let the fact that they went unrealized take away from the power and importance of what he created-- of what he had to say. I saw him sweat and strain over chords and words. I saw him leave songs unfinished for years, waiting for just the right nudge to make them complete. I saw him sing to audiences of one and two people as if they were ten thousand.
More importantly, I saw him talk to people where they were, never judging, yet never flinching from his beliefs. I saw him embrace friendships and encourage others. I also saw him struggle with his own behaviors, as we all do. I saw him give up things that meant the world to him in order to be there for his family and his church, which meant much more to him. I saw him happy, strong, and hopeful in the midst of sorrow, weakness and despair. I can only hope to carry myself as well through my current troubles and those that may come.
Lee never feared his shadow. He didn't let the smallness of the task deter him from doing it as if everything depended on it. He remained aware that everything did. He was a small thing, indeed, but to those of us he affected, he was enormous. His music, like much of his life, was about the ray of hope in the midst of darkness. I can hear him sing, now, "when the world turns I'll be on the other side... a million miles from here, out of reach and in the clear, when the world turns."
When the World Turns Lee Caropresi
A nursing mother holds her child cradled to her breast A grieving widow says goodbye, lays her love to rest In the middle of your next thought you could leave this earth behind Find out where the road unwinds
When the world turns, I'll be on the other side When the world turns at the rising of the tide When the world turns, I'm a million miles from here Out of reach and in the clear when the world turns
Two lovers hold on tight as passion nears its peak A lonely man is dying; his breathing's getting weak The two hearts beating faster as one is slowing down Their ecstacy is just a taste of what he's feeling now
When the world turns, I'll be on the other side When the world turns at the rising of the tide When the world turns, I'm a million miles from here Out of reach and in the clear when the world turns
On the distant golden landscape at the far end of a dream In the deep primeval heartbeat of a quiet place I've seen Years dissolve to hours, minutes turn to days Great men lose their power and nations fade away
A lifetime's like the morning mist in the cold grey light of dawn As distant as that first kiss from someone long since gone Wipe away the tears and put away the past Step in through the door at last
When the world turns, I'm a million miles from here...
Edit: I added this song for download at the mp3.com page listed above, as well
[ August 12, 2003, 11:05 AM: Message edited by: T. Analog Kid ]
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