Friday 21st December - One Step enough for me

Lead, kindly Light, amid th'encircling gloom,
lead thou me on!
The night is dark, and I am far from home;
lead thou me on!
Keep thou my feet; I do not ask to see
the distant scene; one step enough for me.

I was not ever thus, nor prayed that thou
shouldst lead me on;
I loved to choose and see my path; but now
lead thou me on!
I loved the garish day, and, spite of fears,
pride ruled my will: remember not past years!

So long thy power hath blessed me, sure it still
will lead me on.
O'er moor and fen, o'er crag and torrent, till
the night is gone,
And with the morn those angel faces smile,
which I have loved long since, and lost awhile!

Words: John Henry Newman, 1833
Music: Alberta, Lux Benigna, Sandon Meter: 10 4 10 4 10 10

This rather gloomy hymn is a favourite from boarding school days. We sang it to "Alberta"; you can hear the tune played by a rather unlikely looking organist here:
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkKLeZtRyJ8,

Sometimes, for example, when faced by trying to get ready for Christmas in a few days time, the distant scene is an impossibility, and taking life one step at a time is the only way.

Regular readers will know that I have an on-going battle with the dining room table. Well, right now, the dining room (and, to be totally truthful, our bedroom, and the kitchen, in fact, the whole house) is, to be short and to the point, a mess.

The to-do list is bursting out of its neat columns, items are adding themselves faster than I can tick them off.

So I'll give it all up as a bad job for today, and start again tomorrow. One step at a time. Till "the night is gone".