Lente, Lente, take it slow and gently

I’m choosing songs for an acoustic night at The Blue Ball in Granchester this Sunday, its a a free gig starting about 9pm and all are welcome! Anyway, as a follow on from my Brief Meditation On Time, I thought I’d post the lyrics of my  song Lente Lente here together with a little note of its genesis.

I had read and begun to absorb Carl Honore’s excellent book, In Praise of Slow, when Karen Wells, who designs beautiful websites as well as making lovely felted things with her friend Rebecca sent me a link to her site which is called Lente. Carl’s book describes how all over the world people are rediscovering the goodness and benefit of savouring time and life, finding the Tempo Giusto for each thing, and Karen and Becca’s work seemed to embody that whole philosophy. I felt that Karen had lent me the lovely word Lente, meaning, slowly, deliberately, with care, and the rest of the song just flowed from there. Here are the Lyrics:

Lente, Lente

I’ve been running from the past
I’ve been living way too fast
But I’m coming home at last
She says slow down, take it gently
lente lente lente lente
slow down petal take it gently
We have world and time a plenty
slow down flower, lente lente

don’t do so much on the run
stop awhile and have some fun
heres a friendship just begun
we’ll take it slow and gently
lente lente lente lente
close your eyes and count to twenty
lente lente lente lente lente

lets take time to gather wool
gently tease and softly pull
when the harvest moon is full
and the felts are forming gently
make it lente, lente lente lente

see the green things how they grow
teach you all you need to know
first and last say take it slow
take it slow and gently
lente lente lente lente lente
slow down petal take it gently
lente lente lente petal lente

my ears are ringing like empty shells
my heart’s an open like the book of kells
I’ll draw sweet water from deep wells
draw it slow and gently
lente lente lente lente
lente lente lente lente
we have world and time a plenty
lente lente lente lente

here’s a rich collaboration
Careful slow deliberation
Lovely long elaboration
There’s no hurry, take it gently
lente lente lente lente
there’s no worry take it gently
lente lente lente lente

all those guys who set the pace
disappear without a trace
taste a different kind of grace
when you take it slow and gently lente lente lente lente
when you take it slow and gently lente lente lente lente