Backstory
I wrote this song in January of 1995. My wife and I had just spent fifteen months in Belize with our first two kids. When we came back to the U.S. we lived with some friends in Pullman, Washington in a small house that was under construction. One rainy night, I was feeling a little cramped and needed some space, so I took my guitar out to our little car, sat in the backseat playing songs, and ended up coming up with this one.
Imagination working overtime, I guess.
Lyrics
Sometimes I awaken in the early morn
and I am drawn to watch the sunrise
counting the stars disappearing in the dawn
until my body is bathed in the sunlight
and I know that I’m alive
and in the crisp new morning light
the sun reveals to the world all that was hidden
the sky so blue, the grass so green, the clouds so white
and I thank God for these gifts I’ve been given
and I know that I’m alive
between the shuffle and the hustle of my life
it’s so easy to forget where I am going
I race to meet the goals before me in this world
though I fear that my pace may be slowing
so if you have a calling in a moment of your life, my child
the kind of opportunity you’re here for
don’t run it over for some artificial goal
it’s a chance for heart and soul to be restored
it’s a chance to come alive
between the shuffle and the hustle of your life
it’s so easy to forget where you are going
you’ll race to meet the goals before you in this world
though you fear that your pace may be slowing
with every ticking of the clock upon the wall
nature casts a pattern of irony and beauty
we fill this time and place: our rise and our fall
but rest easy it’s part of our duty
it helps us know that we’re alive
between the shuffle and the hustle of our lives
it’s so easy to forget where we are going
we race to meet the goals before us in this world
though it’s clear that our paces are slowing
it’s just a sign that we’re alive
Dan Haug 