Month: July 2021

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I am everyday people

Last night we watched the movie “Summer of Soul” (available on Hulu), about the Harlem Cultural Festival — a series of concerts that were filmed during the summer of 1969 but have only now been released as part of this documentary.

I knew I wanted to see it because so many of the songs were the soundtrack of my childhood. Of course, I didn’t always know who the artist was, because back then the radio was the main way I heard music and I often didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to band names.

But there was one song that made such an impression on me that I have always remembered the name of the group: Sly and the Family Stone.

“Everyday People” is the name of the song and I was thrilled that footage of them performing it during the Festival was included in the film.

Making it even better was the fact that everything was subtitled, so I could get all the lyrics for the first time ever. A part of me was a little amazed that — even as a preteen — these were the kind of lyrics that spoke to me.

I wanted to know more about the group and the song, and ended up stumbling on an article from 2016 that I found quite insightful. It’s too long to share here, but definitely worth checking out (Song ‘Everyday People’ applies now as it did in 1968, written by Chris Shields).

LYRICS
Sometimes I’m right and I can be wrong / My own beliefs are in my song.
The butcher, the banker, the drummer and then / Makes no difference what group I’m in. 
I am everyday people, yeah yeah.

There is a blue one who can’t accept the green one / for living with a fat one, trying to be a skinny one.
Different strokes for different folks / and so on and so on and scooby dooby dooby.
Oh sha sha, we got to live together.

I am no better and neither are you / We are the same whatever we do.
You love me, you hate me, you know me and then / You can’t figure out the bag I’m in. 
I am everyday people, yeah yeah.

There is a long hair that doesn’t like the short hair / for bein’ such a rich one that will not help the poor one.
Different strokes for different folks / and so on and so on and scooby dooby dooby.
Oh sha sha, we got to live together.

There is a yellow one that won’t accept the black one / That won’t accept the red one that won’t accept the white one.
Different strokes for different folks / and so on and so on and scooby dooby dooby.
Oh sha sha, we got to live together.

I am everyday people, yeah yeah.

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So much gratitude

Ending this week feeling grateful for so much….

My increasingly good health. A loving relationship. My family. A job that inspires me and reflects my deepest values. Living in a natural setting. Song and laughter. Wonderful friends. Spiritual family. And so much more!

Truly, my cup runneth over.

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Alyssum & rosemary

Last Sunday we finally got our yard area completely cleaned up — weeds whacked, wisteria trimmed, leaves raked, patio swept, the whole nine yards!

Once it was done I had an irresistible urge to add something beautiful as a way of affirming our intention to keep our outdoor space sattvic and uplifted.

We can’t do a whole lot right now, given the drought situation, but a few small containers won’t take much water.

So I bought some rosemary (which Ramesha loves to cook with) and some alyssum (which I simply love) and planting them became this morning’s project.

Very soothing and grounding.

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Recording day 6 of 6: it’s a wrap!

Whoohoo — they did it!

Ramesha and Christian were in the studio every day from last Friday to today (Wednesday). They couldn’t record Saturday or Sunday morning, due to the Sevaka retreat and Sunday service, but they still ended up with five entire days worth of recording time.

Others joined them at various times to record tablas (Lewis), keyboard and harp (Prashad); and background vocals (Satyana, Prashad, and yours truly).

And today I dug deep in order to do the one intro Ramesha requested on flute. I wouldn’t let him take a video of me playing because I was using such a compromised position in order not to engage my wonky shoulder! And I’m soooo out of shape it was downright embarrassing. But I somehow managed to get it done.

Ramesha poured a ton of energy into this — working out a detailed schedule; planning arrangements; coordinating times; doing his own musical “due diligence” (of course). And it shows in the end result.

It’s going to be a wonderful album.

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Summer rain

How absolutely glorious it was to set out for my morning walk with rain coming down!

Let’s hear it for moisture laden air and negative ions; when I got home I opened all the windows to let them into our home as well.

It wasn’t much rain, considering the months of drought and heat, but it most definitely lifted my spirits.

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Beauty at the kitchen window

This is our kitchen window. I really noticed this “view” while I was doing dishes this morning.

It’s so easy to grow accustomed to what we see every day, but I was struck by the beauty and decided it was worth documenting and consciously appreciating.

There’s so much to be grateful for in these small moments of life.

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The great secret

When I run after what I think I want,
my days are a furnace of stress and anxiety;

If I sit in my own place of patience,
what I need flows to me, and without pain.

From this I understand that
what I want also wants me,
is looking for me and attracting me.

There is a great secret in this
for anyone who can grasp it.
— Rumi

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A family kind of day

The morning was dedicated to spiritual family, at the annual Ananda Sevaka retreat.

A hybrid of in-person and online, I was deeply inspired by inspirational talks from Jyotish and Devi, as well as the creative energy generated in the Zoom breakout rooms that followed.

Then the afternoon was dedicated to human family, as my brother, his wife, and their daughter — who live in Southern California — arrived (together with my Dad) for their first visit to Ananda Village.

I toured them all around the property, then drove into town to have dinner with them before they headed back to Sacramento, where they’re visiting with other family members.

All in all, it was a fairly exhausting day, so I was happy to spend the evening relaxing and watching a show with Ramesha — my core, every day, all the time, love-of-my-life family. 😊

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Random thoughts on a full day

Lovely walk.

Productive music meeting.

Music team lunch with David Eby.

Brainstorming and discussion around rhythm, timing, movement, and body percussion.

Walking down memory lane with old videos of the Santa Clara Vanguard.

Thoughts about how thrilling it is to experience precision, mastery, oneness, and being in the “zone.”

Meanwhile, Ramesha was in the studio for the first day of recording his new album. So, now it’s time to go home and see how he’s doing.

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Giving thanks for the force of love

On my walk this morning I was thinking about how the answer to all my stresses and dilemmas and fears and worries is to be more in love. As the quote says, “Whatever the question, love is the answer.”

Not “in love” as in romantic love (although I’m still very much in love with my husband, thank you very much🥰), but in “LOVE” as in remembering to stay centered in God, all the love there is.

And I found myself remembering two of the little aphorisms I learned in my years with Church of Religious Science (now known as Center of Spiritual Living): “There is no spot where God is not.” And, “You can’t get outside of God.”

My current spiritual path teaches that God created the universe out of Him/Her/Itself. So, everything — literally every single thing — is made out of God. And (as I grew up saying at the end of grace before every meal), “God is Love.”

I also remembered an affirmation from my Unity days, which started out with: “I am a radiating center of God’s love.”

LOVE is what I want to radiate. Not fear, not anger, not frustration, not resentment. LOVE.

It’s all there is, was, or ever can be. If it seems to be lacking it’s only because humankind forgets and gets distracted and focused on all the wrong things.

But…

“All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well…for there is a force of love moving through the universe that holds us fast and will never let us go.”

Thank God.