It takes my breath away when I really think about it;
I'm flying through space on a big 'ole rock that's crowded.

Oh, I don't know what to make of this life I'm leading,
A child ever-searching to belong;
I've got one foot in history and the other in the future
Something's got to give before too long.

There's loneliness for sale and the people here are buying;
All dipping in the till, now the whole damn world is dying.

Oh, I guess progress will provide for its children,
Even though their eyes won't see the sky;
I'll remember sparrows, but by then they'll never miss them,
It's sad enough to make a grown man cry.

If I could break away to some long-gone year, I'd try it;
Find a quiet town where you'd know no fear inside it.

Oh, I don't know what to make of this life I'm leading,
A child ever-searching to belong;
I've got one foot in history and the other in the future
Something's got to give before too long.

These are the lyrics to the 1974 song "One Foot in History," written by John Nitzinger. I reprint them here with John's kind permission because their simple eloquence, for me, remains as insightful and moving now as when the song came out; and in an age where disillusionment seems to be running ever more rampant, to me they're a way of reminding us that none of us are ever as isolated and alone as we may sometimes feel. A simple sentiment, but one that is no less powerful for its simplicity.

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