While searching for information about the Worldwide Candle Lighting I stumbled upon the song “Precious Child.” Or maybe I should say I was grabbed by the song. It really had a strong affect on me.
Because this song had such a strong affect on me, I went searching for the artist. “Precious Child was written and performed by Karen Taylor-Good. While at her website I left a message on her guestbook.
Well, I was surprised the other day to find a message from Karen in my email box.
Karen wrote a very nice note. She told me the story of how she came to write this powerful song.
I asked her to let me post that message here and she gave her permission.
Here is her note to me:
Dear Joe,
I want to thank you so much for taking the time to write to me about “Precious Child”.I read many of the entries on your website….and want to tell you how very sorry I am about the loss of your son, Richard. He sounds like an amazing young man.
I’ve only witnessed what it’s like to be a bereaved parent from the sidelines….my nephew Paul was murdered when he was 21, and I watched my sister go through that tremendous grief. I know that only those of you who’ve been through it can understand it, or have any idea what it’s like.
Bonnie, my sister, became involved with the Compassionate Friends, and was helping them plan their meeting in Nashville several years ago. She asked me if I would come and sing something.
We both wondered what I would sing….we thought about my song “How Can I Help You Say Goodbye”, but although it’s about loss, it’s pretty “mother” specific. I asked her to give me a few days to see if anything came.
I was up at the Waffle House the next morning, with my husband Dennis. In the middle of breakfast, I started hearing the song……..in all of the 500+ songs that I’ve written, this has NEVER happened before…or since.
I asked Dennis to please stop talking,
I grabbed a pen from our waitress, a waffle house napkin, and I wrote down the song…..using numbers for the notes….the whole thing just came.
I recorded it a week later, and we passed it by her “committee”…..who wondered if I had used the words “precious child” too many times…..and a couple of other nit-picky things that I said….”nope…not changing it” to……….but then, they asked if I would change this line….to account for the many varying beliefs of all the parents who might hear the song:
What I HEARD and what I wrote down was:
……God knows I want to see you, feel you, touch you….and I KNOW there’s a heaven and some day I will again………This is not particularly my belief….I have no real, set religious beliefs….I’m open to many ideas….not so open to many others…..but this is what I heard.
They asked me to please change it….so I did….to “MAYBE there’s a heaven….”
Just thought it was important to share that with you, dear Joe….not that it could possibly make your grief any less.
I am honored that the song is speaking to your heart. I know that I was simply used as an instrument to get it out to you, and to my sister, and to other bereaved parents.
My love to you and your family….
Karen
Having talked to Karen a few times now via email, I find that she is not only very talented, but a generous and nice lady as well.
Thanks Karen.
5 responses to “The Story Behind “Precious Child””
[…] Here is the story of why the song came to be and some other interesting facts about it. […]
Hi Joe
I have to agree with you regarding the affect Karen’s song ‘Precious Child’ had on you. I too belong to ‘The compassionate friends’, the chapter I am a member of is the East Rand Chapter, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Precious Child was first played at our candle lighting ceremony three years ago.
I lost my only child, my eight year old son Bradley to leukaemia on the 1st of August 2007.
The song was a huge hit with our chapter members and it brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it at candle light or when I choose to listen to it.
I read your letter while do some research for songs that I would like to introduce
to our candle light this year and had to share with you that ‘Precious Child’ is listened to and appreciated here in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Kind regards
John Gary
I too am a member of TCF and I edit our local newsletter as well as put together our slide show for our yearly candle lighting. Along with that task comes the job of picking music to be played behind the slides being shown. We use ‘Precious Child’ every year. I would be happy to share the names of other songs about healing and/or grief in anyone is interested.
Regards,
Stew Levett
May 23, 2020 we lost our sweet little grandson. Little Richard Dean Williams, we called him RD after my uncle. It was our daughter’s first child, born 11 weeks early and weighed only 1 pound 12 ounces. It was hard for them to lose this “precious child “, who , as small as he was, made them smile daily. He spent 88 days in the NICU can home for a short seven days and was back at the hospital for just three days when he left us. I was asked to plan a graveside service. One night I was lying in bed, somewhere around midnight and 1:00am, on the internet searching for inspiration. I started listening to several songs, but never finished any. They were all beautiful but then it would get to where, they just didn’t fit. I ran across Karen Taylor’s “Precious Child “, I listened to the whole song with tears running down my cheeks. I knew I had to use this song to end the service. Thank you Karen for listening to the whispering voice, and writing down this beautiful song. We just had the service this past Monday, June 1, 2020. It was touching to all who was there and also on zoom all the way to Brazil, where RD’s daddy is from.
With much love,
Ruth Ann Williams
Yesterday, June 5,2024, was what would have been my eldest grandchild’s 33rd birthday. He was killed in a tragic accident December 18, 2019. This year, for some reason, was especially hard for me. I searched for a song that would express my grief and honor his memory. I came across “Precious Child” and oh how it ministered to me. I have played it over and over in the last 24 hours. Thank you so much for this beautiful video of that song. It is so well done. Perfect for those of us who are grieving the loss of a child and in my case, Gandmother. May God bless you for this.