XLIV.

 

"Set Fire To The Rain"

I let it fall, my heart

And as it fell, you rose to claim it

It was dark, and I was over

Until you kissed my lips and you saved me

My hands, they were strong

But my knees were far too weak

To stand in your arms

Without falling to your feet

But there's a side to you

That I never knew, never knew

All the things you'd say

They were never true, never true

And the games you'd play

You would always win, always win

But I set fire to the rain

Watched it pour as I touched your face

Well, it burned while I cried

'Cause I heard it screaming out your name, your name!

When I lay with you

I could stay there

Close my eyes

Feel you here forever

You and me together

Nothing is better

'Cause there's a side to you

That I never knew, never knew

All the things you'd say

They were never true, never true

And the games you'd play

You would always win, always win

But I set fire to the rain

Watched it pour as I touched your face

Well, it burned while I cried

'Cause I heard it screaming out your name, your name!

I set fire to the rain

And I threw us into the flames

When it fell, something died

'Cause I knew that that was the last time, the last time!

Sometimes I wake up by the door

That heart you caught must be waiting for you

Even now, when we're already over

I can't help myself from looking for you

I set fire to the rain

Watched it pour as I touched your face

Well, it burned while I cried

'Cause I heard it screaming out your name, your name

I set fire to the rain

And I threw us into the flames

When it fell, something died

'Cause I knew that that was the last time, the last time, oh!

Oh, no

Let it burn, oh

Let it burn

Let it burn

Writer(s): Adkins Adele Laurie Blue, Smith Fraser Lance Thorneycroft

XLIII.

Summer Shower

A drop fell on the apple tree,

Another on the roof;

A half a dozen kissed the eaves,

And made the gables laugh.

A few went out to help the brook,

That went to help the sea.

Myself conjectured, Were they pearls,

What necklaces could be!

The dust replaced in hoisted roads,

The birds jocoser sung;

The sunshine threw his hat away,

The orchards spangles hung.

The breezes brought dejected lutes,

And bathed them in the glee;

The East put out a single flag,

And signed the fete away.

by

Emily Dickinson

This poem is in the public domain.

Photo credit: saturnine-stardust.tumblr.com

XLII.

November Rain

When I look into your eyes

I can see a love restrained

But darlin' when I hold you

Don't you know I feel the same

Nothin' lasts forever

And we both know hearts can change

And it's hard to hold a candle

In the cold November rain

We've been through this such a long long time

Just tryin' to kill the pain, oo yeah

But love is always coming and love is always going

And no one's really sure who's lettin' go today

Walking away

If we could take the time

To lay it on the line

I could rest my head

Just knowin' that you were mine

All mine

So if you want to love me

Then darlin' don't refrain

Or I'll just end up walkin'

In the cold November rain

Do you need some time on your own

Do you need some time all alone

Everybody needs some time

On their own

Don't you know you need some time all alone

I know it's hard to keep an open heart

When even friends seem out to harm you

But if you could heal a broken heart

Wouldn't time be out to charm you

Sometimes I need some time

On my own

Sometimes I need some time all alone

Everybody needs some time

On their own

Don't you know you need some time all alone

And when your fears subside

And shadows still remain, oh yeah

I know that you can love me

When there's no one left to blame

So never mind the darkness

We still can find a way

'Cause nothin' lasts forever

Even cold November rain

Don't ya think that you need somebody

Don't ya think that you need someone

Everybody needs somebody

You're not the only one

You're not the only one

Don't ya think that you need somebody

Don't ya think that you need someone

Everybody needs somebody

You're not the only one

You're not the only one

Don't ya think that you need somebody

Don't ya think that you need someone

Everybody needs somebody

You're not the only one

You're not the only one

Don't ya think that you need somebody

Don't ya think that you need someone

Everybody needs somebody

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Saul Hudson / Izzy Stradlin / Duff McKagan / Darren A Reed / Matt Sorum / W. Axl Rose

November Rain lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

XLI.

Hafez :
Portrait of the Persian Poet Hafez (Khajeh Shams al-Din Mohammad Hafez Shirazi)
(1320-1389)

“There are different wells within your heart.
Some fill with each good rain,
Others are far too deep for that.

In one well
You have just a few precious cups of water,
That "love" is literally something of yourself,
It can grow as slow as a diamond
If it is lost.

Your love
Should never be offered to the mouth of a
Stranger,
Only to someone
Who has the valor and daring
To cut pieces of their soul off with a knife
Then weave them into a blanket
To protect you.

There are different wells within us.
Some fill with each good rain,
Others are far, far too deep
For that.”

― Hafiz, The Divan

Photo credit:  Pinterest / SuperStock
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hafez

XL.

