8/1/2021
A few days ago the death of Nanci Griffith was announced by her management company. In a music world of high fashion and high profile, Nanci was truly an exception. Low key, down to earth and similar adjective phrases would not do justice to her! She could sing soft sweet ballads about her childhood, but could also growl a little like Dylan and maybe even make Springsteen stand up and listen! Her Genre was probably best described as Folk/Country, for which I have always loved and considered that probably the essence of who I really was a singer/guitarist.
Oddly enough, her most recognized recording was “From a Distance” which was later performed by quite a larger than life performer, Bette Midler. Nothing against Ms Midler, but you do have to smile at the irony.
Several things about her death struck me. First we are the same age, born in 1953. That is always sobering! Second, she instructed her management company not to publish her death immediately and not to publish the cause of her death. In a world that is increasingly media driven, I find this quite refreshing!
The lyric to From a Distance, though not written by her, certainly gives some insights to who she was. (It would be worth it to find performances of hers and Bette Midler’s out there in digital world )
From a distance
The world looks blue and green
And the snow capped mountains white
From a distance
The ocean meets the stream
And the eagle takes to flight
From a distance
There is harmony
And it echoes through the land
It’s the voice of hope
It’s the voice of peace
It’s the voice of every man
From a distance
We all have enough
And no one is in need
And there are no guns,
No bombs, and no disease
No hungry mouths to feed
From a distance
We are instruments
Marching in a common band
Playing songs of hope
Playing songs of peace
They are the songs of every man
God is watching us
God is watching us
God is watching us
From a distance
From a distance
You look like my friend
Even though we are at war
From a distance
I just cannot comprehend
What all this fighting’s for
From a distance
There is harmony
And it echoes through the land
And it’s the hope of hopes
It’s the love of loves
It’s the heart of every man
It’s the hope of hopes
It’s the love of loves
This is the song for every man
God is watching us
God is watching us
God is watching us
From a distance
Oh, God is watching us
God is watching
God is watching us
From a distance
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Julie Gold
From a Distance lyrics © Wing And Wheel Music, Julie Gold Music
As one who follows Jesus Christ and uses the Bible’s writing to inform me about the nature of God, this song embodies the paradox of the life that we live following Jesus.
At the core of the Bible is God’s willingness to give Humanity Free will. In doing so, the Bible reveals what a mess Humanity makes of that Freedom, so much that it is easy to surmise that God is distant and maybe not even involved in Creation and with Humanity. The song does, however, gives us hope that God may not be absent from the world, but possibly from our ability to see just how active God is actually.
For me, the song is a wakeup call to remember that God did enter the world through His own Flesh and Blood as Jesus Christ of Nazareth. That distance is bridged by Jesus!
Free Will is a terrible thing to waste! God is watching to see how well we will use it!