Hill Shepherd

Friday, May 6, 2011

Hope

"For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience."

- Acts 8:24-25

If life is a river and your heart is a boat
And just like a water baby, baby born to float
And if life is a wild wind that blows way on high
And your heart is Amelia dying to fly
Heaven knows no frontiers and I've seen heaven in your eyes

And if life is a bar room in which we must wait
'Round the man with his fingers on the ivory gates
Where we sing until dawn of our fears and our fates
And we stack all the dead men in self addressed crates

In your eyes faint as the singing of a lark
That somehow this black night
Feels warmer for the spark
Warmer for the spark
To hold us 'til the day
When fear will lose its grip
And heaven has its ways

Heaven knows no frontiers
And I've seen heaven in your eyes

If your life is a rough bed of brambles and nails
And your spirit's a slave to man's whips and man's jails

Where you thirst and you hunger for justice and right
And your heart is a pure flame of man's constant night

In your eyes faint as the singing of a lark
That somehow this black night
Feels warmer for the spark
Warmer for the spark
To hold us 'til the day when fear will lose its grip
And heaven has its ways
And heaven has its ways
When all will harmonise
And you know what's in our hearts
The dream will realise

Heaven knows no frontiers
And I've seen heaven in your eyes
Heaven knows no frontiers
And I've seen heaven in your eyes

This video of her Studio Version has better sound.

Scottish Elections

Scottish election: SNP toast 'historic' night of wins

The leader of the Scottish National Party Alex Salmond said the unfolding Holyrood election night results had been "historic".

As dawn broke on Friday, the party's tally was 30 seats, including 19 gains.

It is also turning out to be a bad night for the Lib Dems which have lost their deposits in at least 20 seats.

By 0515 BST the Tories had lost three constituencies, including ex-Tory leader David McLetchie's Pentlands seat.

Mr Salmond, who held Aberdeenshire East with about 64% of the vote, added: "Firstly, I think it demonstrates that Scotland has outgrown negative campaigning.

"I hope after this result we'll see an end to negativity and scaremongering in Scottish politics - no more insults to the intelligence of the Scottish people."

Referring to an SNP forerunner, the National Party of Scotland, he added: "Some 70 years and more later, the SNP can finally say that we have lived up to that accolade as the national party of Scotland.

"We have reached out to every community across this country."

Highlights so far include:
Labour has lost the seat of Glasgow Anniesland by seven votes. This constituency has significance for the party as it was held by the first first minister Donald Dewar who died in 2000.
Four Labour MSPs who had represented Lanarkshire seats since 1999 lost out to the SNP. Former ministers Andy Kerr and Tom McCabe lost East Kilbride and Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse to the SNP's Linda Fabiani and Christina McKelvie.
Labour had better news in Eastwood where it held the Tory target seat. Ken Macintosh fought off advances from Conservative Jackson Carlaw.
Blushes were spared when Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray held on to his East Lothian seat by just 151 votes.
Labour's Malcolm Chisholm also held on to his Edinburgh Northern and Leith seat by a slim majority.

In his speech following the declaration in East Lothian, Mr Gray thanked the people of his constituency for re-electing him, and said it was "a great privilege" to represent the electorate there.

The SNP's Bill Kidd, Nicola Sturgeon, James Dornan and John Mason celebrate

Mr Gray spoke about helping young people into employment, care for the elderly and help for businesses, education and a living wage.

He said: "I promise you that I will fight every minute of every day for the next five years for these things, the things that really matter here in East Lothian.

"Scotland has made a choice tonight too. And while we cannot know for sure what that choice is, the indications are clear.

"Given the opportunity, Labour would devote itself to those self-same things that really matter.

"Whatever the outcome of the election tonight, these will be Labour's priorities in the parliament and in the five years ahead.

"We will pursue them, we will argue for them, we dedicate ourselves to them, and we will work with anyone who will work with us to get Scotland working again."

Reacting to the results, Tory leader Annabel Goldie said the "SNP were having a good night".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-13305522

Twas in the Merry Month of May...

Barbara Allen

Twas in the merry month of May
When green buds all were swelling,
Sweet William on his death bed lay
For love of Barbara Allen.

He sent his servant to the town
To the place where she was dwelling,
Saying you must come, to my master dear
If your name be Barbara Allen.

So slowly, slowly she got up
And slowly she drew nigh him,
And the only words to him did say
Young man I think you're dying.

He turned his face unto the wall
And death was in him welling,
Good-bye, good-bye, to my friends all
Be good to Barbara Allen.

When he was dead and laid in grave
She heard the death bells knelling
And every stroke to her did say
Hard hearted Barbara Allen.

Oh mother, oh mother go dig my grave
Make it both long and narrow,
Sweet William died of love for me
And I will die of sorrow.

And father, oh father, go dig my grave
Make it both long and narrow,
Sweet William died on yesterday
And I will die tomorrow.

Barbara Allen was buried in the old churchyard
Sweet William was buried beside her,
Out of sweet William's heart, there grew a rose
Out of Barbara Allen's a briar.

They grew and grew in the old churchyard
Till they could grow no higher
At the end they formed, a true lover's knot
And the rose grew round the briar.