I read your most recent post this morning, but I’m not a subscriber at this time. I love your music I love your thoughtful lyrics and beautiful voice, and I find all of the things that you talk about deeply meaningful. I want you to know I say this with love and support for you as a traveling musician – and when people talk about the environment, and what’s not being done to combat climate crisis but they fly all over the world for vacations and work, I want to say to them that we might not be able to live in our level of comfort, and seeing the species that are being killed by that very comfort. We might not be able to snorkel in January in the tropics and import bananas all winter in a world on fire. We may need to scale back our travel, our expectations of personal freedom and comfort.
Point taken. I do get a bit of judgement in your comment…or maybe anger? Please be assured I do think about these things a lot. I know many artists wrestle with carbon footprint. We have to ask ourselves if the good that the arts do in the world justify the carbon used when we need to drive or fly for our work. I’ve had many long conversations with other artists and writers about this very important question. I have decided (at least at this point) to travel with my art. I travel in a hybrid car when I can drive to appearances, but I do occassionally fly. I have made other choices in my life to dramatically lower my carbon footprint. So hopefully that assures you these are things I think about these things seriously and negotiate them thoughtfully and personally. Climate change is real and pressing. I appreciate and share your passion for the planet. I appreciate your criticism was made out of love…please know my response is coming from love too.
Yes, I did take a vacation. That choice was also considered very carefully. It was beautiful and I feel inordinately, incredibly grateful to have the chance to see and experience a coral reef. But it was a very conscious choice. Oh…Im a life long vegetarian, I work at a local organic garden three seasons of the year, eat local as possible….and I generally don’t eat bananas.
You’re absolutely right - we have to live. And you, as a creative artist have a gift to share. Of course, this country doesn’t make it easy to travel in less carbon intensive ways, like high speed trains. I’m devastated about the loss of so much life and beauty on this planet and I was responding to your comments the climate. I get that you’re aware and conflicted about it, as am I. I apologize for writing that to you.
To ground myself I walk in the prairies that my son and I have created on the farm, in the gardens and woods that surround me. To quiet the outside voices I immerse myself in my art studio making prints and books with my mown hands and imagination while listening to music that means so much to me. Listening to my heart.
I'm sitting and grounding myself today in a community of strangers called jury duty. Thank you Carrie for this thoughtful message which speaks to my heart. Potluck is such a groovy song name. Hopefully I can mediate to it tomorrow in the comfort of my home.
Carrie, this post raises so many issues with me that I hardly know where to begin. Since no one could possibly care about most of my thoughts this morning, I will leave it with this:
I am no longer able to listen to music.
I have simply become unable to use the technology, and I am appalled when I try. The end result is...no music at all.
A good example: I have been unable to listen to your last two "albums" (as an old-timer I am inclined to call them). I have lost them somewhere in electron-land, and I cannot get them to my ears/mind/heart. Ain't possible.
I recall with some vividness the days when I went to record stores and looked at album covers (my impossible standards for that being "Rumours" by Fleetwood Mac, or possibly the album by Judy Collins on which she appeared nude!). I would gaze longingly and on rare occasions (assuming I had the funds) I would buy. Then--I owned this physical thing that I could keep safe and no one could easily alter or remove. I could convert that thing into luscious sound with a relatively simple device. The thing lived on a shelf, under my control.
No more. Now I get files of various digital formats that--for the life of me--I cannot turn into music. They become things that I have to struggle mightily to find and preserve, often lost in an amorphous something that folks call a "cloud." Others tell me it is easy, but I think I must be missing something. And that thing is quite possibly part of my mind. :-)
So Carrie--as this approaching Friday looms I look forward to seeing you in Columbus. Perhaps by that time I will figure out how to listen to your music again. Bur realistically, I think we should not hold our collective breath about it. I will come to your concert prepared to hear your new stuff once--and have it then vanish forever into the eternal ether!. Based on previous performance I can be sure of only one thing: I will love it all.
See you Friday, lord willin and the creek don't rise.
Carrie, a deep thank you for this. I feel I am in the right head space at the right time for this gift. It brings.me back to my awareness.
I worked with a woman who had memory loss and there were two striking things that she also brought to my awareness. She had multiples of the same clothing, her lean to through confusion. And though she could no longer dress her self with that same clothing from the outside, she still played songs on the piano from the inside. They were songs from her childhood and songs she played for her children and grandchildren.
