Miscellaneous
Peace Recipe
This past month I received a lovely email from a woman named Monique Constant in Canada who’s an Odereader. She’d read one of my posts and wanted to thank me. Very nice when that happens. But then … she went on … “There is something I would like to share with you, I wrote this Read More...
Perfect Day: Music as a Mode of Travel
September 2, 2009 was a perfect day. And by some miracle, I found a way to share it with you. That day I was on a songwriting retreat at a tiny, beloved island in the border waters of Minnesota and Ontario. The days are long there. I awaken before dawn and slip into the cool, still water before Read More...
A Harvest of Peace
I read an American proverb the other day that got me thinking. “A harvest of peace is produced from a seed of contentment.” I think this is true. Sow contentment seeds and you definitely stand a chance of reaping peace. But then I got to thinking a little more deeply about this adage. Read More...
In my own voice: The brilliance of Karly Wahlin
In the winter of 2009 my friend and recording engineer, Matthew Zimmerman, called to invite me into a remarkable project that was being recorded at his studio, Wild Sound, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A 24-year-old composer named Karly Wahlin was seeking a producer for a collection of ten of her Read More...
The discernment dance
When we follow that which excites and challenges us, an internal spark fuels us in our endeavors, and we’re able to step into our vision. By Antonia Hall “I just don’t have your discipline,” my girlfriend told me. But she does have it within her. I suspect she’s just lost the Read More...
Learning peace
Think about this: we don’t know how to do peace on our planet very well. That’s why I like the words of the Dalai Lama, “When you realize that everything springs only from yourself, you will learn both peace and joy.” It’s important to understand that we need to learn how to do peace, Read More...
Free time
What do you like to do with your “free time”? Or, perhaps more apt, do you get any time that is free? Time during which nothing has been planned, time that is okay to spend lost in thought, time that is completely…yours? For adults, such time is often seen as a luxury, a bonus. Having it Read More...
The healing of Congo
Congo is like a microcosm of the entire planet, taken to its extreme. One of the most beautiful places on Earth, it is also among the most troubled. By Charles Eisenstein Today I received the following letter from my dear friend, Cynthia Jurs. For the last two decades she has traveled all Read More...
No one else can sing your song
Voices are so personal. They mirror our story – our gifts, doubts, history, mood, identity, and secret dreams. Every time we speak, we are revealing something about ourselves – the things we’re proud of and perhaps the things we most want to hide. When people hear that I am a voice coach, Read More...
The beauty of nature’s balance
Our first winter back in Ottawa after 27 years in warm Sri Lanka has been quite eye-opening. Watching all of the plant and animal life adapt to the freezing cold; seeing the plants and seeds fight to stay underground; witnessing the roots sprout as the ice thaws—all of these things were magical Read More...