Sparks from the Fire

We’re now in the final throes of recording and mixing Julia Wade’s new CD, Silk Road – Inspirational Journeys Across Planet Earth.  Some of the material of this new work was actually started nearly two years ago and then the project was tabled when we developed her Solos CD as a farewell gift to the Christian Science community when she finished her tenure as Soloist in Boston.

But we knew we had something really interesting going in Silk Road and we couldn’t wait to get beck to it.

The CD is due to hit the streets in early December and will be our major impetus throughout the holiday season.  She has just two more vocals to complete, all the orchestrations are completed and by the end of this next week I’ll be half way through the mixing.

It’s simply a most special project.  You’ll say, “Aren’t they all?” and I must answer, “Of course, but this one’s, for both of us, particularly transforming.”

Silk Road marks Julia’s arrival at the threshold of a new evolution in her music.  Her departure from her past carries forth her commitment to inspire through song not only on a sacred level, but also with an in depth look at the issues of our world at large and the individual human condition.

So it’s an album of songs that will continue to inspire her growing fan base with fresh new looks at spiritual reach through songs like Thinking Made It So and Julie Gold’s When He Walks With Me, but it also ventures into new territory dealing with the issues of our world today.

For the first time she now tries her hand at lyric writing and scores instantly with her own thoughts on What Peace Looks Like from the perspective of three children of the world from Uganda, the Sudan, and the ghettos of Kingston, Jamaica.  The title song, Silk Road, promises a comparison of the ancient Silk Roads spanning China, Tibet and Europe with the modern day impact of the Internet.

And then there are the songs of love … (more…)

I think about truth a lot.  It’s fast becoming my life’s greatest interest – far out-pacing music, money, and the Yankees.  Daily dealings with all the various concepts of the word “Inspirational” seem to focus my life more and more on the spiritual.  I’m not resisting it; in fact, I’m opening up to it.  And it’s certainly opening up to me.

We’re in a spiritual age.  Looking back through history, these ages come in cycles.  This is the next one.  Go into any bookstore.  Books for seekers abound.  Christian music is the one genre of music that has actually grown during this terribly trying time in the music industry.  Oprah announces discussions with Eckhart Tolle on line and millions show up to partake.  Never before has content for seekers been more available.

I study my own religion, but I read voraciously Wayne Dyer, Yogananda, Ram Dass, Spalding’s Life and Teaching of the Masters of the Far East, Joseph Smith’s Book Of Mormon, The Gospel According to Jesus, Tolle’s A New Earth and on and on.  I like to say, “I’m getting’ it any way I can.”  Truth, that is.

Stop at Judgement; turn right on Truth

One thing strikes me along this road.  Why is it that so many people think they have a corner on truth?  How preposterous to think that the Christians are right and everybody else is wrong – that the Sunnites are better than the Shiites.  There’s gotta be truth to every religion – otherwise, why would people be drawn to it in the first place.

I suggest it’s not religion that separates us, but language.  “The words are different, so the philosophy’s gotta be different” is the mistake we humans make.  And we Christians are some of the worst offenders.  How arrogant to think that only Jesus got it right.  Jesus did get it right, but he wasn’t alone. (more…)

“Thoughts On ‘Today’” is the last of a 12 part series of posts reflecting on the songs of Julia Wade’s CD, Solos, with lyrics from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and Music by Peter Link.

The most important books I’ve read over the last couple of decades besides the Bible and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy are, without a doubt, The Power of Now and The New Earth by Eckhart Tolle.  In his The Power of Now, Mr. Tolle sets forth reasoning on living in the nowness of life in such a compelling manner that it changed my life, changed the way I thought and acted, and along the way changed the way I look at life.  I can easily say that it brought to me a way of living that made me a much happier man and one who is much freer of two dramatic issues that haunt human beings daily – regret and fear.

Basically, I learned and understood that regret is living moment to moment in the past and that fear is living moment to moment in the future and that both are totally wrong choices and complete mistakes.  I had a preface to this understanding through the reading and study of Science and Health.   Mrs. Eddy talks about living in the now and deals with it several places in her book.  What took me over the top in my thinking in The Power of Now is that Tolle dedicates his entire book to the concept.

Mrs. Eddy, however, begins her book with these words that set forth the speculation that living totally in the now of life is the only way to practice life when she writes,

“To those leaning
on the sustaining infinite,
today is big with blessings.”

Though she does not use the word “now” she clearly means it.  This short statement of truth is packed with portent and has been a mantra for me for six decades.  The understanding of the truths contained therein has righted many a day for me that got off the track.

Lean on the infinite and you will be blessed.  Right now. Get out of the past and keep your thought out of the future and the blessings will flow.

