I on this, the last day of the year, have written a song reflecting on the year 2015 and what we must do in 2016. The song is based on the lessons for today and the Pope’s Encyclical “Praise be to you, my Lord.” I’ll be working out the tune on my guitar but think this song needs to be played on a large pipe organ. We have one at my church, so pray that I can talk the organist into doing it. If so, I will record it and make it available on my web-site when I can.
Chorus:
“Children, it is the last hour”.
Yet there is so much work to be done!
We have the knowledge and we know the truth.
So we must continue the work God’s begun!
Verse 1:
Our work is to praise, our work is to sing
Unto the Lord a new song
Announce the healing of salvation
And right the way of the wrong.
Verse 2:
The wrongs done to the seas and all within
Harm that’s been done to the plains
Suff’ring and injustice to people
Poison that falls in the rain.
Chorus:
“Children, it is the last hour.”
Yet there is so much work to be done!
We have the knowledge and we know the truth.
So we must continue the work God’s begun!
Verse 3:
The Lord comes to rule the world with justice
He gives us his pow’r to be
As all things through Him become life
Through him and with him we’re free!
Verse 4:
We who see the glory, the grace and truth
Know the fullness we all receive
Grace in place of grace through Jesus
He gives power to all those who believe.
Chorus:
“Children, it is the last hour.”
Yet there is so much work to be done!
We have the knowledge and we know the truth.
So we must continue the work God’s begun!
Barbara Dilly
I came to Creighton in 2000 and retired in 2020. My twenty years of teaching, research and service in the Jesuit tradition enhanced my own life. It was an exciting time of celebration. I loved teaching and interacting with Creighton students because they responded so eagerly to the Ignatian pedagogical emphasis on the development of the whole person. It is this spirit of whole person development and celebration of life that I hope to infuse in my reflection writings.
My academic background is eclectic, preparing me well for the Liberal Arts academic environment at Creighton. I earned my BA in World Arts and Cultures from UCLA in 1988 and my Ph.D. in Comparative Cultures from the University of California, Irvine in 1994. My research focused on rural communities in the American Midwest, Latin America, and Australia. I taught Environmental Anthropology, Qualitative Research Methods, Social and Cultural Theory, and Food Studies courses.
I retired to Shell Rock, a small rural community in Northeast Iowa where I enjoy gardening, cooking, quilting, driving my 65 Impala convertible an my 49 Willys Jeepster. I have lots of fun playing my guitars with friends from the Cedar Valley Acoustic Guitar Association. But most importantly, I am still working to make my community and rural America a better place. I host a community quilt studio and serve on the Mission Board of my church. I also serve as the Climate Committee Chair and on the Executive Board of the Center for Rural Affairs.
