First frost of the season. As I got out of bed and looked out the window, there was thin layer of silvery shine on the grass beyond the wood’s edge. There is a real bite in the air as I walk to the studio understanding that autumn is truly upon us now. A bit later, as I look out of the studio window, this realization is reinforced as the sunlight filters through the oranges and yellows of the turning leaves, indicating with certainty that the summer is gone and the harsh beauty of winter will soon be here. This filtered light and thoughts of summer gone and winter ahead create a wistful feeling in the air.
It’s one of the rewards of the changing seasons here, a built-in reminder of time passing that serves as a metaphor for our own lives, our own mortality and the ephemeral gift which we are given. And while simply watching a golden leaf lazily fall through the low angle of the sun to the frosted grass below might not seem like much of a gift, there are times when it feels priceless.
And that is how it feels this morning.
In that vein, the music I have selected for this Sunday morning is a wistful song from the late Warren Zevon. It’s a song, Keep Me in Your Heart, that he wrote while in the throes of the terminal cancer that took his life. Zevon led an interesting, if sometimes crazy, life. His father, a Jewish Russian immigrant, was a bookie and close friend of mobster Mickey Cohen. When Warren was 13 he studied with Igor Stravinsky before quitting high school in the early 60’s to go to NYC to be a folksinger. He knocked around for years before finding success both as a songwriter and performer. This success came and went several times, often as result of his own self-destructive behavior. He died in 2003 at age 56. I’ve always thought it was shame that so many people only know him for Werewolves of London when he wrote so many other beautiful songs such as this.
Take in the day fully and enjoy.
Redtree Times 