So when I began this great adventure of writing songs from Mrs. Eddy’s iconic prose statements, it seemed only natural to start at the beginning with one that had played such an important part of my life. (more…)

“Thoughts On ‘Footsteps of Truth’” is one of a 12 part series of posts reflecting on the songs of Julia Wade’s CD, Solos, with lyrics from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and Music by Peter Link.

We walk in the footsteps of Truth and Love
by following the example of our Master
in the understanding
of divine metaphysics.

To me, this song is about following – following the example of our Master.  The sixth and last tenet of Christian Science states, “And we solemnly promise to watch and pray for that mind to be in us which was also in Christ Jesus …” Most Christian Scientists use this tenet as a daily prayer.

It’s quite a statement, quite a promise.  I’ll have to admit that I’ve broken this solemn promise far too many times.  If ya’ think about it, it’s a lot to live up to.  It’s a promise to follow in his footsteps, to follow his example.

On the surface, this song often strikes me as the simplest lyric of the 12 songs, but upon further consideration, it may be the strongest statement of commitment.

We first acknowledge that certain truths are absolute.  Then we do all we can to move in the direction of those truths.

Whatever inspires with wisdom, Truth, or Love—
be it song, sermon, or Science—
blesses the human family
with crumbs of comfort
from Christ’s table,
feeding the hungry
and giving living waters
giving living waters
to the thirsty.

Two wondrous metaphors used throughout the Bible and Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy are “light” and “water”.  Both represent inspiration passing from God to mankind.  In a previous post entitled, “Thoughts On Divine Love” I found myself using the water image endlessly pouring forth from the fountain to describe God’s Love filling our souls.

Here Mrs. Eddy illuminates the act of inspiration with the giving of living waters to the thirsty.  It is Julia’s and my great hope that these songs will, on some levels, fulfill Mrs. Eddy’s proclamation of “… be it song, sermon, or Science—blesses the human family …

Going forth, after we have committed daily to following in the Master’s footsteps, we must stay to the course.

One’s aim,
a point beyond faith,
should be to find
the footsteps of Truth,
the way to health and holiness.

And what rewards!  Health and holiness.  Perhaps the two most important necessities of the human experience.  Why else are we here, but to demonstrate these two concepts?  All other good must follow these two ideas. (more…)

“Thoughts On ‘Divine Love’” is one of a 12 part series of posts reflecting on the songs of Julia Wade’s CD, Solos, with lyrics from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and Music by Peter Link.

Here is a song that was as natural to write as the act of breathing.  It starts at the end really.  The final words of the song were the first words I chose.

The vital part,
the heart and soul of Christian Science,
is Love.

Mary Baker Eddy probably uses this word as a synonym for God in her writings more than any other concept.  And who’s to argue with that?

Love is the liberator.
No power can withstand divine Love.

Say it again …

Love is the liberator.
No power can withstand divine Love.

In my life this is an absolute.  Feeling stressful?  Love more?  Have relationship problems?  Love more.  Struggling with disease or injury?  Love more.  Broke?  Love more.

When in doubt, love more.

Wait patiently
for divine Love to move
to move upon the waters
of mortal mind,
and form the perfect concept.

You’re not waiting for God to get to work, you know.  What we wait for is for our own consciousness to fill with love.  God is instant.  Love is instant.  It is mortal mind or ego that we wait for.  The process sometimes takes time because it is consciousness that needs to change, not God, not Love.

Love inspires,
illumines, designates,
and leads the way.

It is Love that leads the way, illuminating the roads we travel with God’s light so that we may see the errors of our ways and eradicate those mistakes.  It is Love that inspires us to get to work, to heal, to forgive, to a change of base in consciousness so that healing may take its natural, not miraculous, course.

God is Love.
Can we ask Him to be more? (more…)

“Thoughts On ‘Dominion’” is one of a 12 part series of posts reflecting on the songs of Julia Wade’s CD, Solos, with lyrics from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and Music by Peter Link.

“The enslavement of man is not legitimate.” — Mary Baker Eddy

The American Civil War was fought over just this issue between the years of 1861 and 1865.  Soon after this time period Mary Baker Eddy was writing her best-selling and thought-changing book, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures and putting down her own thoughts on slavery. 

Wikipedia states, “After four years of warfare, mostly within the Southern states, the Confederacy surrendered and slavery was outlawed everywhere in the nation. (The slavery) Issues that led to war were partially resolved in the Reconstruction Era that followed, though others remained unresolved.”

So this issue, which had so polarized the mindset of a nation so that brother fought brother was clearly on the forefront of people’s thought.

She continues…

It will cease when man enters
into his heritage of freedom,
his God-given dominion …

Though the slaves had been freed, at the time, the issues of slavery would certainly not have been solved or even agreed upon for that matter.  By the end of the war our country would have still been polarized in its thinking as Southern and some Northern farmers were forced to give up their free work force and begin again.

So Mrs. Eddy wrote of her time and took her stand on not only this national issue, but also went a giant step further in the finishing of this iconic sentence.

