Today was a sad day in the Jenkins household. Today at about 11:25am our beloved Bobrador (Border Collie/Labrador mix) passed away after receiving a dose of sodium pentobarbital. The ten-year-old Bentley had been suffering from prostate cancer and the cancer had spread to his bladder and his bones. Bentley had been beloved by all who came to know him, even by my sister and my former girlfriend who comes from a culture where dogs are still eaten rather than cherished as pets.
For me, in recent years, Bentley was the one family member who stayed up with me during my nocturnal hours. We had become companions and friends. For me, he long ago ceased to be merely a dog. His soulful eyes revealed that he was much more.
So, as I sat next to my middle daughter, as Bentley took his last breaths, i tried to comfort her by telling her that she would be with Bentley again one day. Being very bright, she sort of shrugged off what I said and I did not pursue it further. However, in the ensuing hours after Bentley's passing, I have reflected on what I casually said and I have come to believe it even more.
I began to recall a song that I played for my two youngest daughters almost every day when I drove them to their Christian elementary school some 25 years ago. It was a popular song back then, but I do not believe that they ever paid full attention to the words. Thinking about Bentley's passing suddenly brought this song back from a distant memory and, on this day, I think it is fitting to play it again and provide the printed lyrics so that everyone can ponder the meaning of The Colors of the Wind.
Peace,
Everett "Skip" Jenkins
Fairfield, California
February 2, 2024
Vanessa Williams Lyrics
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(from "Pocahontas" soundtrack)
You think I'm an ignorant savage
And you've been so many places I guess it must be so
But still I can not see
If the savage one is me
How can there be so much that you don't know?
You don't know
You think you own whatever land you land on
The Earth is just a dead thing you can claim
But I know every rock and tree and creature
Has a life, has a spirit, has a name
You think the only people who are people
Are the people who look and think like you
But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger
You'll learn things you never knew you never knew
Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon,
Or asked the grinning bobcat why he grinned?
Can you sing with all the voices of the mountains?
Can you paint with all the colors of the wind?
Can you paint with all the colors of the wind?
Come run the hidden pine trails of the forest
Come taste the sun sweet berries of the Earth
Come roll in all the riches all around you
And for once, never wonder what they're worth
The rainstorm and the river are my brothers
The heron and the otter are my friends
And we are all connected to each other
In a circle, in a hoop that never ends
How high does the sycamore grow?
If you cut it down, then you'll never know
And you'll never hear the wolf cry to the blue corn moon
For whether we are white or copper-skinned
We need to sing with all the voices of the mountains
We need to paint with all the colors of the wind
You can own the Earth and still
All you'll own is Earth until
You can paint with all the colors of the wind
And you've been so many places I guess it must be so
But still I can not see
If the savage one is me
How can there be so much that you don't know?
You don't know
You think you own whatever land you land on
The Earth is just a dead thing you can claim
But I know every rock and tree and creature
Has a life, has a spirit, has a name
You think the only people who are people
Are the people who look and think like you
But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger
You'll learn things you never knew you never knew
Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon,
Or asked the grinning bobcat why he grinned?
Can you sing with all the voices of the mountains?
Can you paint with all the colors of the wind?
Can you paint with all the colors of the wind?
Come run the hidden pine trails of the forest
Come taste the sun sweet berries of the Earth
Come roll in all the riches all around you
And for once, never wonder what they're worth
The rainstorm and the river are my brothers
The heron and the otter are my friends
And we are all connected to each other
In a circle, in a hoop that never ends
How high does the sycamore grow?
If you cut it down, then you'll never know
And you'll never hear the wolf cry to the blue corn moon
For whether we are white or copper-skinned
We need to sing with all the voices of the mountains
We need to paint with all the colors of the wind
You can own the Earth and still
All you'll own is Earth until
You can paint with all the colors of the wind
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