""It was about seven in the morning, and I longed to obtain food and shelter; at length I perceived a small hut, on a rising ground, which had doubtless been built for the convenience of some shepherd. This was a new sight to me; and I examined the structure with great curiosity. Finding the door open, I entered. An old man sat in it, near a fire, over which he was preparing his breakfast. He turned on hearing a noise; and, perceiving me, shrieked loudly, and, quitting the hut, ran across the fields with a speed of which his debilitated form hardly appeared capable. His appearance, different from any I had ever before seen, and his flight, somewhat surprised me. But I was enchanted by the appearance of the hut: here the snow and rain could not penetrate; the ground was dry; and it presented to me then as exquisite and divine a retreat as Pandaemonium appeared to the daemons of hell after their sufferings in the lake of fire. I greedily devoured the remnants of the shepherd's breakfast, which consisted of bread, cheese, milk, and wine; the latter, however, I did not like. Then, overcome by fatigue, I lay down among some straw, and fell asleep.

"It was noon when I awoke; and, allured by the warmth of the sun, which shone brightly on the white ground, I determined to recommence my travels; and, depositing the remains of the peasant's breakfast in a wallet I found, I proceeded across the fields for several hours, until at sunset I arrived at a village. How miraculous did this appear! the huts, the neater cottages, and stately houses, engaged my admiration by turns. The vegetables in the gardens, the milk and cheese that I saw placed at the windows of some of the cottages, allured my appetite. One of the best of these I entered; but I had hardly placed my foot within the door, before the children shrieked, and one of the women fainted. The whole village was roused; some fled, some attacked me, until, grievously bruised by stones and many other kinds of missile weapons, I escaped to the open country, and fearfully took refuge in a low hovel, quite bare, and making a wretched appearance after the palaces I had beheld in the village. This hovel, however, joined a cottage of a neat and pleasant appearance; but, after my late dearly bought experience, I dared not enter it. My place of refuge was constructed of wood, but so low that I could with difficulty sit upright in it. No wood, however, was placed on the earth, which formed the floor, but it was dry; and although the wind entered it by innumerable chinks, I found it an agreeable asylum from the snow and rain.

"Here then I retreated, and lay down happy to have found a shelter, however miserable, from the inclemency of the season, and still more from the barbarity of man." "

~Mary Shelley, "Frankenstein" - Originally published, 1818, in the United Kingdom and Ireland

XXXIX.

"Early Morning Rain"

by Gordon Lightfoot

In the early morning rain with a dollar in my hand
With an aching in my heart and my pockets full of sand
Now, I'm a long way from home and I miss my loved ones so
In the early morning rain with no place to go

Out on runway number nine a big 707's set to go
But, I'm stuck here in the grass where the cold wind blows
Now, the liquor tasted good and the women all were fast
Well, there she goes, my friend, well she's going down at last

Hear the mighty engines roar - see the silver bird on high
She's away and westward bound - far above the clouds she'll fly

There the morning rain don't fall and the sun always shines
She'll be flying over my home in about three hours time

This old airport's got me down - it's no earthly good to me
'cause I'm stuck here on the ground as cold and drunk as I can be
You can't jump a jet plane like you can a freight train
So, I'd best be on my way in the early morning rain

You can't jump a jet plane like you can a freight train
So, I'd best be on my way in the early morning rain

""Early Morning Rain" (sometimes "Early Mornin' Rain") is a song composed and recorded by Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot. The song appears on his 1966 debut album Lightfoot! and in a re-recorded version on the 1975 compilation Gord's Gold.

Lightfoot composed the song in 1964, but the genesis of the song took root during his sojourn in Westlake, Los Angeles during 1960. During this time Lightfoot became homesick and would go out to the Los Angeles airport on rainy days to watch the approach of aircraft.  The imagery of the flights taking off into the overcast sky was still with him when in 1964, about five years later he was caring for his 5-month-old baby son and he thought “I’ll put him over here in his crib, and I’ll write myself a tune.”    

"Early Morning Rain" was the result.

The lyrics suggest someone down on his luck, standing at an airport fence and observing the thunderous takeoff of a Boeing 707 jetliner. The general narrative of the song can be taken as a jet-age musical allegory to a hobo of yesteryear lurking around a railroad yard attempting to surreptitiously board and ride a freight train to get home. Lightfoot reflects that being able to capture this narrative was due to his steady improvement as a song writer."

Source: wikipedia

XXXVIII.

“You expected to be sad in the fall. Part of you died each year when the leaves fell from the trees and their branches were bare against the wind and the cold, wintery light. 

But you knew there would always be the spring, as you knew the river would flow again after it was frozen. 

When the cold rains kept on and killed the spring, it was as though a young person died for no reason.”

― Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast