Renzo Martens - A Shift in Power - Gentrification of the Jungle

 

Renzo Martens

Being a little on the down low during the holiday season, I've had a rather easy going reflective attitude about my blog posts, as I reflect on the past year.

That said, this article by Stuart Jeffries in the Guardian is not easy going, nor is it on the down low. Many folks I'm certain, are unaware  of what Renzo Martens is attempting to do, and that is to establish an arts scene in the extremely impoverished area of the Eastern Congo, in the midst of a cocoa plantation.

  Some may not agree with this project, but I believe the CBC Q interview with Renzo Martens gave him a platform to clearly defend his position, which was very well defined, and presented. He really sparked my interest, compelling me to to find out more about this visionary artist, who wants to shift the balance of power within the confines of the art and corporate world. He refers to his project, as being it a kind of gentrification of the jungle, allowing for a shift in power, that ways on the side of the artist. I will be watching closely in 2015 to observe the development of this project.

Part of the Artes Mundi exhibition with Martens's chocolate sculpture in Cardiff

Handy Tips From David Ogilvy, and Henry Miller For Better Writing

 Well Christmas has come, and gone. It was a good one, and there is much to be grateful, for as the New Year approaches.

 Many  of us are thinking about resolutions, or taking an inventory of 2014, and perhaps exploring ways to improve our lives in 2015.

This coming year,I have certain things I want to accomplish, some have to do with my house, that I finally paid off after 20 years, and others are related to my creative and business goals.

Writing has become a pretty darn vital part of my creative process, and work. I am always very keen to find out about how writing affects creativity, and how I can be improve my writing. Finding this list today by the famous advertising executive David Ogilvy, and Henry Miller's list of commandments, I believe both to be very helpful, and informative for any one involved in creativity, and for me writing, and reading is what enables creativity.

 I received a really lovely art journal this Christmas, and will be sure to include David Ogilvy's list, and Miller's commandments in my visual art journal to have for future reference. The list and commandments are a combination of good marketing tools, and developing a good work ethic toward my creative practice. Both can certainly be adapted for artists regardless of your medium.

David Ogilvy 1911-1999

 The original "Mad Man", David Ogilvy in 1982 he sent an internal memo to all his advertising agency employees he called, " How to Write".
" The better you write, the higher you go in Ogilvy-Mather ".
" People who think well, write well. Woolly minded people write woolly memos, woolly letters and woolly speeches.Good writing is not a natural gift. You have to learn to write well. Here are 10 hints: "

1. Read the Roman-Raphaelson book on writing. Read it three times.
2. Write the way you talk. Naturally.
3. Use short words, short sentences and short paragraphs.
4. Never use jargon words like reconceptualize, demassification, attitudinally, judgmentally. They are hallmarks of a pretentious ass.
5. Never write more than two pages on any subject.
6. Check your quotations.
7. Never send a letter or a memo on the day you write it. Read it aloud the next morning — and then edit it.
8. If it is something important, get a colleague to improve it.
9. Before you send your letter or your memo, make sure it is crystal clear what you want the recipient to do.
10. If you want ACTION, don’t write. Go and tell the guy what you want.

                                                                Henry Miller, 1891 – 1980 

Here are writer and artist, Henry Miller's 11 commandments on having a work schedule. I believe these commandments and his "Daily Program" can be adapted to any creative art, an individual specializes in.

 COMMANDMENTS

1. Work on one thing at a time until finished.
2. Start no more new books, add no more new material to ‘Black Spring.’
3. Don’t be nervous. Work calmly, joyously, recklessly on whatever is in hand.
4. Work according to Program and not according to mood. Stop at the appointed time!
5. When you can’t create you can work.
6. Cement a little every day, rather than add new fertilizers.
7. Keep human! See people, go places, drink if you feel like it.
8. Don’t be a draught-horse! Work with pleasure only.
9. Discard the Program when you feel like it—but go back to it next day. Concentrate. Narrow down. Exclude.
10. Forget the books you want to write. Think only of the book you are writing.
11. Write first and always. Painting, music, friends, cinema, all these come afterwards.

