‘We Endure’ – Janis Ian

Jane writes:

It’s a hard thing to face up to sometimes – life.

It doesn’t go as planned. It seems ok and then something comes out of left-field to get you and disrupt everything. People you love die, and those you care about who remain are struggling still. I suppose it’s been like that forever but recently we’ve seen a global version of what we already know to be true.

Here she is then – Janis Ian – one of my favorite go-to artists, stating the obvious about life.

She wrote it at a time when her own life was in chaos, having lost all the key things that mattered to her. Her financial security. Her marriage. Her health. And on top then she was aware that her whole life seemed to have been like living through a drought. Add in a pandemic for good measure and the song resonates more than ever.

The sense of loss is apparent and the thinking that “even God may have turned his back” sums up how hard it feels. No hope in sight.

Yet as people of faith we might have a way to see it differently. Endurance is a feature in lots of biblical stories. Throughout the Old and New testaments, people have had to live with courage, persistence, and hope in the toughest of times. Walking in wildernesses. Living in exile. Coping with disease and illness. War. Famine. Rejection. Loss. The themes mirror the way of the human condition, and yet the stories that go with them – finding the promised land. Restoration. Healing. Peace. Unconditional acceptance. Resurrection. All play a part too and God is in it all.

I love the simplicity of this version of this song. No fuss. No embellishment. Just a simple spare sound and the realization that we can make it. We have endured before and we can endure again now. Our resilience is built on the human experience and the knowledge that endurance is part of the fully-rounded life we all lead. Life in all its measure. Every element in abundance. Joy and Pain. Our ability to cope (or not). Our onward journey accompanied by the God of love we know to be ever at our side.

And we endure

Though the road only gets longer, we endure

And I swear it makes us stronger

Even when the wolves are howling at the door

We endure

You can find out more about Janis Ian here https://janisian.com/