Hello, July.
This is the delicate song I’ve been singing most, as we walk through you.
“July” | The Innocence Mission
I especially like this part.
“You never know,
You never really know.
And you can’t have people figured out.
One friend came in
Out of nowhere, with lit
Sparklers in both her hands for me,
And saved the day.”
The song reminds me of quiet summer afternoons in Baltimore and Catonsville. I remember buying this record of their’s, Birds of my Neighborhood, in a used record shop in College Park my junior year of college. My Daddy had met me there to have dinner with me, since it was half-way between Baltimore and La Plata.
As are most of their records, the whole of “Birds” is brimming with sadness and hope all swelled together. I am sad that after all these years, I’ve yet to catch The Innocence Mission live. I imagine they are just living simple little family times up there in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and can’t be bothered to do much touring.