In the living years (8)

The radio was on and Mike and the Mechanics came on the Song

"In the living years" and it just made me think of those close to me who had died and what I had not said that should have been said (think its a bit of a hangover from the "come on boys" thread) If it needs to be said say it.

Every generation
Blames the one before
And all of their frustrations
Come beating on your door

I know that Im a prisoner
To all my father held so dear
I know that Im a hostage
To all his hopes and fears
I just wish I could have told him in the living years

Crumpled bits of paper
Filled with imperfect thought
Stilted conversations
Im afraid thats all weve got

You say you just dont see it
He says its perfect sense
You just cant get agreement
In this present tense
We all talk a different language
Talking in defence

Say it loud, say it clear
You can listen as well as you hear
Its too late when we die
To admit we dont see eye to eye

So we open up a quarrel
Between the present and the past
We only sacrifice the future
Its the bitterness that lasts

So dont yield to the fortunes
You sometimes see as fate
It may have a new perspective
On a different day
And if you dont give up, and dont give in
You may just be o.k.

Say it loud, say it clear
You can listen as well as you hear
Its too late when we die
To admit we dont see eye to eye

I wasnt there that morning
When my father passed away
I didnt get to tell him
All the things I had to say

I think I caught his spirit
Later that same year
Im sure I heard his echo
In my babys new born tears
I just wish I could have told him in the living years

Say it loud, say it clear
You can listen as well as you hear
Its too late when we die
To admit we dont see eye to eye

So are there things you wish you had said:

To my father: I love you; you gave me the earth, the sky and the sea; the courage and passion to live my own life.
I dont think I was old enought to talk when he died.

To my Mother: Can we acknowledge that we are so different that we would never like each other , but as mother and daughter that we can at least love each other.

To my Grandmother: thank you for teaching me how to live, love and to give.

To my Partner: It's OK.

Nice one Sue.........

I've said it to all of them already.........

oh wow....that song always catches me....I waz pregnant on my second child and remember listening to it in the docs waitin room.....

thanks sue for the reminder of saying things before its too late

Great song that, Sue. Took me a while to find it after my Dad passed away (knew some of the words but not the title or the band). Still I was lucky to have said all that I wanted to say to him in his living years. And I was happy that maybe we didn't see eye to eye on everything.

Fantastic song. Thanks for posting EP.

Nothing I'd like to say as such. My father died when I was 11, he was one of my best friends and I loved him to bits.

I Just wish I had the chance to go for one last walk with him.

He meant the world to me.

When I got my leaving cert results, the first person other than my teachers that I showed results to was my dad, It may seem daft that the first thing you'd do after getting your leaving cert results would be to go to a graveyard to read them to a headstone, but it just felt right. Dad through dying missed out on so many important moments, I just wanted him to share in this one.

The living years is a great song and I just appreciate it, but the ones tha gets me all teary eyed are 'Dance with my Father' and'The Old man'.

The Old Man

The tears have all been shed now
We've said our last goodbyes
His souls been blessed
He's laid to rest
And it's now I feel alone
He was more than just a father
A teacher my best friend
And He'll still be heard
In the tunes we shared
When I play them on my own

I never will forget him
For he made me what I am
Though he may be gone
Memories linger on
And I miss him, the old man

As a boy he'd take me walkin'
By mountain field and stream
And he showed me things
Not known to kings
And secret between him and me
Like the colours on the pheasant
As he rises in the dawn
Or how to fish and make a wish
Beside a fairy tree

I never will forget him
For he made me what I am
Though he may be gone
Memories linger on
And I miss him, the old man

I thought he'd live forever
He seemed so big and strong
But the minutes fly
And the years roll by
For a father and a son
And suddenly when it happened
There was so much left unsaid
No second chance
To tell him thanks

For everything he's done

Oh, I never will forget him
For he made me what I am
Though he may be gone
Memories linger on
God I miss him, the old man

This song pretty much sums it up for me.