And it struck me how powerful intention, practice, and repetition are. You continue to remind me of this.
So rather than choosing memories of trauma, and weathering repeated bounded grooves, I redirect triggers, clear, and am choosing to be careful about what I invite. This is my morning prayer:
I am bringing myself
back to the awareness of breath
of boundless spirit
I am softening
I repeat deep breaths
Back to the awareness of my body
through yoga, singing, dancing, hiking, bicycling, swimming, kayaking, laughter, and hugs
I am repeating body messages
through time and natural cycles
I repeat good muscle memories
Back to the awareness
of the lovely cycles in nature
I am seeing the expanse
from the soil to the heavens
I water and harvest earths green
I see the stars, like favorite old movies
I am a painter in my minds eye;
a repeat observer of abundance and beauty
Back to the awareness of
feel good sounds
and I am choosing the sound of loving heartbeats, songs, mantras, hymns, and prayers
I am a repeat listener
Back to the
the stirring and scent of good food
and favorite recipes
I am a repeatedly fed
and share a welcoming place at the table with repeat helpings
Question: Where are you able to ground yourself in the “news of the heart?”
Even on vacations, which so many people equate with round travelling, I prefer a stay somewhere in the woods, at a lake shore, or at a base of the mountains where several easy trails are available. Instead of a sightseeing route fraught with information, I prefer unhurried walks in the wilderness and silence (silence from human made noises; the environment is filled with the sounds of Nature.) This is where and when I can ask myself questions and answer them honestly. Such a vacation time, rather than the end of a year in a calendar, is a good moment to summarize the close past and think about the future: what "new" should I seek for?
***
I share wholeheartedly the routine of learning the news only from a limited (but still diverse) number of sources I trust, it is professional journalists, never from any social media news streams.
***
Thank you for a beautiful song "Potluck" which I repeat listening to gradually take in all the meanings it conveys.
News of the heart might be the same each day and then again it might not. Yesterday it was the wild turkey and their half grown brood...all 17 of them making their way through the back yard. Today it was a visit with my 93 year old Dad.
Thank you Carrie for this wonderful reflection!! I find my news of the heart singing at church, playing my guitar and learning new songs, walking my puppy, cuddles with my puppy, relaxing in my swing chair and listening to nature around me, but most of all through you Carrie. You have been such a balm for my soul!
The film was very deep and resonated with me first hand how repetitive words keep someone with dementia linked to reality. My mom would say over and over “My one and only daughter is here” when I would visit her at the Longterm care home. I actually have her recorded saying that. I love how it was put to music as well. Another link for those with dementia to reality.
Carrie, thank you for this essay. Your writings remind me of Fred Rogers. Mr Rogers wrote “You rarely have time for everything you want in this life, so you need to make choices. And hopefully your choices come from a deep sense of who you are.”
I find my news of the heart in listening to music that speaks to my heart and soul, by going for a walk with my dog Tobey, reading, and enjoying the beauty of the flowers in my yard.
Ahh the news what can I say. some days I can take it and say okay what can I do today about this news I am hearing and other days I just must tune it out. But I love the gift you gave me of thinking of finding news of the heart. So I took some time and thought and so here goes. I find news of the heart in the singing and guitar playing of my husband (although when he is learning a new song that can be to much at times LOL), the sound of my family and friends voices, the purr of the cat as we sit and watch the sun rise and set, the joy of reading, the relaxation of doing a puzzle, that first sip of tea in the morning, volunteer work, the pure pleasure of a good sermon. I also have found the 3 gratitudes every night is helping me balance the news with my life..the smiling when I awake is a work in progress. These are just a few of the places I go to find my heart news. Thank you again and again for touching my heart with your thoughts and your music...it is always great heart news.
Thank you for Potluck, and for sharing these thoughts about balancing the news of the world and the news of the heart. I'm reading The Shallows by Nicholas Carr and learning about how the choices we make (and don't make) can literally reshape our brains. M-m-m-m -- those potatoes!!
I read your most recent post this morning, but I’m not a subscriber at this time. I love your music I love your thoughtful lyrics and beautiful voice, and I find all of the things that you talk about deeply meaningful. I want you to know I say this with love and support for you as a traveling musician – and when people talk about the environment, and what’s not being done to combat climate crisis but they fly all over the world for vacations and work, I want to say to them that we might not be able to live in our level of comfort, and seeing the species that are being killed by that very comfort. We might not be able to snorkel in January in the tropics and import bananas all winter in a world on fire. We may need to scale back our travel, our expectations of personal freedom and comfort.
