Finding a Voice
Saturday, September 06, 2008
Seattle artist-in-residency
For the first time, the scent of cedar and saltwater did not raise homesickness in my heart.
I spent two weeks in the Pacific Northwest, mainly in Seattle via Vancouver. Friends Dave & Chelle Stearns had invited me to do music – concerts, writing, musing.
Yet, I suddenly realized that this is exactly what Dave & Chelle did for me. They were my patrons. They helped me travel across borders, housed me, fed me, fellowshipped with me, challenged and encouraged me to write and do it well. They introduced me to their community and provided venues for my artistry.
It’s like I was their artist-in-residence.
And it was fruitful. I wrote 2 new songs. One is a blessing for Dave & Chelle in their new home. The other is unlike anything I’ve written before: through-composed and based on a short story by Scottish writer George Mackay Brown about sermons on the wedding at Cana. Chelle had commissioned the song for her Biblical Theology class at Mars Hill Graduate School. I'm quite pleased with it, if I may say so! It feels like there's an entire song cycle to glean from the story.
The final concert on Monday afternoon was at Dave & Chelle’s place with several talented musicians and their children. Wonderful mix. Rich harmonies. Several stayed for supper.
On Tuesday, Chelle and I stayed in Vancouver, visiting with our friends Duffy and Sherry. The four of us attended Regent College together, where we received significant formation as women, Christians, and artists. Having journeyed far in the past few years, we took delight and comfort in each others’ presence on Tuesday.
Wednesday I came home – to Saskatchewan. To the wide-open prairie spaces where incessant, unseasonal rain just won’t let the farmers harvest the crops. I came home to the ordinary dailyness of living – going to a job, attending community meetings, cleaning and cooking at home, visiting friends, worshiping with my church. And I have a refreshed perspective and new confidence for my artistic vocation.
Dahlias purchased at Pike Place Market.
Hot chili peppers, Pike Place Market
The first books on the shelf in Chelle's shared office at Mars Hill Graduate School.
Dr. Michelle L. Stearns behind the desk in her shared office at Mars Hill Graduate School.
"Chariot of Fire" - the piano at CocoaNymph in Vancouver (10th & Alma). Yummy.
With my cousin Amy Caswell. She's a Regent student. We met up at CocoaNymph.
Outside my door at Dave & Chelle's house. They have SO MUCH ROSEMARY in their yard!
The kitchen/dining room in my temporary Seattle home.
Labels: calling, music, performances, retreats, vocation, work, writing
Thursday, September 04, 2008
"Knowing your calling is not to be confused with succeeding at it."
- Po Bronson
- Po Bronson
Monday, August 18, 2008
Aim Lower
"Aim Lower -- World Congress" has been developed by Logosdor, a small non-profit creative arts organization in Australia seeking to serve the needs of children worldwide. This video has been produced as a completely free tool to help churches, leaders and organizations communicate why it is vital to focus on children and highlight practical ways of helping.
Download your own copy at http://www.max7.org/.
Labels: calling, life, releasing the nations
Sunday, July 20, 2008
4-Door Arts Forum
On Saturday, July 12th, eight artists gathered in Duval, SK for a 4-Door Arts Forum in which artists of all kinds gathered purposefully and spontaneously worshipped together through their various media. The 4 doors represent "text, voice, music and visual art". The plan was to work along side each other in a neutral setting, experiencing and revealing the sounds and colours of heaven.
Artists at this event included Steve & Leanne Epp, Shea-Marie, Beryl Fournier, Margie McConnell, Myrna Peterson, and hosts Colleen Taylor and Jeffrey Taylor.
Everyone came on Friday to see and pray over the spaces. Beryl and Marie stayed overnight while the rest returned to Regina. On Saturday the old school where Jeffrey and I live was the central meeting-place and we borrowed the former United Church from Karen Gwillim for the Saturday forum. The church is across the back yard from the school ... which is a good thing, since it doesn't have plumbing!
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
history of women at Briercrest: archiving
An exciting opportunity has opened up.
A few weeks ago I received invitation from the Chester Ronning Centre to become a junior research associate to establish an archive for the history of women at Briercrest. This would extend the work begun with my thesis: Oral Histories of Women from the Early Days of Briercrest.
Last week I had planned a trip to Caronport, and suddenly realized that it might be good to chat with some key people about a potential partnership between Briercrest and the Ronning Centre. So after some back and forth discussion, a meeting was set for Friday morning at 9:00 with several professors (especially history), two librarians, and the president.
The meeting went well. We discussed the importance of this historical archive for Briercrest, how they can assist me in making it available to scholars at Briercrest College & Seminary, and what partnership with the Ronning Centre should look like.
It was a most collegial and fruitful conversation, yet I had a mix of feelings: the comfort of being in a room full of friends, yet self-consciousness about going to this next level of scholarship (who me?).
But they were all so supportive. Two years ago I had the vision for this project, and I even pitched it to the president and the academic dean -- not asking for money, but for space (even just a study carrel) and institutional resources and some kind of status like researcher-in-residence. They basically said Briercrest wasn't ready for a formal relationship, though they would be encouraging and supportive as I finished my thesis.
