I Wonder As I Wander

 I Wonder As I Wander   

"I Wonder as I Wander" is a Christian folk hymn, typically performed as a Christmas carol, written by American folklorist and singer John Jacob Niles. The hymn has its origins in a song fragment collected by Niles on July 16, 1933. He was attending a fundraiser held by evangelicals in an Appalachian town called Murphy, North Carolina. The singer, Annie Morgan, was a young, disheveled busker. Niles heard her perform from a stage attached to an automobile. She would sing the song for a quarter.   

My inherent sense of social justice wonders what portion of any income he made off the song was shared with his source.   

Lindsey Stirling’s version is my favorite. 

  

I wonder as I wander out under the sky  
How all the plants, so dormant they lie  
But know they are growing so silently by  

I wonder as I wander out under the sky  

   

Then over the edges of last year's old growth  

The frost builds its castles, a spellbinding show  

And high in the atmosphere crystals are sewn  
And the promise of winter, it's beauty to know  
   
If you ever wanted for any wee thing  

A star in the sky, or a bird on a wing,  

To all of Earth's glory in nature, we sing  

We surely can live it, in our caroling