Here’s another edition of the Thursday Evening Post. 🎵

I recently finished my second Onna-Bugeisha (female samurai). 💚Here are a couple photos:

A while back, I was reading a book on mindfulness in nature, and it had mentioned several songs that were heavily influenced by nature.

One of them was “Green, Green Grass of Home” by Tom Jones.

I had noted the song so that I would check it out at a later date.

Since spring just started, and nature is slowly moving from brown to green, I thought this week would be the perfect time to check out the song and write about it. 🌷

Here it is:

Lyrics:

The old hometown looks the same
As I step down from the train
And there to meet me is my mama and papa
Down the road I look and there runs Mary
Hair of gold and lips like cherries
It’s good to touch the green, green grass of home
Yes, they’ll all come to meet me
Arms reaching, smiling sweetly
It’s good to touch the green, green grass of home
The old house is still standing
Though the paint is cracked and dry
And there’s that old oak tree that I used to play on
Down the lane, I walk with my sweet Mary
Hair of gold and lips like cherries
It’s good to touch the green, green grass of home
Then I awake and look around me
At four gray walls that surround me
And I realize, yes, I was only dreaming
For there’s a guard and there’s a sad, old padre
On and on, we’ll walk at daybreak
Again, I’ll touch the green, green grass of home
Yes, they’ll all come to see me
In the shade of that old oak tree
As they lay me
‘Neath the green, green grass of home

As I listened to this song for the first time, I LOVED the recurring nature imagery: “cherries,” “the green, green grass,” and “the old oak tree.”

The line “It’s good to touch the green, green grass of home” makes me think of being a kid and having fun playing in the soft grass in my yard. What about you?

The lyrics “old oak tree that I used to play on” makes me think of how much fun I had climbing trees as a child. Did you enjoy climbing trees?

As I listened to this song for the first time, I thought about how peaceful and happy it was. It made me smile. 😊

Then, the lyrics “Then I awake and look around me” came, and the tone of the song dramatically shifted.

Over the next few lines, the listener learns that the narrator of this song is going to die. That was something I didn’t expect! 😮

Even though this information is sad, the song ends beautifully with the lines:

In the shade of that old oak tree
As they lay me
‘Neath the green, green grass of home

The narrator feels at peace that he will return again to the nature that brought him so much joy when we was young. 💚

What is your reaction to this song?

Do you have memories of spending time in nature that bring you great peace?

May you be well! 💙

If you’d like to support my mission to share my passion for music with the world and spread joy, love, and positivity, you can do so here. Thank you! ❤️