Looking back I see that they were right: Briercrest wasn't ready -- and neither was I. Unfortunately, I fear I was slightly belligerent about it back then. But NOW seems to be God's timing for it.
So I'm leaving here with a key to a seminary carrel in the library (office space) and all the encouragement and promise of resources to champion Briercrest's archives, to define my project, to pursue funding, to bring in Dr. David Goa at some point for a workshop or conference on the archives in general, to train students for field research, etc., etc., etc. The sky is the limit. Neither Briercrest nor the Ronning Centre have money at this point, but they both have the means to seek funding. It's amazing to think of the possibilities.
In the short time since Friday morning, many conversations have confirmed that this is a door the Lord is opening. At the same time, I feel very called to stay in Duval with my brother Jeffrey, and in Strasbourg where I work at the newspaper and am part of the Alliance church. So the question will be how to balance and fulfill my commitments to my brother (pottery, arts), to the newspaper, and to the church. I work 2-3 days a week for the newspaper, so I can imagine going to Caronport for 2-4 days every few weeks to do research for the summer and set up my own office space in the current archives so I can give up the study carrel for a seminary student in autumn.
I came home blissfully exhausted … and facing responsibilities ...
So, if you would keep praying and providing feedback, that would be fantastic!
A few weeks ago I received invitation from the Chester Ronning Centre to become a junior research associate to establish an archive for the history of women at Briercrest. This would extend the work begun with my thesis: Oral Histories of Women from the Early Days of Briercrest.
Last week I had planned a trip to Caronport, and suddenly realized that it might be good to chat with some key people about a potential partnership between Briercrest and the Ronning Centre. So after some back and forth discussion, a meeting was set for Friday morning at 9:00 with several professors (especially history), two librarians, and the president.
The meeting went well. We discussed the importance of this historical archive for Briercrest, how they can assist me in making it available to scholars at Briercrest College & Seminary, and what partnership with the Ronning Centre should look like.
It was a most collegial and fruitful conversation, yet I had a mix of feelings: the comfort of being in a room full of friends, yet self-consciousness about going to this next level of scholarship (who me?).
But they were all so supportive. Two years ago I had the vision for this project, and I even pitched it to the president and the academic dean -- not asking for money, but for space (even just a study carrel) and institutional resources and some kind of status like researcher-in-residence. They basically said Briercrest wasn't ready for a formal relationship, though they would be encouraging and supportive as I finished my thesis.
Looking back I see that they were right: Briercrest wasn't ready -- and neither was I. Unfortunately, I fear I was slightly belligerent about it back then. But NOW seems to be God's timing for it.
So I'm leaving here with a key to a seminary carrel in the library (office space) and all the encouragement and promise of resources to champion Briercrest's archives, to define my project, to pursue funding, to bring in Dr. David Goa at some point for a workshop or conference on the archives in general, to train students for field research, etc., etc., etc. The sky is the limit. Neither Briercrest nor the Ronning Centre have money at this point, but they both have the means to seek funding. It's amazing to think of the possibilities.
In the short time since Friday morning, many conversations have confirmed that this is a door the Lord is opening. At the same time, I feel very called to stay in Duval with my brother Jeffrey, and in Strasbourg where I work at the newspaper and am part of the Alliance church. So the question will be how to balance and fulfill my commitments to my brother (pottery, arts), to the newspaper, and to the church. I work 2-3 days a week for the newspaper, so I can imagine going to Caronport for 2-4 days every few weeks to do research for the summer and set up my own office space in the current archives so I can give up the study carrel for a seminary student in autumn.
I came home blissfully exhausted … and facing responsibilities ...
So, if you would keep praying and providing feedback, that would be fantastic!
Saturday, March 29, 2008
what is SIRETONA?
About a year and a half ago, the Lord gave me an idea and I have been learning ever since what it means.
When I left Briercrest, the Lord kept reminding me of a phrase someone said to me in 2002 at the Toronto Airport Fellowship: “You will sing release to nations.” So I started working on that phrase, praying over it, dreaming, and invented a new word to name my ministry taking the first 2 letters of each word in Sing Release To Nations: SIRETONA Creative. So far the Lord has shown me that the ministry is to involve worship, intercession/spiritual warfare, and fairly traded products (coffee, dried fruit, sugar). Recently He has been giving me vision for raising money, gathering resources, and coordinating training for indigenous musicians under the umbrella of SIRETONA Creative.
About a month ago I met a couple from Serbia who are Alliance missionaries there. Their son Filip (about 20 years old) is musically gifted and has a vision to bring Christian music to Serbia. Their city, Novi Sad, is the location of Exit, the largest music festival in Europe. But it has no Christian representation that this family is aware of. Filip’s mother, Vera, told me it’s easy to raise money for children’s ministry and cancer hospice, “but nobody wants to give money for a studio.” That got the wheels turning in my mind, so when my parents threw me a big birthday party recently, we decided that in lieu of gifts, people could give donations for the studio. So far we’ve got $380.00, with a bit more expected. I know that barely buys a decent microphone, but it’s a start.