DAILY PROGRAM

MORNINGS:
If groggy, type notes and allocate, as stimulus.
If in fine fettle, write.
AFTERNOONS:
Work of section in hand, following plan of section scrupulously. No intrusions, no diversions. Write to finish one section at a time, for good and all.
EVENINGS:
See friends. Read in cafés.
Explore unfamiliar sections — on foot if wet, on bicycle if dry.
Write, if in mood, but only on Minor program.
Paint if empty or tired.
Make Notes. Make Charts, Plans. Make corrections of MS.
Note: Allow sufficient time during daylight to make an occasional visit to museums or an occasional sketch or an occasional bike ride. Sketch in cafés and trains and streets. Cut the movies! Library for references once a week.

" How To Ruin Your Life Without Even Noticing That You Are "

As a young artist, I know I made many  choices, particularly when it came to my personal relationships, out of loneliness, as a result of personal  familial issues, and internalized culture pressure. The saying, ' when you know better, you do better ' best describes the reasons I did not know myself.

Today, being older, with age comes wisdom, and I understand very well, there is no person, place or thing that can 'make ' me happy. I am the only individual that is responsible for my happiness. I have to say, I found after many hard lessons, but I am certainly not complaining, as this was my path to discovery. My experiences made me the person I am today. I know myself as a creative person, and living a creative life is what truly makes me happy.

Personal relationships, and gender roles are in flux in society. We are redefining marriage, and what it means to be in a committed relationship. I like to think this as being a positive development. Often we get into relationships without knowing ourselves, what we want, or need in life to be happy. Many of us look to people, places, and things to bring us happiness, but this is a bottomless pit that cannot be filled. It leaves us empty, unhappy,  unfulfilled, and lonely.
 

Here is an very insightful, well written article by writer, artist, and scientist Bianca Sparacino, entitled How to Ruin Your Life Without Even Noticing That You Are that makes a world of sense to me.

Artist - Gerald Kuehl

Grandmother Elder

My educational studies of film, photography, and graphite pencil drawings in particular, I have long had a passion for the elemental power of the black and white image. It was once explained to me in art school that reducing an image down to the basics of black and white, enables the viewer to focus, and engage more with the image. One's perception is not diverted but the busyness of extraneous colour. This made a lot of sense to me.

In the 80s I left behind my life in Nova Scotia, and traveled to Yellowknife, and Fort Smith, North West Territories where I lived for a period of three years. Upon losing my young husband, suddenly and tragically to diabetes and drug induced paranoid schizophrenia at 26 years of age, I took what is commonly called in the rooms of A.A., 'the geographical cure' and headed North.

My late husband Bill was Metis, on his mother's side. Unfortunately he knew very little about his heritage for a number of reasons. I'm certain, and have no doubt, if he was alive today, he would have had a very proactive and  deep desire to connect with his Metis roots. Thirty five years ago, it was a very different time for First Nations people.

While in the North, I became very interested in the people of the North, and who they were. When I returned to Nova Scotia I remarried, and I then began to produce portraiture from photographs, of the Dene, drawings rendered in graphite pencil. Portraiture had always been my passion from a young age, and s continued into my adulthood as an artist, though I have expanded my subject matter over the years, but my work still narrative in nature.

With Christmas, come cards in the mail. Last week, I received a card from a dear childhood friend. On the cover of the card, was a pencil portrait of Pelagie Polvak, an Inuit Grey Nun, born in Arviat in 1931. This beautiful portrait was rendered by an amazing artist, I knew nothing about until receiving this card from my friend. I was pretty excited, and am happy to be able to share with you the art work of Gerald Kuehl.

The Cynical Elf of Santaland

David Sedaris

I always experience some pent up cynicism that I feel most every Christmas. Something, and someone that makes me feel better, because he never fails to make me laugh, is David Sedaris and his Santaland Diaries. I never get tired of listening to these Diaries. It's become a tradition for me now at Christmas.

 Humor with some cynicism can do the trick, coping with the commercialism of Christmas and that blue, blue feeling, or any other kind of blues you might feel at any time of the year..

If you haven't heard of the artist Davis Sedaris , and feel the way I do right about now, I think you'll appreciate this NPR broadcast featuring him and his Santaland Diaries. He warms my cynical heart!

Minto Mystery Miners

Minto Coal Mine

This is a rare actual film footage of an unknown coal miner in the Minto coal mine in 1954. 

My family would drive from Ontario to Nova Scotia every Summer to visit my mother's relatives, and my father's only brother and his family. We'd pass through Minto, New Brunswick, where my father's family all were from. Great grandfather Konrad Meyers and my great grandmother Amelia Kindel, like so many who first settled in Minto New Brunswick, when they arrived in Canada from the old country, Poland, Germany, and Belgium, came from a coal mining background, and my family was no different. Minto, New Brunswick being a coal mining town, was a reason to settle here, along with land grants, and a promise of a better life.