… over the material senses.

Dominion over not just civil enslavement, but … over the material senses!

Though slavery had been abolished, she knew that the enslavement of man was far from being over until man was and is able to free himself from the chains of materialism. (more…)

“Thoughts On ‘Mind’s Camera’” is one of a 12 part series of posts reflecting on the songs of Julia Wade’s CD, Solos, with lyrics from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and Music by Peter Link.

Focus.  This song is all about focus.

One of the things I miss the most about my new digital camera is that it has an automatic focus.  It won’t let me focus the camera, rather it does the focusing for me.  Many years ago I got totally into my old Pentax for about a decade and shot a coupla thousand pictures of everything imaginable.  What made the pictures most interesting, besides composition and content, was my ability to direct the viewer’s eye to one particular point of the picture.  The ability to focus that old camera made my pictures real personal impressions of life’s moments.

These days, with my digital camera, it decides where the eye should look and that makes my pictures more into what I would call ‘snapshots’ as opposed to artistic choices of my own personal points of view.

Now I often forget my camera and even when I do remember to take it, my pictures are seldom interesting to me.  Even when they’re in focus, it’s not my particular focus, it’s the camera’s focus.  When I do get a good picture occasionally, I just consider myself lucky that the camera and I agreed.

What we choose to see in life, the way we see life, the way we experience life is all a matter of focus.  I witnessed a traffic accident a few years back, and in the aftermath, when the cops were interviewing several people who stood on the same corner and witnessed with me, I was amazed to hear the different recounts and completely disparate recollections of each witness.

Each of us, standing in the same spot, had a different focus, and so told a different story.

Whatever the reason we go through this experience here on Planet Earth, and I sometimes think the whole reason we’re here is to find our way back to our true spirituality, some of us get very lost and make little progress and some of us actually spend some real time moving in the right direction.

Those who progress are simply better focused on the right idea and those who wander and even get lost lose focus and go down the wrong paths.

I had a Sunday School student several years ago who was just an terrific all-American kid – bright, spiritually curious, a good athlete, a sweet and gentle person, and an Eagle Scout with a great future before him.  He’s now in Leavenworth Prison locked up for life on a horrendous murder charge.  He was guilty – no question about it.

I believe he simply lost focus.

The crude creations of mortal thought
must finally give place
to the glorious forms
which we sometimes behold
in the camera
of divine Mind,
when the mental picture is spiritual and eternal.
Mortals must look beyond fading, finite forms,
if they would gain the true sense of things.

How can we stay true to our true selves?  I believe that each of us is God’s perfect child, but some of us get off the track and lose our way.

It happened to me.  I spent a decade of my life with a drug addiction, and though some of that decade was very focused and my career successful, over all, looking back, I was completely out of focus and totally barking up the wrong tree.  I know now that I wasted a decade of my life wandering about. (more…)

“Thoughts On ‘Prayer’” is one of a 12 part series of posts reflecting on the songs of Julia Wade’s CD, Solos, with lyrics from the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and Music by Peter Link.

If there’s one thing that has changed dramatically in my life over the years it’s the way I pray.  As I’ve changed my concept of what God is, prayer has naturally evolved from one thing to another.

The truth is, people pray in various sundry ways, and I give honor to most all of them.  If you lie down prostrate several times a day in the street and face Mecca, I consider that a powerful discipline and sometimes wish I could be so committed.  If you chant strange words whose meanings tangle in foreign-ness, so be it.

I had a wife once who filled the house with such dedication and brought great peace to an otherwise difficult relationship.  I have found sometimes that simply sitting in stillness and watching my breath, the intake and release, is a most rich and valuable form of prayer or meditation – especially when I’m faced with life’s tensions and pressure.

My simple and basic definition of prayer is to do whatever it takes to get closer to God, to de-emphasize the human ego and open mind to the more spiritual clarities of the moment.

Certainly, for me, music composition is a deep and fulfilling form of prayer.  Before I write a song, I tune up by praying and knowing that the muse in me is simply my connection with God and I know that the best of my music passes through me from God’s mouth to your ears, so to speak, though I no longer believe that God has a mouth.  )

So when it came time to dive into the song Prayer working with our lyricist, Mary Baker Eddy’s POV, I turned to my favorite passage from her book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures to begin the song.

Thoughts unspoken are not unknown
to the divine Mind.
Desire is prayer;
and no loss can occur
from trusting God with our desires,
that they may be moulded and exalted
and exalted!
before they take form
in words and in deeds.

Years ago I gave up praying for things.  One day it just made absolutely no sense to me to do so based upon my understanding of a God who “knows all things” to begin with.  It seemed hopelessly redundant to beg for objects or success or victory for that matter.  I think of prayer now as a deep knowing, or sometimes just simply heartfelt gratitude. (more…)