Day before yesterday I watched a video from MCC called “Song of the Refugee” about a Ugandan musician named Samite who is, among other things, using music therapy with AIDS orphans in Africa. One of his projects is taking children who are dying into the studio to sing so they can give a recording to their friends for remembering them after they’re gone. He also arranges donations for small musical instruments like kalimbas (thumb pianos) and flutes. His vision and reach inspired me.
So … my question for you is … would you be interested in getting involved with SIRETONA on some level? Do you know others who would be?
The Serbian studio is the first major project.
There are so many other things I could imagine:
:: having established studios donate equipment for international studios,
:: bands & other performers going to international festivals like Exit,
:: instructors and engineers going over to do workshops, courses and sessions,
:: music therapy,
:: worship in secret and public places that lifts up heads and opens the gates for the King of Glory to come in,
:: and so much more ....
Are you interested in being involved? If SIRETONA attained charitable ministry status, would that make you more interested? I have a possibility for that.
Let me know what you think. Post a comment here, or send a message from my website: www.siretona.com/contact.html.
When I left Briercrest, the Lord kept reminding me of a phrase someone said to me in 2002 at the Toronto Airport Fellowship: “You will sing release to nations.” So I started working on that phrase, praying over it, dreaming, and invented a new word to name my ministry taking the first 2 letters of each word in Sing Release To Nations: SIRETONA Creative. So far the Lord has shown me that the ministry is to involve worship, intercession/spiritual warfare, and fairly traded products (coffee, dried fruit, sugar). Recently He has been giving me vision for raising money, gathering resources, and coordinating training for indigenous musicians under the umbrella of SIRETONA Creative.
About a month ago I met a couple from Serbia who are Alliance missionaries there. Their son Filip (about 20 years old) is musically gifted and has a vision to bring Christian music to Serbia. Their city, Novi Sad, is the location of Exit, the largest music festival in Europe. But it has no Christian representation that this family is aware of. Filip’s mother, Vera, told me it’s easy to raise money for children’s ministry and cancer hospice, “but nobody wants to give money for a studio.” That got the wheels turning in my mind, so when my parents threw me a big birthday party recently, we decided that in lieu of gifts, people could give donations for the studio. So far we’ve got $380.00, with a bit more expected. I know that barely buys a decent microphone, but it’s a start.
Day before yesterday I watched a video from MCC called “Song of the Refugee” about a Ugandan musician named Samite who is, among other things, using music therapy with AIDS orphans in Africa. One of his projects is taking children who are dying into the studio to sing so they can give a recording to their friends for remembering them after they’re gone. He also arranges donations for small musical instruments like kalimbas (thumb pianos) and flutes. His vision and reach inspired me.
So … my question for you is … would you be interested in getting involved with SIRETONA on some level? Do you know others who would be?
The Serbian studio is the first major project.
There are so many other things I could imagine:
:: having established studios donate equipment for international studios,
:: bands & other performers going to international festivals like Exit,
:: instructors and engineers going over to do workshops, courses and sessions,
:: music therapy,
:: worship in secret and public places that lifts up heads and opens the gates for the King of Glory to come in,
:: and so much more ....
Are you interested in being involved? If SIRETONA attained charitable ministry status, would that make you more interested? I have a possibility for that.
Let me know what you think. Post a comment here, or send a message from my website: www.siretona.com/contact.html.
Monday, March 10, 2008
freedom
Forget "Freedom Fifty-Five." I'm turning FORTY this week and I'm going to fly!
Here's a new template to celebrate it.
Mom and Dad are hosting a party for me on Saturday with music, poetry, stories, and quite a few friends and family members.
Here's a new template to celebrate it.
Mom and Dad are hosting a party for me on Saturday with music, poetry, stories, and quite a few friends and family members.
Since my calling is to Sing Release To Nations (www.siretona.com), instead of gifts, we are contributing toward the building of a music studio in
If you're interested in contributing to the music studio, contact me here.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Giving a Voice
This week's post is will be something like a guest editorial. I belong to The Word Guild, an association of Christian writers. Today's discussion digest (Yahoo) included a thread called "The blogosphere and intellectual freedom." Quite regularly, and especially recently, we consider such issues.
Leading the way this week is Denyse O'Leary, in a post on a community blog: "Christiancrat vs. independent Christian journalists!" Her screed is direct, confrontational, and clear. More than the article itself, what stood out to me most, was something she wrote in a comment, after posting the article:
in the new world of “hrcs” [Human Rights Commissions], there is no common sense.
I would encourage Christian bloggers to talk about the hrc issues on all appropriate blogs.
Let's not forget Deb Gyapong's excellent posts on these issues! She is more on top of it than I am.
Key problem: Even if we are eloquent, there are not that many of us.
So our issues tend to become orphans unless we keep the pressure up. ...
If you write anything worth reading and are not rich and powerful, you have no reason for complacency.