My father was estranged from most of his family, due to alcoholism, and abuse. Needless to say, my father had next to no relationship with the home, where he grew up, as there was too much heartache, and bad memories for him. He began working in the coal mine at the tender age of twelve years of age, which was not uncommon, as children were small enough to get into the small tunnels of the mine, and his family needed the money. It is very hard to imagine, but I am so grateful, and happy, that he was able to escape the 'rat holes' in order to make a life for himself, and for his familiy's future.

I remember very vividly, when my family would drive threw Minto as a kid, and I'd see from the car window, the tar paper shacks, that most of the residents of Minto lived in. There was extreme poverty, and it looked like a desolate, depressing place to live. We never stopped. My father drove in silence, deep in thought, driving staight through the dismal coal town, on auto pilot, heading for Nova Scotia. I could hardly believe this was where my relatives, my family was from, and it all seemed surreal to me.

Many years later, I finally came to know many of my relatives, and my cousins as an adult, after knowing next to nothing about my father's family, as he never spoke of them, nor would he hardly answer my questions about his family, when I asked.

Once I was older, I began to realize, and understand the inherited fabric of my family, the people of Minto, and how they lived their lives, during those coal mining days. They experienced such hard work in dangerous unhealthy conditions, extreme poverty, serious health issues, strong family bonds, and a deep connection to the land. These were all the things that were impressed upon me about Minto, the identity, and the deep roots of my family history.

My great aunt Melada Meyers, who was the matriarch of our family, once described to me the coal mines, as being " rat holes. " She ran the boarding house in the community for the miners, spoke about seven languages, and was the translator of the coal company. She was an amazing lady, who lived until she was 92, full of life, humour, strength, a loving and kind heart. I loved to listen to her tell her stories.

For me knowing my  personal family history, I think, helped me to become a better  artist. Coal mining is very much part of my family history, which makes me proud in many ways, for many reasons. My family inherited a love, and the gift of creativity through art, and music. Today I am grateful for and proud  of my heritage, and family history, regardless of how painful, and difficult, as this I believe makes for a greater depth of character and an ability to be an empathic person and artist.

'Two Great Enemies Of Creative Work'

Wendell Berry (Photograph: Guy Mendes)

Holidays can be a lonely time for many of us, but perhaps not as much for those who understand, and are use to solitude.

I always felt a little depressed listening to Joni Mitchell's lyrics, about her being a lonely painter, living in a box of paints. As a angst ridden teenager wanting to pursue art, I  often felt this way. Thank God teenaged years don't last!

As an adult, I learned over the years, that solitude is not loneliness. Many folks fear solitude, or being alone, as they may feel solitude will cause them to be lonely. Artist's need to be comfortable with and I believe have to have a love of solitude, but they don't need to be lonely, but if you despair, this can be very detrimental to your creativity as can pride be, according to Wendell Berry.
  " We enter solitude, in which also we lose loneliness…" - Wendell Berry

Here is a wonderful article about what, prolific writer, American novelist, poet, environmental activist, cultural critic, and farmer, Wendell Berry has to say about pride, despair, solitude and creativity.

" A creation of importance can only be produced when it's author isolates him/herself,
 it is a child of solitude." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 

Something Exciting To Blog About!

Cliff in 1977,  nice galoshes!

I love it when I find something exciting to blog about. I need to feel passionate about what I post, but this time I'm more excited, because this post is about a long time friend of mine, Cliff Eyland. I have known Cliff, his mum, his dad, and his four siblings for close to fourty years. I remember spending many days of teenaged angst with Cliff, and our friends in his family's living room, drinking copious cups of tea, wondering as Cliff used to say, " Who am I? Where am I going? How much it was going to cost? "
At the time, I know Cliff said this statement as a joke, but behind the humour was some serious philosophic thinking I know. Cliff has always been a deep thinker, and a voracious reader.

Cliff's mum and dad, would always welcome our gang of teenagers full of ennui, contemplating life into their warm, safe home, day after day. Besides being able to comfortably relate and interact with Cliff's mum and dad, some of my other favourite things I remember, were listening to lots of music, spaghetti dinners, watching Stacie's Jamboree, and SNL.
There are many stories I could tell out of school, but Cliff has his own story to tell, about his art, that he can relay much better than I ever could. So, here is a CBC interview that Nora Young did with Cliff, on this week's episode of Spark, called Hanging 5,000 paintings the size of a smartphone at the new Halifax library.


