Under
the Rainbow
This take off on "Over the Rainbow" was inspired by
a slip of tongue. A friend and i were talking one day about
movies and music when she mistakenly referred to Judy Garland's
famous song as "under the rainbow." She quickly recovered
but not before the seed for this song was planted.
There is a place, of which Christ spoke and scripture
teaches, where life is flawlessly joyful and unspoiled by
human agenda and ego. The place, of course, is heaven, "over
the rainbow." But we live on the "imperfect side of the
perfect plan." This song is simple honesty and realism.
i hope its message doesn't sound hopeless, because it's
not. i am certain that, after the mixed joy and sorrow of
this life, "there's a better side." And i am certain that,
even on this back side of the tapestry, there are foretastes
of what is to come if we receive God's promises by faith.
CS Lewis notes, in his own honest assessment of life,
that "the Christian religion … does not begin in comfort,
it begins in … dismay." He further writes that "if you think
of this world as a place intended simply for our happiness
you find it quite intolerable: think of it as a place of
training and correction and it's not so bad."
"Therefore," teaches the Bible, "we do not lose heart.
Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are
being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles
are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs
them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on
what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what
is unseen is eternal." II Cor. 4:16-18.
"At present," wrote Lewis, " we are on the outside of
the world (that we truly long for), the wrong side of the
door. We discern the freshness and purity of morning, but
they do not make us fresh and pure. We cannot mingle with
the splendours we see. But all the leaves of the New Testament
are rustling with the rumour that it will not always be
so. Some day, God willing, we shall get in."
Special thanks to Emily Gibson for playing flute on
this song, and for her patience with my ignorance of music
theory and notation.
The song says there's a land beyond the rainbow
Where dreams come true and little bluebirds fly
Where perfect skies await you every morning
And happy tears are the only tears you cry
But in my world, lions will eat you
in my world, there is wind and rain
in my world, dreams can be broken,
so many things that you can't explain
'Cause i live under the rainbow,
imperfect side of the perfect plan
i live under the rainbow,
here in a stormy land
the roads of gold in my world lead to nowhere
it's common to get lost along the way
the land beyond the rainbow must be quite fair
but the world around me blocks my upward gaze
in my world, the winds come a howling
bad dreams, and the house will pitch
sometimes it seems when you wake up
your house has landed on the pretty witch
'Cause we live under the rainbow,
imperfect side of the perfect plan
we live under the rainbow,
here in a stormy land
and it seems, at times, the man behind the curtain
is distant as that man up in the moon
seems we're stuck down here without the ruby slippers
and the wizard left without us in the balloon
(if pretty little bluebirds fly
then why oh why oh why can't… )
we live under the rainbow,
i'm certain, certain there's a better side
We live under the rainbow
Under some stormy skies
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