Tin Man

A well-written song will always work on my emotions. Miranda Lambert’s song “Tin Man” is one of those. It is a great concept and a simple structure with no real chorus except the ooohs. She speaks of being broken-hearted and wishing she didn’t even have a heart. Then, the final verse expresses her desire to put on armour and never have to deal with love again. A fitting song for a woman who has just experienced a very public divorce.

Tin Man
(Lyrics and music by Miranda Lambert, Jack Ingram, and Jon Randall)
(Listen here while you read the lyrics.) 

Hey there Mr. Tin Man
You don't know how lucky you are
You shouldn't spend your whole life wishin'
For something bound to fall apart
Every time you're feeling empty
Better thank your lucky stars
If you ever felt one breaking
You'd never want a heart 

 ooooooo, ooooooo, ooooooo, ooooooo, ooo 

Hey there Mr. Tin Man
You don't know how lucky you are
I've been on the road that you're on
It didn't get me very far
You ain't missing nothing
Cause love is so damn hard
Take it from me darlin'
You don't want a heart 

ooooooo, ooooooo, ooooooo, ooooooo, ooo
ooooooo, ooooooo, ooooooo, ooooooo, ooo 

Hey there Mr. Tin Man
I'm glad we talked this out
You can take mine if you want it
It's in pieces now
By the way there Mr. Tin Man
If you don't mind the scars
You give me your armor
And you can have my heart 

ooooooo, ooooooo, ooooooo, ooooooo, ooo
ooooooo, ooooooo, ooooooo, ooooooo, ooo

Lest We Forget

A portion of "Recessional," a poem by Rudyard Kipling, composed in 1897.

God of our fathers, known of old—
Lord of our far-flung battle line—
Beneath whose awful hand we hold
Dominion over palm and pine—
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget! 

The tumult and the shouting dies—
The Captains and the Kings depart—
Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice,
An humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget! 

Far-called our navies melt away—
On dune and headland sinks the fire—
Lo, all our pomp of yesterday
Is one with Nineveh and Tyre!
Judge of the Nations, spare us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget!

With "an humble and a contrite heart."

See also Recessional (poem), Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recessional_(poem)

The Tin Man and Oz

"But Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man that he didn't, didn't already have. . . . So please believe in me. . ." ("Tin Man" by America; written in 1974 by Dewey Bunnell.)

The Tin Man is a fictional character in the American fairy-tale, The Wizard of Oz. The Tin Man is convinced that he could be a much better person if he only had a heart. He wants others to believe in him but he is not confident in himself.

I'd be tender, I'd be gentle
And awful sentimental
Regarding love and art
I'd be friends with the sparrows
And the boy that shoots the arrows
If I only had a heart1

After many adventures, along the Yellow Brick Road, which show that the Tin Man, and his companions, already possess the characteristics which they have been seeking, we realize that the Wizard of Oz does not need to, and indeed has no power to, give them anything. How many of us desire to be good, prayerful, holy, loving, generous, or valiant and treat it as a destination to which we one day may attain. Yet, by God's grace, we already possess the ability to achieve these qualities. They are evident only as we express them along the journey toward His Kingdom.

1 The Wizard of Oz. Directed by Victor Fleming. Performed by Jack Haley. 1939.