I do not have time right now (nor the background, really) to research, write, and post a screed of my own. But I do have the interest to point you in the direction of my colleagues from The Word Guild ... and the commitment to provide a new post at least weekly, especially on Tuesday--and it's still "Tuesday" according to my waking hours.
Other voices from The Word Guild worth "listening" to (i.e., reading) on the topic of free speech:
Ray Wiseman
Deb Gyapong (also here)
Leading the way this week is Denyse O'Leary, in a post on a community blog: "Christiancrat vs. independent Christian journalists!" Her screed is direct, confrontational, and clear. More than the article itself, what stood out to me most, was something she wrote in a comment, after posting the article:
in the new world of “hrcs” [Human Rights Commissions], there is no common sense.
So there is an opportunity for a profession class that is UNBOUNDED by our traditional liberties. We will be their serfs and dhimmis, desperately hoping they take pity on us.
If that’s not what’s happening, this is their chance to show it.
In the meantime, like Louise, I want a Royal Commission to scour the land and find the inarticulate people who may have been unjustly treated and even harmed.
As articulate people, we OWE them that. We can start to help ourselves, yes, but we MUSTN’T leave them behind!
This theme resonates deeply with me. The articulate must represent the inarticulate. Those with a voice (as in, eloquence, resources, power or access to it, etc.), must give a voice to the voiceless. In an email to members of The Word Guild, O'Leary exhorts us:I would encourage Christian bloggers to talk about the hrc issues on all appropriate blogs.
Let's not forget Deb Gyapong's excellent posts on these issues! She is more on top of it than I am.
Key problem: Even if we are eloquent, there are not that many of us.
So our issues tend to become orphans unless we keep the pressure up. ...
If you write anything worth reading and are not rich and powerful, you have no reason for complacency.
I do not have time right now (nor the background, really) to research, write, and post a screed of my own. But I do have the interest to point you in the direction of my colleagues from The Word Guild ... and the commitment to provide a new post at least weekly, especially on Tuesday--and it's still "Tuesday" according to my waking hours.
Other voices from The Word Guild worth "listening" to (i.e., reading) on the topic of free speech:
Ray Wiseman
Deb Gyapong (also here)
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
"go to the land I will show you"
My car odometer (which, it turns out, is not broken) turned over to 300,000 km on the drive from Caronport to Duval. Seemed somehow significant that I looked at it right then.Jeffrey realized recently that he's now the largest employer in Duval--with two part-time employees. Of course, that's not hard in Duval, population 95.
I've taken another part-time job to help cover the bottom line and fill out my portfolio: working at the local newspaper, The Last Mountain Times, selling ad copy and doing a bit of reporting (with photography). I start on Wednesday at 9:00 AM. Not only is it good for the portfolio, it gets me out into the region, meeting business people.
Interestingly, the previous advertising person quit just 3 weeks ago, about the time my brother and I officially decided to pursue this new arrangement. Hmmm. All summer I looked and looked and looked for a job, with hardly an acknowledgement never mind getting shortlisted. So by faith I went on a house concert tour, and prayed and prayed and prayed, feeling a bit like Abraham to whom God said, "Go to the land I will show you," and hoping, hoping, hoping that God would show me the land soon, as I was wearied with drifting. Rachel Runnalls asked in September, "Do you think there could be a bit of divine interference?" I'm willing to bank on that ... now.
Sunday morning's sermon was about Abraham's tests and obedience. It spoke directly to me, affirming this move to Duval to be involved with arts and writing. The first sermon I heard at the beginning of my music tour was about Abraham's obedience, even though what God asked was both counter-intuitive and counter-rational. So this formed the atmosphere of my 7-week tour: following, watching, wondering, waiting, discovering.
After sermon this Sunday there was communion followed by a song and the benediction. Then Pastor Lonie went up to the mike and asked for it to be turned on. He said, "I don't usually do this, but I just want to say that God told Abraham, 'All nations of the world will be blessed because of your obedience.' There's a world out there that needs Jesus. Go and tell someone." This made me cry. This is exactly what I've been pondering all year in the phrase Sing Release To Nations. I have arrived in the land the Lord has shown me: the Last Mountain region. In a way I have come home to the prairies, yet there is something bigger. The expansiveness of the prairies evokes remembrance of the ocean (an image in my song "Prairie Soul") and makes me wonder about the world and how my obedience might be used to bless the nations. Perhaps, like Abraham and so many others listed in Hebrews 12, I will never actually see the thing I'm hoping for, yet am convinced that I'm part of a larger story written by a divine author ...
On Saturday Jeffrey and I had our first business meeting in his studio. He "threw" pots (pitchers, actually) while we talked and I wrote. How convenient to have work where a business meeting doesn't have to stop production! (I believe firmly that business meetings need not be a waste of time, since talking and planning are critical before executing ideas. It's the "measure twice, cut once" proverb. But it's nice when production doesn't have to stop for it.) Fun to dream a bit together as well as make some concrete plans. A couple of weeks ago Jeffrey was a little wary of dreaming, almost ready to sell the shop and move. We're wondering what the Lord might have in store and paying attention to his voice and guidance, watching for opportunities.
