Remembering Pete Seeger

Today the local (Port Angeles, Sequim, Port Townsend, etc.) folks held a gathering to remember Pete Seeger.

The Peninsula Daily News (link here) explained that the Wheeler family of Sequim made a connection with him back in 1956 and continued that relationship for years afterward. They were the hosts of the event, coordinating musicians, coffee and cookies and cake.

Some of us didn't need the lyrics to recall the words of the
songs we had been singing 'back then'...

I went to the Unitarian-Universalist Church event today and in mentioning to someone that my school chum was Penny Seeger, I was asked to speak about my memories of Pete coming to visit.

How do you compress the experiences of several years into a three-minute talk?

Fortunately, with my background as a Toastmaster, I was able to extemporaneously (big word meaning to quickly stand up before a microphone and speak to a crowd of 100 without any planning) tell about how I got sent to Woodstock Country School in the 60's - in VERMONT, not the place where they had days of wild living and singing in NEW YORK - and ended up with Pete's younger sister in my class, and how he came to visit us.

But the kernel I wanted to offer to this group was what I think was the essence of Pete's life, that when you were talking to him, he was listening, and for all of us at Woodstock, this was in itself a rare experience and it was something to carry away and build on in our futures.

Several people came up to me later and said they enjoyed hearing what I had to say.

That was gratifying.

But what pleased me the most was being able to find a way to express what this man of legend meant to me when I was 16 years old, that even then as he was becoming so well known, he took time to listen. Not only to me, but to all of us gathered 'round him as he played for us and talked with us.

And then later today I was reading a reminder about this important tool of communication.

When we really listen to what someone is saying, we are letting them know that we think they have something of value to share. This imparts a sense of importance to them, building their self-esteem.

How often are we invited to a party where we are introduced to someone, but that person is always looking over our shoulder, scanning the room for someone better they can engage in conversation? We come away feeling belittled, de-valued, less than.

I am so grateful for my early experience in meeting Pete and what I liked about him was that he wore a plaid shirt everywhere with his bluejeans, and when his blue eyes met yours you knew you had value in them.

The play "Summer of Love" was recently staged here,
a reminder for some of a time gone by, but still relevant.

"I was so much younger then; I'm older than that now…" How quickly the days have flown from being a flower child to being chaff on the winds of change.

She would have been 101 today...

If she had lived until now, my mother would have been 101 today. The last woman who grew up speaking her tribal language from birth, S'klallam, died today at 103 here on the Peninsula. It was noted by a relative that when the elders leave us, there are no ways to replace what they have taken with them.

And in my eulogy comments at my mother's memorial, I also noted the huge gap that was created by her death. She was a musician, an artist, an intellectual, and like us all - particularly unique.

All of this was stolen by a 'friend' who was renting my place
while I was in Colombia. I came home to an empty house
and thus endeth the lesson of permanence.

Although I wasn't aware of it at the time, when she died in March 2007, I went into a peculiar kind of depression that manifested itself in a buying spree of semi-precious stones, none of which remain today, due to a theft of my personal things.

I have thought a lot about why I was buying them recently, and why I don't have them anymore. Both of which point to the impermanence of 'things' and life itself... none of it lasts forever, unless you are talking about radiation/uranium which has a half-life that goes on for centuries.

In some wierd way I think I was trying to stave off the certainty of death itself, and now here I am again, in a part-time job writing obituary/death notices for people who have lived, loved, laughed and cried before they died. They have no interest in stones of any kind now.

At any rate, while time passes, according to the AP Style Book, people do not. They die. Flat out. No euphemisms, no padding the truth of it all. 

And last year I went to a grief group because I realized I never dared to cry for my mother and what I missed about her. It was a relief to talk about it back then and now when I tell people they can remember my name as being connected to Lil Orphan Annie, I can laugh about being motherless, because really I am not. 

We all have mothers and fathers, whether we know who they are or not... we only become orphans when we feel unloved. I am lucky to know that I am.

Moving … and helping a friend

This is going to be a busy week as I finish packing up boxes and move myself into a slightly different place which will actually be closer to the part-time job, and has the environment I need for a more peaceful existence.

I won't go into the details, but sometimes the energy of a place can affect too many aspects of one's life to be enjoyable. When we are younger we seek out places where we can bounce about and have others with similar energies. But there is a reason why senior homes and assisted living are not necessarily bad.

That is NOT where I am heading yet, but I do want people around me who have a sense of their direction and balance and I found a location and a nice little home that I hope is going to fulfill my expectations, not far from where I have been living.

A brand new kitchen and a nicer view...

The outbuilding to the right is the studio…can be heated.

Best of all, it has a brand new kitchen, space for a dining room table and room in the back for a studio where I can have all my art activities. I am truly excited and by this time next week have the intention to be settled.

Another delightful aspect is the closeness to a park so I can go walking or biking without fearing for my life on the roads.

One of my Intender buddies is also looking to move things around in her life and she has a practically brand new camper in Yuma, AZ that she would like to sell.
It is one that has a queen bed, bath, and a nice kitchen with pop-outs for the living and dining area.

If you are looking for something like that as a winter retreat, contact me and I will forward the photos to you.

We've had a mild winter, according to the locals, but this place also has a pellet stove, which will help with heating should winter get nastier between now and April, and certainly will be more economical.

Work continues to challenge me and time will tell whether or not this racehorse can make it around the track.

So, dear readers, wherever you are in the world, I hold the intention that your life is coming together in this new year of 2014 and you are being inspired and excited by what is coming for you. And the weather isn't too cold….

