Coincidence..Truth..Today

   Strictly by coincidence we tuned in last evening to the PBS Special for Memorial Day.

   When I use the word "coincidence", I think of a quote from a series Mayre and I are reading right now; Maisie Dobbs, by Jacqueline Winspear. Maisie says, "Coincidence is the messenger of truth".

   So, let's see how that plays this morning.

   A hymn was sung last night. One that I don't remember ever hearing before. Although it is an old hymn, penned back in the 1860s, its words and music seemed to reach out and grab my soul.

   The tune was what I would term, "haunting", and I am a sucker for those melodies that fit that category for me. They draw me in, emotionally and spiritually.

   How Can I Keep From Singing?

My life flows on in endless song;

Above earth's lamentation,

I hear the sweet, tho' far-off hymn

That hails a new creation;

Thro' all the tumult and the strife

I hear the music ringing;

It finds an echo in my soul—

How can I keep from singing?

What tho' my joys and comforts die?

The Lord my Saviour liveth;

What tho' the darkness gather round?

Songs in the night he giveth.

No storm can shake my inmost calm

While to that refuge clinging;

Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth,

How can I keep from singing?

I lift my eyes; the cloud grows thin;

I see the blue above it;

And day by day this pathway smooths,

Since first I learned to love it,

The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart,

A fountain ever springing;

All things are mine since I am his—

How can I keep from singing?

   And here is a rendition by Buddy Green that I found:

   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37UiNO0BncU

   Memorial Day, a Day that we honor fallen heroes from our country's past, and also salute those who serve in today's light, this old hymn seems particularly fitting.

   Lamentation, tumult, strife, darkness, storms...

   The Peace of Christ makes fresh my heart...

   No Coincidence

   A Message of Truth

   And a Thankfulness for all those who have left me a legacy of both Freedom and Truth.

   (From the American Cemetery at Normandy, France)