The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #97537   Message #1920130
Posted By: Haruo
27-Dec-06 - 06:15 PM
Thread Name: Lyr Req: The Lone Wild Fowl (McFayden)
Subject: Lyr Req: The Lone Wild Fowl (McFayden)
I'm planning on singing this in church this Sunday, but there are two lines where I don't know what the original text is. Here's the text as I am currently planning to sing it:
  1. The lone, wild bird in lofty flight
    is still with thee, nor leaves thy sight.
    And I am thine! I rest in thee,
    Great Spirit, come, and rest in me.

  2. Each secret thought is known to thee,
    my whole life's path, whate'er it be;
    my days, my deeds, my hopes, my fears,
    my deepest joys, my silent tears.

  3. The ends of earth are in thy hand,
    the sea's dark deep and no man's land.
    And I am thine! I rest in thee,
    Great Spirit, come, and rest in me.
Here is the Hymnsite.com version, which I am not singing:
  1. The lone, wild bird in lofty flight
    is still with you, nor leaves your sight.
    And I am yours! I rest in you,
    Great Spirit, come, rest in me, too.

  2. The ends of earth are in your hand,
    the sea's dark deep and far off land.
    And I am yours! I rest in you,
    Great Spirit, come, rest in me, too.

  3. Each secret thought is known to you,
    the path I walk my whole life through;
    my days, my deeds, my hopes, my fears,
    my deepest joys, my silent tears.
I haven't looked in The Faith We Sing to see what Marty Haugen's new verses are, but I doubt I'll want to use them. The problem is that for the stanza I intend to sing second, my only source is the Hymnsite.com version, which is "you" where I intend to sing "thee"; so the first two lines have to be altered. My provisional emendation you have above; but I'd really like to know (assuming McFayden actually wrote that verseâ€"again, my only authority is Hymnsite.com) what the original was. Anybody have it?

I'm going to sing "bird", not "fowl", for the same reason I sing (in church) "silver" instead of "hoary" in "How Firm a Foundation".

Haruo