Funny thoughts

I stood in line at a familiar coffee place and listened to an order for Chai Tea and said to no one in particular, moving my arms and making a zen-sort of movement, "If this is what Tai Chi looks like, then what does Chai tea look like?" The lady in front of me laughed and did a reverse movement with her arms saying, "Something like this?"

What funny thoughts have you had lately? How have you made someone smile? I'm all for sharing some light as we move into the new Solstice and a new year.

Christmas sunrise 2013… the Light cometh.

60's songstress is gone, the memories linger on

Mary Travers, part of the group of Peter, Paul and Mary from the 60's, died in 2009. As a part of that generation, when I heard that news it was one more reminder that time marches on, a premise that in no way was minimized when they started playing the group's songs in tribute to Mary.

I remember being in the hospital on a morning in late December in 1967 and hearing someone playing "Puff the Magic Dragon" loudly from their car. I had just given birth and was holding this new life in my arms and feeling quite inadequate to what I expected to be a long-term connection.

All those hormones, all that fatigue from the work of delivery, and yet the song grabbed me. I listened and here are the lyrics again:

Puff, the magic dragon, lived by the sea 
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee, 
Little Jackie Piper loved that rascal Puff, 
And brought him strings and sealing wax and other fancy stuff. oh 

Puff, the magic dragon, lived by the sea 
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee, 
Puff, the magic dragon, lived by the sea 
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee. 

Together they would travel on a boat with billowed sail 
Jackie kept a lookout perched on Puff's gigantic tail, 
Noble kings and princes would bow whenever they came, 
Pirate ships would lower their flag when Puff roared out his name. oh!

Puff, the magic dragon, lived by the sea 
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee, 
Puff, the magic dragon, lived by the sea 
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee. 

A dragon lives forever, but not so little boys 
Painted wings and giant rings make way for other toys. 
One grey night it happened, Jackie Piper came no more 
And Puff, that mighty dragon, he ceased his fearless roar. 

His head was bent in sorrow, green scales fell like rain, 
Puff no longer went to play along the cherry lane. 
Without his life-long friend, Puff could not be brave, 
So Puff, that mighty dragon, sadly slipped into his cave. oh! 

Puff, the magic dragon, lived by the sea 
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee, 
Puff, the magic dragon, lived by the sea 
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee.

Some people say the song is about the illusions created by smoking "that devil weed," but to me it is about how we all grow up and leave behind the things of childhood, and how quickly it all happens! I am among the fortunate parents who have been able to see their children into adulthood, but the years have gone by like droplets of water over Niagara Falls, into the mist of memory.

Niagara Falls, New York… on my bucket list.

That day and that song are indelibly etched in my memory and I thank that group for giving me a special tie-in to that birthing day. Today, 46 years later, I hope the Numero Uno will listen to the song and know that I celebrate the life and lessons brought about by this truly blessed event.

Do I need to add I am filled with pride at all the accomplishments NU has achieved? Have a wonderful birthday, my dear, and a Happy New Year!

The kindness of strangers

For some time I have dealt with crazy, wacky, nutty, strange people in my life. We all do, really. And I wonder if the absurdity of bright lights and pumped up music and all the attempts to hold off the dark of the long nights in December doesn't in some way make things harder?

The day before Solstice, these lights fend off the demon dark
and offer light when, at almost 8 a.m. in the NW, there is little.

Mental illness is defined here as a condition which affects a person's ability to cope and live a normal life. All the disorders that are elements of an individual, when they begin to take over that person's life, become definers of the person, rather than allowing the personality to shine.

The holidays seem to bring added stress and a sense that we must all be a part of the whirligig action that makes up the days between Dec. 15 and January 2.

Depression is not just a temporary state of mind for some people, but a black dog that is waiting around the corner ready to pounce on them, overwhelming their ability to do the simplest tasks.

Today I crossed paths with someone who is usually very upbeat and positive, but he said something that made me realize that we just don't know what challenges the 'holiday season' can bring on.

And then later I witnessed something that gave me renewed hope for our species: an older woman was shopping and when she got to the cashier, realized she didn't have enough money in pocket or on her debit card to pay.  She apologized to the cashier for the trouble she caused by getting things that would have to be put back and started to walk away. Just then a man of about 35 years of age stepped up and said, "I will pay for it all. Merry Christmas." Everyone around was awed and there were tears in the eyes of the woman who clearly did not expect any assistance. I am grateful to have been a witness to this Universal love offering.

Blanche Dubois, a character from Tennessee Williams' play, "A Streetcar Named Desire," (and the movie) continued to dress and act in strange ways as she was trying to live in a world that her mind did not recognize. She said in her final line in the play, as she was being taken into a mental institution, "Whoever you are, I depend on the kindness of strangers."

Williams used the character of Stanley to drive home the point of Blanche's fragility, and to show how insensitive some people are to what is seen as mental weakness, as well as to point out that people in general have the belief that those struggling with mental instabilities are liars.

As a society we've come a long way in the effort to recognize that mental illness really is an illness, and various disorders are elements of mental health. I've not done a very good job understanding all of this. I'm discovering I still have a lot more to learn.

And perhaps there are people who will arrive at the intersection of your life now, this red and green season of lights that may be more confusing than traffic signals. Those folks may not know where they are headed, or how they will get there. Maybe this is the time to be a little more patient, remembering that even as strangers, we all seek a little kindness.

May your holiday be tolerable… if not
bright and cheery, and may you have signs
of hope along the way.