Recently my friend Janina asked if I feel at home here. In fact, I do. Spiritwood was comfortable, but I always knew it was temporary. As for this area, I grew up coming to Arlington Beach Camp at least twice a year. In 1990 Mom and Dad moved to Arlington, lived there for 6 years and attended the Strasbourg Alliance Church, so I got to know a lot of people in both places, and it just felt so natural to be at the Alliance Church yesterday morning. Sunday afternoon Jeffrey and I attended the grand opening of the Regina Beach art gallery expansion, and that evening went to the "Welcome Neighbour" event in Strasbourg where I was introduced as the paper's "new reporter" and received a welcome bag with five pens inside. I was almost in heaven! Simple things, you know. Last night I attended a worship team practice and was thrilled to fit in easily and to play instruments that I don't usually get to play (keyboard--bass & vocal aahs, tambourine, penny whistle) and to find such lovely vocal harmony with Linda & Heather.
Of course there will be adjustments, yet it's amazing to feel such belonging so soon ...
This week involves lots of preparation for Jeffrey's open house and sale on Saturday. The kitchen is basically ready. Need to dust shelves, price pottery, practice some folk songs (as I'm the guest musician), clean bathroom and office/l.r. area ... Come if you can.
Labels: calling, family, jobs, music, performances, travel, writing
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
tour update #6: nearing the end, finding a home
This particular journey is nearing the end. It has been exhausting yet exhilarating, affirming and confirming my calling to a creative lifestyle, with music as a central part of that.
The house concert in Kitchener, Ontario was a delightful reunion of Briercrest alumni from the 2000s, plus a few new faces. One fun introduction was Laura S. Her sister Hannah (also there) was one of my students and introduced Laura to this blog. Laura has been quietly reading for a couple of years, and finally we met. It was amazing to open my concert singing "Poetess" and see her wipe away tears, then later to ask what caused the tears and have her respond that it was seeing me "standing, declaring my choice / To take my calling after resisting far too long." Hmmm. What a place to be in.
My other Ontario house concert in Markham was quite a bit smaller, but no less lovely in reuniting with old friends and meeting new ones. The CACSD meetings were fruitful, there were several opportunities for rejuvenation and reconnecting with friends during the trip. Of course, a touring schedule, sleeping in a different bed every night or two, being with different people every day or two, is not easy and I have often longed for a companion and/or a manager/agent at home and/or a laptop of my own to help streamline some aspects of life on the road.
I'm in Calgary this week. Arrived at 10:00 on Thursday evening (midnight in Ontario). Probably one of the funniest (as in ha-ha) touring moments happened the next morning at 6:30 when my alarm went off to get me up for a day of CHEC meetings (Christian Higher Education Canada). My last bed in Ontario was a mattress on the floor for two nights (comfy and restful). However, my bed in Calgary is your typical off-the-ground variety, but combining lack of sleep and disorientation, I jumped, rolled, and fell on the floor, banging my forehead on the night table! A bit of ice and nobody could tell, but it underscored my relief to be staying put here at my brother Tom's place for a few days and doing ordinary family things like driving my nephews and niece to school and writing little ditties to record on a birthday CD for my youngest niece and nephew.
Just a few days ago I found out that the Canadian Christian Music conference is here on Thursday and Friday, so I'm going to go for learning, networking, and inspiration. Possible workshops present me with some tough choices:
These sorts of dreams have been stirring in my heart and soul for a long time, but I could hardly imagine how or where they could begin to happen, even though Jeffrey had talked about similar things. The past year in Spiritwood has been transitional, knowing that I needed to finish my thesis and regain some health while seeking the Lord for the next step.
While in Ontario, my friend Anna reminded me of a developmental model that helps make sense of this past season: Janet Hagberg's Critical Journey. I've spent most of the year on a "journey inward" (stage 4), and have struggled "to be comfortable staying in this place until the new path comes." This summer I started hitting "the wall," wanting direction (particularly paying work) rather than waiting. I wrote out some elaborate schemes, trying to imagine ways to move on, make money and fulfill my calling at the same time. I have even submitted numerous resumes, with no bites. What should I do, what should I do, what should I do?
In all of this, the Lord has clearly had his hand on me. I recognize it in many ways. First there was the breakthrough in going on tour. There have been places to sleep and food to eat and people to sing for and with. As the tour nears the end, I have been wondering what to do next. I could keep touring, but it's time to stop and rest and be creative. I have been scouring job sites and brainstorming possibilities for self-employment income. Walls, walls, walls. Now Duval.
Though it seems perhaps a bit strange and risky, what hasn't been risky and unusual in my life for the past year plus? We're not naive. This transition will not be without challenges, of course, but that's the nature of anything worth doing. This feels like the right next step, pulling together all of my interests, training, experience and passion for the arts, business and education.
Hopefully my next post won't be so long in coming.
