Mars

am c – d d suspended

Wish I never found it
Can’t put my arms around it
No, I can’t explain it
Can’t even contain it

Now I surrender
Return to sender
No, I can’t solve it
Just spin - revolve it

What seems to be near
is nowhere near clear
This astronomical pain
is a crimson crater stain

Why does Mars seem so close
Eyes see it from coast to coast
Why is Mars so maroon
like a big red tear balloon

I’ll never forget that August heat
God and flame in the same seat
No good answer assumes a moon
Why Mars looks so damn maroon

Now it’s my new decision
to view Mars as a scars incision
My sovereign God wasn’t far away
The day Mars was on display

Dave Davidson

This song is dedicated to a teenage girl, Eryn Buright, who tragically lost her father in a truck fire on August 28^th2003. Eyrn is indeed a Christian, but it was known that her father was likely not a believer. On that very same day both the orbits of Mars and Earth were the closest in history since the days of Jesus. This made it possible to view Mars very easily at 30 degrees in the southeastern night sky.

This song attempts to acknowledge the pain Eyrn is facing while admitting there is no cliché answer to explain her grieving. It also attempts to encourage Eyrn to remember Mars as a symbol of how God as her eternal Father gave her evidence with a heavenly body in space that his glory is close by.

In our days of faith we need not fully understand, but fully trust in a cosmic God of the universe. It is my prayer that this unforgettable day will become a memorable source of inspiration. May she be a light to a dark world and never think of Mars the same. - Dave Davidson