After the Last Song

(Kristi Holler)

After the Last Song

Words and Music by Kristi Holler

 

Packing up, powering down                           

winding up the chords

The lights are dim, the crowd has gone                                             

Can’t help thinking of you now

 

Did you leave knowing

You are loved

Do you feel, do you know God cares

Did you hear the song

You need to hear tonight

Do you feel love now

After the last song is sung.

                                    

Shook the last hand, one more hug, “love ya,”                          

Said the last goodbye

Beneath the dim lights, I felt a tug inside                     

pray silently now… (Refrain)

 

I am home now, wondering where home is                                  

for the sojourner in me

If you’re wandering, you can be assured

God has not lost track of you.  (Refrain)

Children of God

(Kristi Holler)
Words & Music by Kristi Holler

Children of God

Words and Music by Kristi Holler


Take a look around you

Open up your heart

Notice new perspectives

Have we lost true sight?

Love your neighbor as you love yourself

For then are we children of God.

 

Love your enemies

Love those who hate you

For then are we children of God.

Don’t just love those who love you

Or be good to those who are good to you

The Love of God does not choose sides.

Windbreak

(Kristi Holler)

Windbreak

Words and Music by Kristi Holler

I'm standing in the middle of nowhere

Sometimes I tend to wander

Lost a piece of myself along that last road

Now I know I must turn around

What do I need when there's too much on my mind?

I need a Windbreak now and then

It's a long way back, but I can make it, yeah

I've got the Wind at my back pushing me on

Lost my voice in the noise of the city

Not knowing what to say was making me crazy

Lost confidence back at the crossroads

Now I know I must turn around

What do I need when I've wandered off again?

I need a Windbreak now and then...

It's a long way back, but I can make it, yeah

I've got the Wind at my back pushing me on

Nothing has ever been harder

retrieving what I've dropped

What do I need when life makes no sense?

I need a Windbreak now and then...

It's a long way back, but I can make it, yeah

I've got the Wind at my back pushing me on

Always Welcome Here

(Kristi Holler)

Always Welcome Here

Words and Music by Kristi Holler

 

Your presence is richly near me

and I feel you watching over me

Your presence is in this room today

with such urgency, how can I turn away?

 

Everywhere I go, You’re there

in the dust, the sun, the air

When I’m lonely You pick me up

You are here

You’re always welcome here

 

Your presence moves through this song

Speaking words that only reach my heart

Your presence chases away the fear

You’re always welcome here

You Are

(Kristi Holler)

You Are

Words and Music by Kristi Holler

 

You are Good, you are Fair

When we call out, you are here

in our darkness, you give light

to give us life.

You are pure, you are humble

Great God of Heaven

Meek servant of earth

All that you created, you also served

Light of the world to give us life

 

You are here in the silence

You are here in the music

You are here in our hearing

In the stillness of our minds

You are here

 

You are Yahweh, you are Holy

We believe you are

Ani Adonai,  Ani Adonai Elohim

There was light to give us life

You are the First and the Last

You are the Beginning and the End

Ani Adonai Elohim

There was light to give us life

Ride

(Kristi Holler)

Ride                                                                                           

Driving west in the August heat

in this old blue Chevrolet

I sing to myself and drift to another place

It’s like driving barefoot across the earth

between the songs I write

I sing to myself

The day is bright, my spirit light, I ride

 Chorus:

I won’t give up

I won’t lose faith

No matter how far I’ve gone

No matter how much it takes

I’ll ride the Spirit across this plain

No matter how rough the road

I know I’m not alone

I remember trips to the farm

Chasing tom cats around the barn

The blessing of a summer day

peeled my pain from me

I shouted my song

and you heard me…

Everything That's Lovely

(Kristi Holler)

Everything That’s Lovely

Words and Music by Kristi Holler


The air outside is Springtime

and the rain comes again

I remain quiet within

The mourning doves sound gentle

I don’t wish for anything

I can’t turn back the hands of time

Chorus:

Everything that’s lovely

All that is pure

Look at what is beautiful in your soul

Everything that’s innocent

All that is yours

Think of this,

It helps to know you are loved

 

Are the bones still creaking

in the body you left behind

An empty shell of ruins left to dust

I kicked and screamed through dark times

when there were lessons to be learned

But I reached the edge to see what I see now… (Chorus)

 

I can touch the sunshine

and live in today

Why worry about tomorrow?