Here's a forecasted schedule for the next few weeks:
WEEK 6
Mon, Oct 22, Calgary (driving my nephews and niece to school--a nice change for me and a break for my brother & sister-in-law!)
Tue, Oct 23, Calgary, house concert, Pete & Brita Miko's home
Wed, Oct 24, Calgary, writing
Thu, Oct 25, Calgary, Canada Christian Music Conference
evening, Red Deer, house concert at Pete & Audrey Winter's home
Fri, Oct 26, Calgary, CCM conference
drive to Caronport
Sat, Oct 27, Caronport, house concert at Brendan and Laura Winter's home
Sun, Oct 28, Moose Jaw First Free Methodist Church
WEEK 7
Mon, Oct 29, Caronport
Tue, Oct 30, Caronport
Wed, Oct 31, Eston, SK, Full Gospel Bible College, concert (to be confirmed)
Thu, Nov 1, home to Spiritwood, Mom's birthday
Nov 2 - 8, Spiritwood: house concert at Inn on the Tenth; packing to move to Duval, SK for creative space and to be my brother Jeffrey's business manager and personal assistant during the Christmas rush.
Sometime in November: that free trip to California from a bank promotion last year
The house concert in Kitchener, Ontario was a delightful reunion of Briercrest alumni from the 2000s, plus a few new faces. One fun introduction was Laura S. Her sister Hannah (also there) was one of my students and introduced Laura to this blog. Laura has been quietly reading for a couple of years, and finally we met. It was amazing to open my concert singing "Poetess" and see her wipe away tears, then later to ask what caused the tears and have her respond that it was seeing me "standing, declaring my choice / To take my calling after resisting far too long." Hmmm. What a place to be in.
My other Ontario house concert in Markham was quite a bit smaller, but no less lovely in reuniting with old friends and meeting new ones. The CACSD meetings were fruitful, there were several opportunities for rejuvenation and reconnecting with friends during the trip. Of course, a touring schedule, sleeping in a different bed every night or two, being with different people every day or two, is not easy and I have often longed for a companion and/or a manager/agent at home and/or a laptop of my own to help streamline some aspects of life on the road.
I'm in Calgary this week. Arrived at 10:00 on Thursday evening (midnight in Ontario). Probably one of the funniest (as in ha-ha) touring moments happened the next morning at 6:30 when my alarm went off to get me up for a day of CHEC meetings (Christian Higher Education Canada). My last bed in Ontario was a mattress on the floor for two nights (comfy and restful). However, my bed in Calgary is your typical off-the-ground variety, but combining lack of sleep and disorientation, I jumped, rolled, and fell on the floor, banging my forehead on the night table! A bit of ice and nobody could tell, but it underscored my relief to be staying put here at my brother Tom's place for a few days and doing ordinary family things like driving my nephews and niece to school and writing little ditties to record on a birthday CD for my youngest niece and nephew.
Just a few days ago I found out that the Canadian Christian Music conference is here on Thursday and Friday, so I'm going to go for learning, networking, and inspiration. Possible workshops present me with some tough choices:
- Grants – Find out how you can improve your chances of receiving grants with tips on writing effective applications
- The Signpost Music Story – What it takes to make it as an independent artist. Speaker: Steve Bell
- Tours and Booking Panel – Perhaps the biggest challenge for the artist, booking gigs is an art in itself. Hear from a panel who have been putting together successful tours and concerts for years.
- SOCAN – What is SOCAN and why is it so important to the Canadian Artist? Hear what’s going on in Canada, how to protect your songs, and get answers to your questions.
- Artist Management Panel – Whether self-managed or you have a manager, hear what it takes to stay proactive rather than reactive in this industry.
- The Songwriting Process: Steve Bell and Carolyn Arends talk about the process of songwriting.
- The Secret Life of the Artist: Learn from the Breakforth founder and artist: Arlen Salte – Breakforth Ministries
- On-Stage Techniques: Learn from the Tom Jackson school of stage presence, from one of his trained presenters, Kevin Pauls
- Artist Panel: The realities of being a Canadian Christian Artist full time
- Kick-start the Heart – a frank discussion on how to take your heart for music and ministry and begin building a lasting career in the Christian music industry – Speaker: Jon Buller, Hear the Music Ministries
- Worship as a Journey: the corporate movement from alienation to intimacy between God and God’s people. Speaker: Steve Bell
These sorts of dreams have been stirring in my heart and soul for a long time, but I could hardly imagine how or where they could begin to happen, even though Jeffrey had talked about similar things. The past year in Spiritwood has been transitional, knowing that I needed to finish my thesis and regain some health while seeking the Lord for the next step.
While in Ontario, my friend Anna reminded me of a developmental model that helps make sense of this past season: Janet Hagberg's Critical Journey. I've spent most of the year on a "journey inward" (stage 4), and have struggled "to be comfortable staying in this place until the new path comes." This summer I started hitting "the wall," wanting direction (particularly paying work) rather than waiting. I wrote out some elaborate schemes, trying to imagine ways to move on, make money and fulfill my calling at the same time. I have even submitted numerous resumes, with no bites. What should I do, what should I do, what should I do?
