I met my wife back in September 1985 at our little Christian Union (CU) in college. Nowadays, the CU is much much bigger, as is the university, so I’d have many more girls to choose from, but I’d also have much more competition 😀. It is quite fascinating having someone commit themselves to you for their whole lives. We got married in September 1988. Of course, 4.13 billion women didn’t choose me. Most of them never met me, but who’s to say that they would have chosen me? I never saw myself as a particularly good catch 😀.
The colleges, NIHE and Thomond College of Education didn’t merge and gain university status until 1989. I went back to college in the late 1990s. I was even on the staff for a few years, and three of my kids went to the University of Limerick. And a few of my other jobs were within walking distance of the university. So, I have many memories of the place. And it’s in a particularly pleasant area of Limerick – on the banks of the Shannon, about 3 miles away from the city centre. I try to visit the area once or twice every year.
I often write about music and Christianity on my blog. I felt that pop music went a bit downhill around 1985. I often used to associate music with my earlier teenage crushes. It’s a pity that there weren’t many great songs around when I met my wife. I remember both of us liking Kate Bush’s Hounds of Love album.
Anyway, I don’t think my wife would want me writing about her, so I’ll list some reasonably good songs that I remember from 1985. Let’s see if I can think of 20:
- I Know Him So Well – Elaine Page and Barbara Dickson
- Friends – Amy Stewart
- Sussudio – Phil Collings
- We Are the World – USA for Africa
- How Soon Is Now – The Smiths
- Every Time You Go Away – Paul Young
- Everybody Wants To Rule The World – Tears for Fears
- The Unforgettable Fire – U2
- Walls Come Tumbling Down! – The Style Council
- Slave To Love – Bryan Ferry
- Shake The Disease – Depeche Mode
- Running Up That Hill – Kate Bush
- Dancing In The Street – Bowie and Jagger
- Part-Time Lover – Stevie Wonder
- Take On Me – Aha
- Something About You – Level 42
- Separate Lives – Phil Collins and Marlyn Martin
- When Love Breaks Down – Prefab Sprout
- Leaving Me Now – Level 42
- Road to Nowhere – Talking Heads
When I met my wife, one of my favourite songs from 1985 was still in the charts – Running Up That Hill by Kate Bush. And Dancing in the Street by Mick Jagger and David Bowie was number 1. I had first seen that at Live Aid a couple of months earlier- they just showed the video. I did see David Bowie, but Mick Jagger didn’t perform in London.
These are secular songs, but everything can remind me of God. Running Up That Hill speaks of making a deal with God, acknowledging that He is the one in ultimate control of everything. And Dancing in the Street reminds me of loving the whole world – as God loves the world. I loved the way that Live Aid seemed to unite the world to help Ethiopia. So much money and effort is put into war. But on that day, it was such a joy to see technology being used for a good purpose. I wasn’t expecting to be able to enter the concert. I just happened to be in London and I took a trip up to Wembley. And they were selling tickets at the door. Maybe I should have mentioned that as a day that I’d like to relive – which was the daily prompt a few days ago. I remember all the acts, but I don’t suppose that any of them remember me 😀. Or maybe I should have mentioned the day that my future wife agreed to be my girlfriend 😀. That was a pleasant surprise.
What about 1985 hymns? Here are two of my favourites from 1985:
And here’s a video of the university:
Hibernia Gospel 