On September 26, 1967, Tara Rivetti was born. My heart leaps at the thought of her arrival and her vulnerable first breaths. Eyes opening. Hands reaching out to embrace the world. Little cries, giving voice to a desire to know and be known.

Fifty years later, I am celebrating the astonishing beauty of her personhood; the soul-shaping music that her life makes; the stunning  and multi-layered integrity of her daily walk; and her gracious willingness to love me and to be loved by me in the context of a covenant that, in so many ways, defines my life.

She is my favorite person. The comprehensive goodness of her spirit creates magnificent poetry in a world trapped within prose. A journey through her countenance is always the best part of my day, my week, my life.

There is no sweeter place than by her side and in her heart and on her mind. This is a song about that very thing, created for Tara and sung for her with deep and grateful love on the occasion of her birthday.

“No Sweeter Place”

In the courtship and
In the covenant
In the tears we’ve gently cried
In the prayers and
In the puzzlement
There’s no sweeter place than at your side

In the tensions and
In the resonance
In the shades of grace we find
In my journeys through
Your countenance
There’s no sweeter place than on your mind

No sweeter place
No sweeter place
Than at your side
And on your mind
No matter where
The road will lead me
There’s no sweeter place I’ll ever find

In the Sabbath and
In the silliness
In the pain of time apart
In the warmth and
In the chilliness
There’s no sweeter place than in your heart

In the smiles and
In the somberness
In the fear of life’s extremes
In the mirth and
In the madness
There’s no sweeter place than in your dreams

No sweeter place
No sweeter place
Than at your side
And on your mind
No matter where
The road will lead me
There’s no sweeter place I’ll ever find

In our hopes and
In our dreaming
In the memories we retrace
In this world that
God’s redeeming
There’s no sweeter place than your embrace

No sweeter place
No sweeter place
Than at your side
And on your mind
No matter where
The road will lead me
There’s no sweeter place I’ll ever find