In all of this, the Lord has clearly had his hand on me. I recognize it in many ways. First there was the breakthrough in going on tour. There have been places to sleep and food to eat and people to sing for and with. As the tour nears the end, I have been wondering what to do next. I could keep touring, but it's time to stop and rest and be creative. I have been scouring job sites and brainstorming possibilities for self-employment income. Walls, walls, walls. Now Duval.
Though it seems perhaps a bit strange and risky, what hasn't been risky and unusual in my life for the past year plus? We're not naive. This transition will not be without challenges, of course, but that's the nature of anything worth doing. This feels like the right next step, pulling together all of my interests, training, experience and passion for the arts, business and education.
Hopefully my next post won't be so long in coming.
Here's a forecasted schedule for the next few weeks:
WEEK 6
Mon, Oct 22, Calgary (driving my nephews and niece to school--a nice change for me and a break for my brother & sister-in-law!)
Tue, Oct 23, Calgary, house concert, Pete & Brita Miko's home
Wed, Oct 24, Calgary, writing
Thu, Oct 25, Calgary, Canada Christian Music Conference
evening, Red Deer, house concert at Pete & Audrey Winter's home
Fri, Oct 26, Calgary, CCM conference
drive to Caronport
Sat, Oct 27, Caronport, house concert at Brendan and Laura Winter's home
Sun, Oct 28, Moose Jaw First Free Methodist Church
WEEK 7
Mon, Oct 29, Caronport
Tue, Oct 30, Caronport
Wed, Oct 31, Eston, SK, Full Gospel Bible College, concert (to be confirmed)
Thu, Nov 1, home to Spiritwood, Mom's birthday
Nov 2 - 8, Spiritwood: house concert at Inn on the Tenth; packing to move to Duval, SK for creative space and to be my brother Jeffrey's business manager and personal assistant during the Christmas rush.
Sometime in November: that free trip to California from a bank promotion last year
Labels: CACSD, calling, family, identity, music, vocation, work
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
new template, new post
Thanks for the nudge, Rachel. I have been pondering this post for a couple of weeks now, wondering how to summarize recent experiences, opportunities, and musings ...
Lethbridge: Conference
The Research in Religious Studies conference was enlightening. It was one of the most inter-faith experiences I have had. The first paper was a critique of gender and sexuality in the Left Behind series. The second paper was an explanation of how yoga tantric sex is used to achieve enlightenment. And the conference progressed from there!
It started Thursday morning and by Thursday afternoon I had written in my notebook: "What's the 'real' value of a conference such as this? Is it just SCR?"
Thursday evening we had a banquet, with speaker Dr. David Goa of The Chester Ronning Centre at Augustana University College in Camrose, AB. It was like he had read my notebook. He challenged us that students of religious studies have a public vocation, that our work is important because we are learning to listen to people of other faiths and cultures, we are learning to understand difference and not merely dismiss it.
Though his voice is gentle and his cadences poetic, he does not speak in the vaguaries that often accompany multicultural tolerance: he challenged us to make and keep commitments, beautifully setting his work in the ground of his own Orthodox faith.
"The best conversations come out of commitment on both sides. So for me the ‘other’ was never somebody to be afraid of. They were always somebody whose face invited me to a great mystery."
My cousin Amy & I were tremendously heartened by Dr. Goa and approached him after the banquet. He asked what we were presenting. When I told him "oral histories of women from the early days of Briercrest" he said, "Oh, we're very interested in that sort of thing. Send me your paper. Maybe we can work together." Amy & I walked away stunned by the possibilities. So I sent him my paper and we ended up setting a lunch date for the end of my Alberta tour.
Calgary: Family
After the Lethbridge conference I went to Calgary until my next conference. I stayed with my brother Tom, his wife Lori, and their kids Jackson, Mackenzie and Emma. They're so easy to be with and it's so refreshing for me to be with my nephews and neice: to take some turns driving the kids to and from school, to have quirky conversations with them, to play board games and card games. (I don't know anything about Star Wars, but who needs information to provide a suitable foil in Star Wars trivia?)
I also got to watch all of season six of Gilmore Girls and the first DVD from season one! (I rarely watch TV and movies at home.)
I was able to connect with other family members, too: Aunt Sherry (who lives in Estevan and Regina) was in town visiting her daughter Brandi. I was able to spend a few hours with each of them. Uncle Bob & Aunt Lorrie were visiting Canada from Australia. I had already seen them for a couple of days in Spiritwood, but we were able to do lunch at the Kensington Pub with Tom, Aunt Sherry, Brandi, and U. Bob's daughter Kelly.
Note: the Kensignton Pub is across the street from Tom's shoe store, Stride ("Because you can't be comfortable in ugly shoes"). Now I've got my eye on a pair of John Fluevogs from the Operetta line.
My favourite thing about Operettas is the quotation on the bottom:
Hey Minstrel
Your Love Makes Me Sing!
Arise! Come! My Darling,
My Beautiful One, Come With Me.