I believe Cliff knows who he is, where he has gone, and how much it cost.
Ron would be very proud, as we all are.

Raising Awareness of Kidney Health

As a recovering alcoholic, who has been affected by the disease of alcoholism, multiple sclerosis and mental illness within my family, I understand how disease affects all the family. I know what it is like to feel like an outsider and  not ' normal '. No matter what the disease, most folks unless they have been personally affected, they don't give it much thought.

My beautiful, dear, gifted, artist friend Michael Gaudet, whom I have known since early days, at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, had been at that point, coping with kidney disease. When I first met Michael, I was impressed with his energy, joy, and passion for life, but I really didn't comprehend then, exactly what he'd been through.

He has a remarkable story to share I want others to know. Recently he has chronicled this story in his book, that he recently had published, entitled Dancing With Rejection .

We are all dying, but when you have a disease, life becomes precious. I have heard is said, the dying know how to live.

 Morrie Schwartz says most folks live life sleepwalking, never fully awake or aware. Morrie suffered with ALS and Mitch Albom wrote his book about him, Tuesdays With Morrie.
I deeply believe, if we can accept or own mortality, and death, we learn to live with energy, joy and passion for life, the way Michael does.

'The Reindeer Santa Left Behind'

Blitzin

If you don't already know by now that I'm a radio junkie, CBC Radio in particular, you must have to be a new reader, or you don't drop by often! I love to listen to late night programs, if I can't sleep.

Christmas means there are broadcasts featuring specials from all over the world. I especially love listening to shows from Ireland. The night before last, I heard a great repeat radio play, on RTE from Ireland, called The Reindeer Santa Left Behind. The second  time listening, I really paid close attention, and found it absolutely delightful. It captured my imagination so much, I felt I had to share it. This radio play was so well done, I found myself wanting to believe it, and I felt like I was right there with them.

. The play is a wonderful magical story, for young an old alike, and takes place with the Mulready family farm, who live in the remote countryside in Co. Wexford Ireland.
If you decide to listen you'll find it a very special story, and I hope you'll enjoy it with your little ones.

Why Assume The Best In Others?

I found the above statement in my mail box today, which certainly made me contemplate it's meaning and relevance.

 Yesterday, I attended a beautiful memorial service for my close friend, who recently died. Prior to attending the memorial, during, and after, I kept thinking about how, and why I was feeling rather uncomfortable. I know I have never really been comfortable in large groups of people. I would usually attribute it to my own alcoholism in spite of being clean and sober for 20 years, but I think it is more than that.

Later that evening, I went to visit a mutual friend, who is an artist. We got into a long discussion, as we usually do, about art, artists, and philosophy. The topic of creative perception came up, and how we view the world. As well, the topic of criticism, what others think of our art work, and whether they like our art, or us, and how we react or respond to this.


 Today in reflection, I attempted to make sense of all these situations, and ideas, and to put them into context. I concluded, I will always be somewhat concerned about others opinions, as this is part of human nature. I think the only time I will ever completely stop doing this, is when I leave this mortal coil. There is always going to be some one who does not like us, sometimes, including ourselves.

Instead of always being so preoccupied with worry and concern, about what others think of us, we can choose to change this negative script. I know I needed to change these negative messages embedded into my perception, if I was to feel confident within myself, and in my own capacities,  enabling me to take responsibility for my own happiness.

 The conclusion I came to may sound like a no brain-er, but after reading this particular statement sent to me today, I acutely realized just how much I identified with it, and understood this is where I am at in my life, and it feels good!

I have to thank my kind friend, who was like my brother, and through his example helped me along the path to find my way. He celebrated his own individuality and allowed others to do the same.

The important lesson I have learned, is to assume the best in others, by not thinking that they are assuming the worst.

"We would worry less about what others think of us if we realized how seldom they do." - Ethel Barrett 

See the best in others by not assuming they see the worst - See more at: http://www.uncommonhelp.me/articles/how-to-stop-worrying-what-other-people-think/#sthash.aRTIgV6c.dpuf

Creative Aging - Ari Seth Cohen

 
At 61 years of age, I admit like many people, I think about  my mortality, but just as importantly, I also think about my creative quality of life. In a society where agism is common, older individuals become acutely aware of a culture that seems to define itself by youth, perfection, and quantity over quality.

