Occasionally, and by occasionally I mean daily if not more, I am stricken by a phenomenon known as cranialtunage.  This common affliction strikes when a song becomes so ingrained on my brain that inevitably I am forced to either listen to it a few times or listen to something else in hopes of dispelling it from my consciousness.  When I was younger my friends and I used to sing annoying songs out loud to one another as a form of torture, knowing it would take hours to get them out of our heads.  As a rookie parent, I have been assured by many veteran parents, some retired and in the hall of fame, that Barney is going to become a staple of my life for at least the next 5-6 years.  I have heard the song and I am scared. 

Being afflicted with cranialtunage is not always a bad thing, though.  There are some songs that push their way from my subconscious into my everyday life and are not dreaded nor cursed, but accepted and appreciated.  Being the fan of the written word that I am, I oftentimes enjoy most the songs with thought provoking or meaningful lyrics as much if not more than those with catchy tunes.  On any given day you may hear Springsteen, Dylan, U2, or anything from country to pop on my lips and if the song actually raises my emotions to a level to where humming becomes full out singing and you are earshot, keep in mind I am dealing with an affliction and kindly yet swiftly move to an area where you can no longer hear me.  Your cooperation is appreciated.

A couple of weeks ago, I came across a song that since playing it that one time, I have not been able to shake.  I have to, literally have to, listen to it multiple times a day.  It is an old song, almost as old as I am, (hold your jokes please) but it is not the original version I have played and re-played these last couple of weeks.  It is Bridge Over Troubled Water - not Simon & Garfunkle’s version, but a remake by Johnny Cash and Fiona Apple and in my humble opinion it is an incredibly moving version of the song.  Those of you who know us know that my wife and I are great admirers of Johnny Cash and to that end are naming one of our twin sons Cash.  I have always admired self-aware people, and Johnny was just that.  He knew he was a superstar.  He knew he was a sinner.  He knew he was a Christian.  He faced his demons and overcame them, and gave the glory to his Lord.  He was just a man, and he was ok with that.  That’s very cool.

One of the most fascinating elements of music is how a song can mean so many different things to so many different people.  As I listen to the lyrics of this song, I often find myself thinking of my kids, born and unborn, though I know this was not what the lyricist was trying to convey. 

 

                              When you’re weary, feeling small

                              When tears are in your eyes, I will dry them all

                               I’m on your side

                               When times get rough

                               And friends just can’t be found

                               Like a bridge over troubled water

                               I will lay me down

                              Like a bridge over troubled water

 

            What an incredible vow this can be from a parent to a child.  I can definitely see myself saying this to Sydney, Elliott, Cash or Simon, though probably not with dry eyes.  (And for the record, I was more than properly prepared and forewarned about the hormonal changes this pregnancy would bring to my wife, but nobody, and I mean NOBODY told me that it was contagious.) 

            The last verse of the song hits me the hardest.  When I hear Johnny’s rich baritone sing those words and the realization hits that one day Leona and I are going to have to let the children go out into this crazy world and experience it on their own it is a mind-numbing consideration.  But then something happens, something unreal.  Something spiritual.  I feel a peace come over me and I realize that while the lyrics in so many ways are indicative of my feelings for those in my care, they are also every bit a reminder of my Lord and his promise to me.  That he has always been and will remain with me through fatherhood.

  

                         Your time has come to shine

                         All your dreams are on their way

                         See how they shine

                         If you need a friend

                        I’m sailing right behind

                        Like a bridge over troubled water

                        I will ease your mind

                        Like a bridge over troubled water

 

            There is another element to cranialtunage that I have come to know and believe.  that God puts some songs on our brain right when we need what that song is saying to us the most.  I remember thinking to myself one day while I was listening yet again to Johnny sing that song that God must have wanted me to rediscover it.  The peace that the song was giving me could not have been coming from any other source.  And then for a moment I was humbled as I often am and thought to myself “God surely has much more important things to do than to put a song in my head”. 

            It was then that it hit me.  That very second.  A smile spread across my face as I realized that this song, the one that I just could not get out of my head, the song that was relevant if spoken from God to me as well as from me to my kids, was sung by a man named “Cash”.

            And it was written by a man named “Simon”.