Hi friends💜,
If you live in a land of seasons, maybe right now you are surrounded by oranges, yellows, and reds swirling around in the wind like I am. I don't know about you, but all that swirling seems to stir up my anxiety in the fall. I think it is due to the conflicting forces of diminishing light and death combined with the gorgeous temporal beauty of colors and the innate human hustle to prepare for winter and get things done (and possibly an impending election)!
Last week, I had the privilege of spending several days in Winter Park, Florida singing Rossini's Petite messe solennelle with the professional choral ensemble, Bach Vocal Artists.
I love making beautiful music with this amazing group of singers. Enjoying the Florida sunshine is also a big bonus and I soaked up as much Vitamin D as I could before the dark and cold of Iowa winter. I was also able to spend time working on the second draft of my poetry book:)
Coming back, I was plunged into the heart of a beautiful fall and woke up with heaviness in my heart. The poems I wrote last fall and edited last week came to the forefront of my mind. I want to share this one with you.
Gravity
Softened face,
heavy brow.
Turning leaves
destined
to descend.
Inevitable force
calls all things
to rest.
Fight we must.
To stand, to walk, to breathe.
Even in rest,
we strain against the weight,
ever moving.
Movement is life.
When gravity wins
we are alive no more…
or are we?
Somehow impending fall,
the anticipation of stillness,
is balanced by things
rising within me.
Funneling down and rising up.
Spirit defying gravity’s laws.
Her energy seems to be the only thing
not bound by gravity.
Brown leaves
forever floating
on the wind.
Magical force
that does
not die.
Rising in the fall,
living within us all.
Over and over this yin/yang idea of juxtaposition has become central to my life. A few weeks ago, I sat on my porch just after sunrise and looked up and saw a jet seemingly flying toward its shadow – as if the shadow was carving the path.
What a concept. Plunging forward, following the path of the darkness, moving farther and farther away from the sun. The only way for us to spread our light to the farthest corners is by turning our backs away from the light and heading into the black unknown. Yet also knowing that what we follow is the outline of our brilliant divine beings carved out by the absence of light.
At the beginning of the month, twenty-three incredible folks (some of you!) gathered for my vocal empowerment workshop and we explored that juxtaposition of dark and light within our voices, bodies, and emotions. During our vocal meditation, the sound began to swirl around the room in a cosmic way with a palpable swoosh. I can't really explain it except to say it sounded a bit like the cosmic sounds in movies. Something incredible happened unlike anything I have ever experienced before with a group singing together. What a gift to be able to share that morning with these folks.
Here is an article about it in the Iowa City Press-Citizen!
If you weren't able to come or want to experience it again I will be offering another similar workshop in Iowa City on Dec. 7th:)
And, last month, I told you about the online community I am creating. I had changed the name and this month I realized I am going back to the original name, "VOICES OF HEALING".
We are going to dig deep together to explore how we can use our voices for healing AND support each other as we expand and heal our voices! By holding inclusive sacred space, we will support and learn from one another and empower each other to listen to our hearts' longings to be free, release fear, and reclaim our voices to build a life that we love – with room to hold our dreams.
I am so excited because all of you are such incredible people and I can't wait for many of you to get to know each other and build incredible relationships! We will have online events where we get to know one another, converse about topics related to the voice and healing, and explore vocal meditation. We will have monthly themes and weekly engagements, as well as some in-person events for local folks.
I am still working a bit more on the build-out phase, but the community will open for founding members hopefully before Dec. 1st!
If you would like to become a founding member, click the button below and fill out a request for membership. In about three weeks, you will get a notification that the community is open! (If you join in the next month as a founding member, you also get three months free:)
The other exciting thing that happened in Florida last week is that our director John Sinclair graciously gave up some of our Rossini rehearsal time to read through my first choral anthem! It was so wonderful to hear it sung by a professional choir. I learned a lot and will be editing a few things, but I wanted to share the rough audio recording with you!
And if you are local, my voice studio will be presenting a free concert Nov. 17th at 6pm at Riverside Theatre and I hope you can join us! It is always a wonderful warm-hearted event where we share the power of our voices!
Most importantly, this fall I hope that you can feel the gravity grounding you to the energy of life and the Spirit rising with in you bringing you peace and joy.
💜Mary Jane
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$20.00
I Have A Voice, SATB Choral Octavo
This is an empowering anthem perfect for a high school, community, or church choir. The music is accessible with two... Read more |
