Your love is a shadow on me

After hearing the news of Bonnie Tyler's death during the week, I turned to YouTube for some of her ballads, begining with Total Eclipse of the Heart. It is a strange, theatrical song, and a timeless one, simultaneously familiar and unfamiliar. I have heard and sung along to it countless times, its tune part of the soundtrack of my youth; but in truth, I have only sung along to the lines and snatches I know, as a few lines always remained obscure, in those pre-internet days. But now, I was able to read the lyrics and fill in those gaps... And for the first time I read and heard Your love is like a shadow on me all of the time...

And I thought of Mary, overshadowed by the power of God, which is the power of Love, so that she could bring Jesus into the world. And then I thought of how, in Italian and other languages, shadow and shade are the same, interchangeable words... And oh! how precious shade has been during these heatwaves! In this blistering heat I walk and cross roads strategically, assessing which side is shadiest, opting for routes lined with trees, or in the shadows cast by taller buildings. And oh! how grateful I have been for the protection and the balm of shady, sheltered corners and cool, leafy canopies - as much as for air conditioned interiors! 

Your love is like a shadow on me all of the time... God, your love is a sheltering, all-enveloping, delightful shadow on all of us, all of the time... And may its power overshadow, strengthen and grace each one of us to bring Jesus, your Love, to our own corner of the world...