 The messages especially to women, is to be thinner, taller, richer, smarter, beautiful and all the other superficial trappings. There were only a few exceptions in my life I can recall, when I'd wished for a happier life.
I wanted to fill a spiritual void with material possessions that I thought would substitute for happiness. As I got older what became most important, was pursuing quality of life, and becoming responsible for my own happiness.

I have an older friend who is 87 years old, she is more youthful, active, creative and happy, then many individuals many years younger, in spite of her difficulties and losses.

 Being youthful is all in the attitude. I have seen this over and over, even within my own family.
 Photographer and blogger, Ari Seth Cohen's has produced a documentary Advanced Style,  and it is a testament to how style has nothing to with being young chronologically, but has everything to do with having a youthful attitude, and can make for a creative, and positive quality of life. Today Ari Seth Cohen 's was interviewed this morning on CBC about his documentary and had lots to say about his own attitude toward creative aging.

When it comes to the way we look, and how we feel, we don't have to have a lot of money in order to look stylish, or to be happy; nor do we have to let our age hamper a sense creative style.

 I vividly remember rummaging through second hand stores with my mother, when I was little girl growing up in Toronto. We would find many stylish treasures to wear, and I became a kind of 'second hand Rose' and it became a way of life for me, and I loved it, because it inspired me to express my creative style.
Inspiration has no age limit!

 

Ellis Island: Ghosts of Freedom

Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital

I love old things, people, and places. I remember one of my very favourite activities was exploring old abandoned farm houses with my father, when I was a kid. I knew we really shouldn't be going into those buildings, but both my father and I were so drawn to these old houses, and of course it was a different time and place all those years ago. However these experiences always left me with residual feelings of sadness and loss. Buildings are much more than just physical structures. They hold the untold stories of families, and individuals. I was left wondering why they left, what happened, and will any one every remember them.

Upon writing this post I got thinking, and realized I have blogged about abandoned buildings several times, but I never knew the history of Ellis Island, in particular the Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital. I knew the island existed, and that this was the entry point for immigrants. I was always curious, but honestly never really made the effort to find out about this mysterious place until now.

 I first heard about the remarkable French street artist JR a few years back, after seeing a TED talk he did. In 2014 JR was invited to install his exhibit, Unframed Ellis Island . Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital was opened in 1901 and abandoned in 1954. The hospital played a vital role in caring for those who were ill and first arriving in North America.


JR's exhibition opened Ellis Island to the public to view for the first time since it had been abandoned the public in 1954, giving a close up perspective of the abandoned Ellis Island Immigrant Hospital.

New York photographer Stephen Wilkes, and his five year documentation entitled Ellis Island: Ghosts of Freedom is powerful and haunting. An incredible historical record, that most North Americans can relate to, having connection to Ellis Island through there immigrant families, and who have an important story to tell, that the next generations need to hear.

 The stories that Ellis Island holds, are hard to comprehend, but both JR and Stephen Wilkes give us a remarkable glimpse into a historical past that emotionally moves you, and greatly captivates the imagination.

"Blacked Out In The Art World"

Hank Willis Thomas, “Raise Up” (2014) at the Goodman Gallery of South Africa booth, 2014 Art Basel Miami Beach (photo Hrag Vartanian/Hyperallergic)

Seeing this article in Hyperallergic I was heartened, and moved to immediately post it.

This world seems to be going backwards or declining rapidly in just about every way. It is disturbing to see how prevalent racism, and violence are within this so called civilized, cultured, and contemporary world. Nonetheless we can not turn our eyes away and not speak up, take a stand to advocate and organize for change. 

Looking Through The Window Inside Kingston Penitentiary

Having worked in corrections in my past life, with adults, young offenders and as a volunteer within prisons, I am very familiar with the environment. This experience was in a medium security setting, and in open custody facilities, very different than Kingston Penitentiary. I have been on a few brief occasions, inside Dorchester Penitentiary in New Brunswick, that is also maximum security. Driving through Dorchester from Ontario as a kid, I remember vividly, how ominous the site of that huge old penitentiary was, sitting high up on a hill overlooking the village, and the feeling of dread that it gave me.

Renowned Canadian photographer Geoffrey James, gives a compassionate insightful perspective, when he spent time documenting with his camera, what it is like inside the Kingston maximum security prison. 

John Szarkowski once described photography as a window or a mirror, the two strategies of pictorial expression. The 'Mirror' strategy focuses on self-expressive photography. The 'Window' element being when photographers leave their comfort zone to explore.

