Commentary: This is my father's world

Spring is officially here. I recently pruned our white rose bushes, as well as our pomegranate bush (or tree, not sure which it is). I cut what passes for our front yard for the first time yesterday. It took a while to get the lawnmower going. There are certain hymns of the church that celebrate this season. One of my favorite gospel songs about spring, written by Kurt Kaiser, is titled "Bring Back the Springtime." My favorite springtime hymn is titled "This Is My Father's World." Written by Rev. Maltbie Babcock of New York, this song was published after his death in 1901 at age 42. Its tune is listed as a "traditional English melody." The three stanzas consist of eight lines. Each stanza has a theme of sorts. The first one could be "all nature sings" and concludes that, "His (God's) hands the wonders wrought." I can rest myself in that thought. The theme of the second stanza could be, "He shines in all that's fair." It is interesting that Babcock continues to mention the idea of God speaking in and through His world – "to my listening ears," "He speaks to me everywhere." When I sing these, I think of Psalm 19:1 – "The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork." But before you think Christian contemplation leaves us with our heads in the clouds and our eyes glazed over with mindlessness, we sing the third stanza. It declares – "This is my Father's world, Oh let ne ne'er forget that though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet. This is my Father's world, the battle is not done, Jesus who died shall be satisfied and earth and heaven be one." This is my favorite of the three stanzas, because after thinking about God and His world, it returns us, refreshed and strengthened, to the not-always-beautiful realities of this world. After Louis Armstrong saw "trees of green and clouds of white, the bright blessed day, the dark sacred night," he concluded, "what a wonderful world." This time of year, the world seems to come alive once more, blooming and flowering, awash in green and other colorful shades. The changing seasons were here before we ever arrived and will be here when we are gone. Thus, while we occupy our temporary place in the cosmos, let's enjoy the view and remember our Creator. Tom Rupp is a Folsom resident and weekly Telegraph columnist. You can reach him at truppfolsom@yahoo.com.