(Chorus)

Sunny Day

(Kristi Holler)

Sunny Day

Words and Music by Kristi Holler

 

Along the coast I see you laughing

A smile that shields your tears

By my side, my sweet one says,

“It’s like a painting.  It’s the sky.”

It’s such a sunny day.

 

I want to hold your hand

I want to run with you to a distant land

I want you to remember

I’ve written in the sand

You were born on a sunny day

You were born on a sunny day.

   

In this wide white ocean

I feel every memory

By my side, is your body still so close to me

on this sunny day.  (Chorus)

 

In the strength of this love

I’m every promise you keep

I’m every sincere word you speak

I’m every kiss you need

Every kiss on a sunny day.  (Chorus)

Face to Face

(Kristi Holler)

Face to Face

Words and Music by Kristi Holler

 

Can’t find the words to speak my mind

Like a child learning their first rhyme

Can’t find the words to describe

my walk with you

 

Doubt no more

I will fear no more

‘til the end

I’ll abide in you

Faithful to You

I am led by You

I will meet You face to face

 

In my home are memories

Times of joy and times of defeat

Trying times when I felt far away

from my walk with You

 

Search no more

I have found the Source

You are my living God

Don’t know You as much as I want to

But someday we’ll meet face to face.

Instead of Throwing Stones

(Kristi Holler)

This song is my expression of support for the anti-bullying campaign across the country.

 

Instead of Throwing Stones

Words and Music by Kristi Holler


Might be thrown on a playground or an office on main street

a hostile look or cruel remark just because you’re you

They scratch beneath the surface and your heart starts to cry

You swallow sobs the best you can, then turn to hide your eyes.

 

“If they only held my hand instead of throwing stones

they would feel the same as I when bullies beat you down.

Around this crowded table

we are not alone

We must love one another

instead of throwing stones."

 

Children smile at the circus where music always plays

laughing with one another the way children play.

But around a crowded stadium one child sits alone

we must love one another instead of throwing stones.

 

She sits alone in the corner of the break room

feeling different from the others

Doesn’t talk the way they do.

She pushes back her chair to leave

wishing she could say

“Why not love one another

instead of throwing stones?”

 

“If they only held my hand instead of throwing stones

They would feel the same as I when bullies beat you down.

Around this crowded table

we are not alone

We must love one another

instead of throwing stones."

Inside this Flame

(Kristi Holler)

Inside this Flame                                                                       

Words and Music by Kristi Holler


If you had the urge, would you have to ask

Can blessings from angels be given back?

When the weather is cold inside and out

Any touch from you removes all doubt.

 

Rising at dawn, I only wish to remain

with something felt from here in your gentle gaze

And that’s just what I mean

Can I hold on to that?

I’ll walk along, with words to light my path

This is the story I’ll lay inside this flame.

This is the story I’ll lay inside this flame.

 

I turn around, the story at my back

It follows me, moves where I move

The words will not escape me

I ask of you, where is my faith?

Where is your answer?  Inside this flame.

 

What have you faced?

What has your soul endured?

That is the story to lay inside this flame

You won’t lose your way, I’ll never look away

So close your eyes, rest in this day

This is the story I’ll lay inside this flame.

This is the story I’ll lay inside this flame.

 

When my heart is warm inside and out

I’ll hear you speaking

and feel your presence now

Can’t resist your ways, you’ve never looked away

I know where you are, inside this flame

I know where you are, inside this flame

I know where you are, inside this flame.