Geoffrey James left his comfort zone when he traveled to Kingston Penitentiary in 2013. His photography exhibit, opened August 30th - December 7th 2014, and was held at Agnes Etherington Art Centre, in Kingston Ontario, and he also published his book Inside 1835-2013 Kingston Penitentiary. I heard a fascinating interview with Geoffrey James about his exhibit today on The Morning Edition,,CBC Radio.

new photography exhibit at Agnes Etherington Art Centre - See more at: http://www.kingstonist.com/2014/09/16/geoffrey-james-inside-kingston-penitentiary-31019/#sthash.x0LWBmpG.dpuf

a new photography exhibit at Agnes Etherington Art Centre - See more at: http://www.kingstonist.com/2014/09/16/geoffrey-james-inside-kingston-penitentiary-31019/#sthash.FUWGVVKu.dpuf

a new photography exhibit at Agnes Etherington Art Centre - See more at: http://www.kingstonist.com/2014/09/16/geoffrey-james-inside-kingston-penitentiary-31019/#sthash.FUWGVVKu.dpuf

Where To Find Connection

I might be biased because Carla Bonnell is my cousin, but I am very proud of her. I have not known Carla all my life. We actually never knew one another even existed until a few years ago, like many of my relatives on my father's side of the family. Meeting her, and having long heart to heart conversations about family helped me to greatly appreciate, and love her in a deep familial way.

Though we don't get to see one another much, her own original music has helped me to connect and understand her, because she has a story to tell. I believe this is what artists do, telling the stories that resonate with others, and what it means to be human.

 Carla has followed her passion creatively, and intuitively, in spite of set backs. I admire her determination, perseverance, and trust in God to lead, and guide her.

 In this video she gives an earnest and heart felt description of her creative musical journey, and what it means to her. I love my cousin and I am so grateful to have connected with her and proud to call her family.

“The real motorcycle you are working on is yourself.” - Robert Pirsig

Robert Persig and Son Chris, 1968 road trip that inspired Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

I have always been a motorcycle nut, and got my motorcycle license many years ago. I don't know much about maintaining them, but I do know what I learned about values in relation to them.

This was because I had one of my first painting classes in the 70s at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. I learned one of the most important lessons from a great teacher, the late Dana Loomis. Dana had been a student of William de Kooning and I think had been pretty much a diehard abstract expressionist. Somewhere along the line his outlook changed. Perhaps this change took place after he reading Robert Pirsig's book, Zen And The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, which was written fourty years ago this year.

Dana gave out painting class Robert Persig's book as a required reading, that would be one of the most influential books in my art education. I learned about the connection between rational and intuitive, classical and romantic thought. Most importantly I learned about the quality of life and living.

Yesterday I was thrilled to hear a wonderful interview with Robert Pirsig about his book that had taken place many years ago. The interviewer, Tim Wilson's Ideas program was so good, and he was in great admiration of Robert Pirsig. It touched my heart.

Robert Pirsig, Chris and John Sutherland

I Found God In Myself. The 40th Anniversary of Ntozake Shange's for colored girls

What do these women, Beau MaCall, Kathleen Granados, Amber Robles, Alexandria Smith, and Dianne Smith  have in common?

THIS

Beau MaCall

Kathleen Granados

Amber Robles

Alexandria Smith

Dianne Smith

Bruce Cockburn On Being Open To The Divine

"Openness to intimacy is a requirement for being open to the divine."

--  Bruce Cockburn

When was about 17 years old I was first introduced to Bruce Cockburn's music. He is a gifted lyricist, an exceptionally talented musician, and a spiritual, humble, human being.

I always felt spiritually transcended by his songs. I would be transported to a spiritual place of comfort, and solace, that I couldn't find amid my teenaged filled angst, and chaotic life.

 I have been blessed to have had the experience of seeing Bruce Cockburn perform acoustically on two occasions, and his performance went far beyond my expectations.

Many years ago, when I was commuting home for the weekend, from University in Halifax, he sat in the seat in front of me. To this very day, I so regret never having the gumption to speak to him. But everything I thought of saying, I felt I'd just embarrass myself,, and so, I just sat there star stuck and frozen in silence, busting at the seams with excitement in great admiration of my idol.

I've followed his career from early beginnings, and was thrilled to hear a great interview with Bruce Cockburn today, on The Next Chapter, about his new memoir entitled Rumours of Glory.