Mona Lisa Smiles & Isn't-It-Glorious Grins

A Great Wild Mercy Single, Video and Playlist

Great Wild Mercy Shout Out - Stream It Now

Much gratitude to all the amazing musicians who helped create the recording of A Great Wild Mercy - released to all streaming services in July. Each and every musician on this collaboration is truly amazing, talented, with their own musical works out there in the world! You can click on their individual names to listen to some of their own projects!

Jim Brock - drums, percussion Brittany Haas – violin Paul Kowert – bass Jordan Tice - guitar & harmony vocal Gary Walters - piano Siri Undlin – harmony vocal

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Mona Lisa Smiles & Isn’t-It-Glorious Grins

For several years I’ve had an evening practice of saying out loud three things for which I’m grateful. It’s a long time practice, and I find I sleep better by holding but lightness and softens my life ever so briefly at the end of the day. I wrote a poem about this practice called Three Gratitudes. Here’s a link to it on On Being’s poetry archives.

Lately, I’ve decided to add a new morning practice. Upon waking I have made it my intention to immediately smile. This sounds so small and fleeting, but I’m finding that it has changed how I enter my day. Most mornings it is a sleepy Mona Lisa smile (I’m not usually fully coherent until after my first cup of tea or coffee). These mornings feel gracious and grateful as I savor the sound of the birds outside and feel the new light coming in the side window. Some day actually start with a full out isn’t-it-all-glorious grin. Somehow my dog, Ella, always senses these start with a grin moments, and with great exuberance leaps up and flops down next to me, her nubbin of a tail in high gear. Somedays I forget—because no matter my practice or intention I’m pretty human and I forget stuff, even important stuff. On these mornings I might give into that strange impulse to check my phone for the news of the world. I’m not sure what that impulse is, maybe you’ve experienced it. It’s like if I stay up to the minute informed on the big-and-out-there troubles of the world I might change it through the power of my concern alone. Or maybe scrolling through the news of the world will help me prepare for whatever metaphorical lion might jump out of the bushes at any moment. Whatever gets pinged in my limbic brain, all I know is that it is a hard and heavy way to begin my daily walk in the world.

But again, what seemed like such small practices when I began, have yielded some important insights. Something always shifts when I bookend my days with wither of these two different forms of gratitude. Mother Teresa wrote, “We can do no great things, only small things with great love.” Perhaps that is part of the beauty of a small practice done faithfully and with good intention—small moments can can contain great acts of love. Small moments can have expansive qualities.

Practice

Tonight: Before you go to sleep say out loud three things for which you are grateful. Tomorrow morning: Upon waking start with a smile (large or small it doesn’t matter).

Question

Name three things you are grateful for today. If you don’t want to stop at three keep going!

AND today when you comment read through the gratitudes of our friends here at A Gathering of Spirits. Respond to one another. Do this particularly if you have seen the name before and have appreciated their post.

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Streaming - Be A Part Of The Team?

I've mentioned, the full album won't be released until October 13th, but you'll be able to hear a few songs beforehand on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, or on whatever platform you use to listen to music.

Streaming music on platforms like these really helps artists. The more you all listen to it, the more the platform shares it with the rest of the world! Yup, the more you play it and share it, the more the streaming service will play it and share it!

Here are a few ways you can support me by streaming the song: 

• Listen to it on Spotify, Apple Music, or wherever you stream your music. 

• Follow me on these platforms so you will be notified whenever I release music! 

• If you're a Spotify user, you can listen to my Great Wild Mercy Playlist, a compilation of songs I was listening to while writing the album. There are lots of wonderful musicians and songs on this playlist. I hope you’ll check it out.

• If you like A Great Wild Mercy, you can add it to a playlist of you own! 

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A Great Wild Mercy Playlist

If you haven’t listened yet on Spotify, here is a playlist I created that contains some of the songs I’ve been listening to in the past year while writing and recording A Great Wild Mercy. I hope you’ll check it out and maybe add A Great Wild Mercy to a playlist of your own Link to Playlist

It is really fun to create and share playlists. I’ve honestly just started doing it myself. Create a playlist for someone you love…songs to inspire, songs for doing dishes, songs for a quiet morning, etc.

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Video - In Case You Missed It This Week

Many Thanks Elle Hodge and Kayla Behforouz (who are both really amazing musicians, artists and human beings).

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TOURING

For more info on my upcoming shows visit my website tour page…

Ring Lake Ranch Workshop

Next week I’ll be heading to Ring Lake Ranch to facilitate a workshop with my buddy John McCutcheon. Think theological dude ranch…which I kind of love saying. ..in the Wind River area of Wyoming.

The Ranch would like for me to be sure to let folks know that unfortunately the week has been sold out for quite some time and there will be no public concert. They’ve been getting a lot of calls. Do watch the Ring Lake Ranch scheduling for other workshops in this singularly beautiful place.

One Inch Photos

I went chanterelle mushroom hunting the other day….and found a treasure!

Chanterelles in the Wild, seeds, a downed log in the shape of a heart and a sign in the woods...maybe from the creator, maybe the girl scouts