Point taken. I do get a bit of judgement in your comment…or maybe anger? Please be assured I do think about these things a lot. I know many artists wrestle with carbon footprint. We have to ask ourselves if the good that the arts do in the world justify the carbon used when we need to drive or fly for our work. I’ve had many long conversations with other artists and writers about this very important question. I have decided (at least at this point) to travel with my art. I travel in a hybrid car when I can drive to appearances, but I do occassionally fly. I have made other choices in my life to dramatically lower my carbon footprint. So hopefully that assures you these are things I think about these things seriously and negotiate them thoughtfully and personally. Climate change is real and pressing. I appreciate and share your passion for the planet. I appreciate your criticism was made out of love…please know my response is coming from love too.
Yes, I did take a vacation. That choice was also considered very carefully. It was beautiful and I feel inordinately, incredibly grateful to have the chance to see and experience a coral reef. But it was a very conscious choice. Oh…Im a life long vegetarian, I work at a local organic garden three seasons of the year, eat local as possible….and I generally don’t eat bananas.
You’re absolutely right - we have to live. And you, as a creative artist have a gift to share. Of course, this country doesn’t make it easy to travel in less carbon intensive ways, like high speed trains. I’m devastated about the loss of so much life and beauty on this planet and I was responding to your comments the climate. I get that you’re aware and conflicted about it, as am I. I apologize for writing that to you.
Thank you for reminding me to live in the now.
To ground myself I walk in the prairies that my son and I have created on the farm, in the gardens and woods that surround me. To quiet the outside voices I immerse myself in my art studio making prints and books with my mown hands and imagination while listening to music that means so much to me. Listening to my heart.
I'm sitting and grounding myself today in a community of strangers called jury duty. Thank you Carrie for this thoughtful message which speaks to my heart. Potluck is such a groovy song name. Hopefully I can mediate to it tomorrow in the comfort of my home.
Carrie, this post raises so many issues with me that I hardly know where to begin. Since no one could possibly care about most of my thoughts this morning, I will leave it with this:
I am no longer able to listen to music.
I have simply become unable to use the technology, and I am appalled when I try. The end result is...no music at all.
A good example: I have been unable to listen to your last two "albums" (as an old-timer I am inclined to call them). I have lost them somewhere in electron-land, and I cannot get them to my ears/mind/heart. Ain't possible.
I recall with some vividness the days when I went to record stores and looked at album covers (my impossible standards for that being "Rumours" by Fleetwood Mac, or possibly the album by Judy Collins on which she appeared nude!). I would gaze longingly and on rare occasions (assuming I had the funds) I would buy. Then--I owned this physical thing that I could keep safe and no one could easily alter or remove. I could convert that thing into luscious sound with a relatively simple device. The thing lived on a shelf, under my control.
No more. Now I get files of various digital formats that--for the life of me--I cannot turn into music. They become things that I have to struggle mightily to find and preserve, often lost in an amorphous something that folks call a "cloud." Others tell me it is easy, but I think I must be missing something. And that thing is quite possibly part of my mind. :-)
So Carrie--as this approaching Friday looms I look forward to seeing you in Columbus. Perhaps by that time I will figure out how to listen to your music again. Bur realistically, I think we should not hold our collective breath about it. I will come to your concert prepared to hear your new stuff once--and have it then vanish forever into the eternal ether!. Based on previous performance I can be sure of only one thing: I will love it all.
See you Friday, lord willin and the creek don't rise.
Carrie, a deep thank you for this. I feel I am in the right head space at the right time for this gift. It brings.me back to my awareness.
I worked with a woman who had memory loss and there were two striking things that she also brought to my awareness. She had multiples of the same clothing, her lean to through confusion. And though she could no longer dress her self with that same clothing from the outside, she still played songs on the piano from the inside. They were songs from her childhood and songs she played for her children and grandchildren.
And it struck me how powerful intention, practice, and repetition are. You continue to remind me of this.
