For the Beauty of the Earth

I had the guilty pleasure of staying home from church today to take care of Theodore, who is ill. So, here I sit in clothes at least, but no makeup, hairy legs, and hair still damp from the shower. And the great part is, I am loving it ( : I have made some stew and cared for a sick child, so it hasn't been a COMPLETELY lazy day.

Whenever I stay home from church I have the opportunity to listen to Music and the Spoken Word. Classical and Choral music is a true passion of mine, as most of you know, and it is always a treat to listen to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on a quiet Sunday morning. This morning they played one of my favorite hymns (out of a couple dozen): For the Beauty of the Earth. I was touched by the lyrics and felt that they expressed some of the gratitude I feel today, so I decided to share them.

For the beauty of the earth, for the beauty of the skies, for the love which from our birth over and around us lies, Lord of all, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.
For the beauty of each hour of the day and of the night, Hill and vale, and tree and flower, sun and moon, and stars of light, Lord of all to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of human love, brother, sister, parent, child, friends on earth, and friends above, for all gentle thoughts and mild, Lord of all to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.

Hope you all had a lovely Sabbath as well!