Outside my Door

(Kristi Holler)

Outside My Door   

Words and Music by Kristi Holler                                                            

 

You wait outside my door

In the dark for something more

Nothing seems to happen, nothing seems to rhyme

Cold and frozen in time

Chorus:

You wait outside my door

You don’t knock

You only wish for something more

Nothing satisfies, nothing but compromise

Cold and frozen in time

Look at your hands, what do they hold

Your heart in your hands or something you can’t let go

Absent and daring, desperate to be free

Untie your hands from behind your upbringing

You can have it if you choose

Freedom on the inside

That you will never lose

You find the world can’t crowd you

Can’t take your space, can’t take this day away

It's Much Easier

(Kristi Holler)

It’s Much Easier

Words and Music by Kristi Holler

 

You have other interests

and from time to time

I wonder what it would be like

to erase my regrets

 

Our actions have spoken

but we never say a word

of time that has passed us by

or a future so unsure

 

I know it’s much easier to walk away

It’s much easier to not feel the pain

It’s much easier to go different ways

It’s much easier this way

 

And time still passes

And the past seems such a blur

of empty conversations

and hardly loving words

 

I am older now

and things seem clearer to me

that life has not much meaning

if we live it selfishly

 

I know it’s much easier to walk away

It’s much easier to not feel the pain

It’s much easier to go different ways

It’s much easier this way

Something Somewhere

(Kristi Holler)

Something Somewhere

Words and Music by Kristi Holler

 

I was looking at you

You were looking at me

Trying not to say something we don’t mean

You know what I mean

 

We talk about each other

like we’re enemies

Doesn’t that all get tiring

when back in the 60’s

they were spreading peace

 

It’s a hot sunny day

nice one for a hike

somewhere in the back woods

where I can write about

something somewhere

 

The road less traveled

appeals to me

sleeping on a boat somewhere

sailing across the sea

When I’m old and tired

I want to say to you

“the road I chose

was the right one for me.”

 

I talk about a lot of things

I walk by a lot of things

but these days, I’m just looking for

something somewhere

 

I’ve studied theology

I’ve read some psychology

But the shelves get higher

As I put them away again

 

I’ve heard enough of the blaming game

I’ve heard enough of the blaming game

I’ve heard enough of the blaming game…

You Are With Me (Bist Du Bei Mir)

(Kristi Holler)
by Bach

Lead You Home

(Kristi Holler)

Lead You Home 

Words and Music by Kristi Holler                                                                  

Somewhere between me and the moon

Your eyes dance on and on

And I touch you

You stand back like a shadow

You have so much to give to this world

Chorus:

Love isn’t love ‘til it’s vulnerable

And you will come into your own

And I’ll walk the distance if that’s what it takes

To lead you home

You hold your life steady

You are calm and contained

Just let yourself go

I sing into a flame

‘cause you play with water and fire

We sway under the moon..

(Chorus)

Nothing To Prove

(Kristi Holler)

Nothing to Prove

Words and Music by Kristi Holler

 

Angel is waiting, now choose your way

Daybreak has come, breaking you from night

Did you not know there’s nothing to prove?

Where is your guidance?  Where is your light?

Why are you running to the nearest way out?

The chase is over, there’s nothing to prove

 

Can you prove your own strength

by what’s not seen or heard?

As the dawn draws closer,

Can you just let go?

 

Angel is leaving before the dawn

It’s daybreak, you have won

The match is over, there’s nothing to prove

Now rest your weary hands and tired eyes

in the God who says, “You are mine.”

It’s daybreak, there’s nothing to prove

Hartford Place

(Kristi Holler)

Hartford Place

Words and Music by Kristi Holler

 

She spoke softly in a wooded bend

Her white robe dancing in the wind

She found a photo in a mountain of leaves

Seems some time ago she was looking for me

 

Moonlight bears my staring eyes

as though I’m  looking for you

The air is thin in this crowded room

of yellow petals waiting for you

 

Well, I miss her deeply

my sister back then

bittersweet times with an angelic friend

I’d gather flowers in my pocket

and deliver them

to your bedside where they would wilt at the stem

Midwestern Mind

(Kristi Holler)

Midwestern Mind 

Words and Music by Kristi Holler


People crowd the village squares

Lovers walk hand in hand

Through shop windows

Strained eyes stare back at me.

 

Back in Philadelphia, I’m a Midwestern story here

That city shapes my wondering around a circle and a mirror.

 

Chorus:

Nighthawks dive in my Midwestern mind

I climb the slopes of the hills

I ride the waves of the Missouri

Underneath a pale blue sky

In my Midwestern mind

 

Skyscrapers hushed like tall trees

Oh, the secrets they could tell

Made like pillars for our wonder

Made like altars without fail.

 

Back in Philadelphia, I’m a Midwestern story here

That city lends me its backbone, but I’m ready to return