So rather than choosing memories of trauma, and weathering repeated bounded grooves, I redirect triggers, clear, and am choosing to be careful about what I invite. This is my morning prayer:
I am bringing myself
back to the awareness of breath
of boundless spirit
I am softening
I repeat deep breaths
Back to the awareness of my body
through yoga, singing, dancing, hiking, bicycling, swimming, kayaking, laughter, and hugs
I am repeating body messages
through time and natural cycles
I repeat good muscle memories
Back to the awareness
of the lovely cycles in nature
I am seeing the expanse
from the soil to the heavens
I water and harvest earths green
I see the stars, like favorite old movies
I am a painter in my minds eye;
a repeat observer of abundance and beauty
Back to the awareness of
feel good sounds
and I am choosing the sound of loving heartbeats, songs, mantras, hymns, and prayers
I am a repeat listener
Back to the
the stirring and scent of good food
and favorite recipes
I am a repeatedly fed
and share a welcoming place at the table with repeat helpings
Back to visiting the love of family, friends
and even strangers,
of many ages,
from children to elders,
family with fur
and feather,
I am giving and receiving
love and togetherness
higher love repeats love
Throughout this life
may this be
my chosen beginning
my chosen middle
my chosen end
and with hope
what remains
worthy of repeating
Question: Where are you able to ground yourself in the “news of the heart?”
Even on vacations, which so many people equate with round travelling, I prefer a stay somewhere in the woods, at a lake shore, or at a base of the mountains where several easy trails are available. Instead of a sightseeing route fraught with information, I prefer unhurried walks in the wilderness and silence (silence from human made noises; the environment is filled with the sounds of Nature.) This is where and when I can ask myself questions and answer them honestly. Such a vacation time, rather than the end of a year in a calendar, is a good moment to summarize the close past and think about the future: what "new" should I seek for?
***
I share wholeheartedly the routine of learning the news only from a limited (but still diverse) number of sources I trust, it is professional journalists, never from any social media news streams.
***
Thank you for a beautiful song "Potluck" which I repeat listening to gradually take in all the meanings it conveys.
News of the heart might be the same each day and then again it might not. Yesterday it was the wild turkey and their half grown brood...all 17 of them making their way through the back yard. Today it was a visit with my 93 year old Dad.
I use tools from the wonderful book “How to Train a Wild Elephant” to ground myself in news of the heart
Thank you Carrie for this wonderful reflection!! I find my news of the heart singing at church, playing my guitar and learning new songs, walking my puppy, cuddles with my puppy, relaxing in my swing chair and listening to nature around me, but most of all through you Carrie. You have been such a balm for my soul!
The film was very deep and resonated with me first hand how repetitive words keep someone with dementia linked to reality. My mom would say over and over “My one and only daughter is here” when I would visit her at the Longterm care home. I actually have her recorded saying that. I love how it was put to music as well. Another link for those with dementia to reality.
Thank you for sharing Carrie!!
Nice piece. Made me think of Bruce Cockburn's "Wondering Where the Lions Are."
Carrie, thank you for this essay. Your writings remind me of Fred Rogers. Mr Rogers wrote “You rarely have time for everything you want in this life, so you need to make choices. And hopefully your choices come from a deep sense of who you are.”
I find my news of the heart in listening to music that speaks to my heart and soul, by going for a walk with my dog Tobey, reading, and enjoying the beauty of the flowers in my yard.
Beautiful song. It is a balm to my heart and soul.
Ahh the news what can I say. some days I can take it and say okay what can I do today about this news I am hearing and other days I just must tune it out. But I love the gift you gave me of thinking of finding news of the heart. So I took some time and thought and so here goes. I find news of the heart in the singing and guitar playing of my husband (although when he is learning a new song that can be to much at times LOL), the sound of my family and friends voices, the purr of the cat as we sit and watch the sun rise and set, the joy of reading, the relaxation of doing a puzzle, that first sip of tea in the morning, volunteer work, the pure pleasure of a good sermon. I also have found the 3 gratitudes every night is helping me balance the news with my life..the smiling when I awake is a work in progress. These are just a few of the places I go to find my heart news. Thank you again and again for touching my heart with your thoughts and your music...it is always great heart news.
Thank you for Potluck, and for sharing these thoughts about balancing the news of the world and the news of the heart. I'm reading The Shallows by Nicholas Carr and learning about how the choices we make (and don't make) can literally reshape our brains. M-m-m-m -- those potatoes!!
Hauntingly beautiful. Images and song inscribed on the soul.