I got the inspiration for this one while wading in Clear Creek in central Utah on my parent's property on July 23, 2013. I was going downstream, as the song says, and well, the melody and words that became part of the chorus just came to me: I'm walking in a river / I'm going downstream / I'm walking in a river / And everything seems so easy, so easy, so easy.

I didn't know fully what the song was ABOUT until the following Sunday morning when I got home and had the chance to write it out. That got me the first verse and the rest of the chorus. I kept it in the back of my mind all day and got several ideas. Later that night when I had the chance to work on it again, I just started writing thoughts and pairing them up and the second verse appeared. At that point, I changed the line (and title) from 'walking in A river' to 'walking in THE river.'

Some of my thoughts here are parallel to an old Marvin Payne song, "If Jesus Was A River." That song mentions the Old Testament prophet Ezekiel and the vision he had where a great river was flowing out and healing the waters of the Dead Sea, and he keeps going in farther to measure how deep it is. (See Ezekiel Chapter 47.)

This song isn't as overtly religious as his song was, but if you are already religious and then you will find several strong symbolisms. If you're not, I have no idea what it would mean.

Technically speaking, I tried some new things in this one. First off, I have 8 instrumental tracks. That's possibly more instruments than I've used before, but in listening to other popular music I thought I should try adding more instrumental variety to my songs. Also, from the time the song came to me I wanted to have some funky 'watery' sounds in the background. I did it my creating a rhythm in the sequencer software and then adding some chorus and flange to it in editing after I had rendered out the audio tracks. There are not actually any recordings of real water in the song. Also new is the tinny-EQ echo harmony. When I went to record that harmony part, I didn't know I was going to be doing that, but after a couple of normal takes it just felt it was worth a try. I ended up scooting a lot of those takes around to make them echoes even though that's not the way I recorded them.

I'm a weary traveler,
Who's been so far from home.
None may ever see or know
The paths on which I've come

Rocky ridges, desert sand,
Snowy plains and barren land
Slippery slopes and pounding heat,
The burning aching in my feet...

But I can see the river
I'm heading downstream
Finally, the river
And everything seems
So easy, so easy, so easy.

Walking in the river
My feet I can't see
Walking in the river
I'm sure they'll follow me
I don't need to see them, don't need to see them,
They seem to find their way.

Walking in the river
I'm trusting the flow
Walking in the river
To a place I know:
A mighty lake of water,
Clear, blue water,
Pure, true water,
Good, clean water.

BREAK

Renewed as if reborn, and now
At last I understand
That millions more in search of peace
Have journeyed through this land

Those tired souls throughout the years
Immersed in healing waters here
Their faces now I cannot see,
But still I feel them here with me.

Walking in the river
We're heading downstream
Walking in the river
And everything seems
So peaceful, so happy, so peaceful.

Walking in the river
My feet I can't see
Walking in the river
I'm sure they'll follow me
But I don't need them, don't need them,
The current will carry me home.

Walking the river
I'm trusting the flow
Walking in the river
To a place I know:
A mighty lake of water
Clear, blue water,
Pure, true water.
Living water.

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