A beautiful pairing of a lyric from "I Could Sing of Your Love Forever" with a verse from "Song of Solomon" -- and perfect for a musician.
Someday ...
In the meantime, I need to make a bit of money!
RED DEER: HOUSE CONCERT
During that week I did a lot of prep for the CACSD conference.
I also held my first house concert at the home of Pete and Audrey Winter in Red Deer. There were about 15 people, including Audrey's brother Gene Zacharias and his family. Gene is a long-lost college friend. We used to sit in the cafeteria and laugh our heads off together. We did laugh that evening, but we also had poignant fellowship. Gene and Sonja joining me to sing the last song together:
I have a Maker
He formed my heart
Before even time began
My life was in his hands
He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And hears me when I call.
After the concert, the Zacharias family wrote in my notebook. Gene & Sonja's son, Seth, is a very good artist, so I asked him to draw something. "Okay," he agreed. "I'll draw what came into my head."
What came into Seth's head was astoundingly prophetic. My middle name is Faye, which means fairy, and this year more than ever it has been meaningful to me. Wings are another meaningful theme, so the butterfly is significant. (The dragonfly and bee were added by Seth's sister Claire, along with the two fairies and the flower on the bottom right.) The peace lily is a symbol from a dream I had in April 2006, comforting me to be contented about not having children (... yet ...).
Seth is about 12. There is no way he could have known these things, but on the evening of my very first house concert, these images were like Noah's rainbow: symbols of promise, affirmations that I'm on the right path.
Claire's other illuminations:
This bird reminded me of "Mother Bird" from a lovely book my friend Lamb gave me for my birthday this year: Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Golden Egg.
Funny -- I have these hand drawings, but I don't have any photos from the house concert!
We put about 15 CDs and a "tips teapot" on a low, round table in the middle of the living room. Instead of actually "selling" the CDs, people could just take one and put a donation in the teapot.
The amount in the teapot was approximately equal to the amount I would have collected if I had actually sold the discs. Again, a confirmation that the Lord will provide as I continue on this path.
On Wednesday afternoon I had my first phone interview with Incubator Records. Very encouraging.
Calgary: Open Mic Night
In order to have time together, my cousin Brandi & her husband Alex generously let me tag along on their "date night." I was planning to sing during open mic at The House Coffee Sanctuary, so we rendez-vous'd there. The wait for my call was going to be long
so we went for a walk through Prince's Island. Brandi & Alex left before 10 to pick up Aunt Sherry at the airport. I went back to The House, sang my two songs to a warm crowd, and ended up having a long and delightful conversation with a girl named Beka who had lived at Caronport for a few years after doing the Kaleo program. I left a CD and came away with a tentative booking for July 7th!
Calgary: CACSD Conference
The CACSD Executive started arriving on Sunday afternoon. We gathered that evening at Calgary's downtown Sandman for last minute planning. The conference started Monday afternoon and ended Wednesday evening. Using open space technology to organize the conference, I was the main facilitor. Open space is a great way to discover what's really important to a group, and one things we discovered is that excursions are important to CACSD members! We worked hard in discussion sessions on Monday afternoon & Tuesday morning. Tuesday afternoon was also open for sessions, but instead of posting topics, we ended up with invitations for sight-seeing and shopping!
Tuesday afternoon my friend Lamb arrived in Calgary and stayed at Tom & Lori's. (He drove from Ontario and has some business in Alberta this week.) Arriving about half an hour before me, he was entertained by Emma, who told him all about Charlotte's Web after learning that he had neither watched the book nor seen the movie.
Unfortunately, after supper I became quite sick and was completely wiped out through the next day. Missing Wednesday morning of my conference didn't really buy more time with Lamb since, both exhausted (him from driving and me from illness), we went to bed early and slept until 11:00 a.m. Even so, it was nice to spend some time with him. There's a good chance that he'll stop in Spiritwood next week on the return drive to Ontario.
I went back to the conference on Wednesday for a couple of afternoon meetings and the banquet and to help the Executive clean up. Job well done. Next year at Redeemer University College in Ontario.
Edmonton: Lunch with Dr. Goa
Had a lovely lunch with Dr. David Goa at the Mill Creek Cafe. We discussed my research on women from the early days of Briercrest and how to continue it, possibly with the Chester Ronning Centre. He gave me some very useful tips re. a Ph.D.
Ater lunch introduced me to The Bookseller, a used book store underneath the Mill Creek Cafe.
Lovely shop, well worth visiting again. Didn't buy any books, though!
Post-trip pondering
I came straight home to Spiritwood on Friday evening. Waiting for me was the first package from Incubator Records with 4 hours of workshop on cassette tapes introducing prospects to Incubator's approach to ministry. I like what they're saying so far but ... lately I've been wondering if I should find a day job. The idea of a steady income is appealing. The entrepreneurial life of a musician and researcher can be risky. But what am I "called" to? Incubator President, Nathan L. Sakany, says that a calling is "something that just keeps calling to you." Even if I took a day job for just a year or two, the music and research would "just keep calling to me." And the Lord keeps reminding me that he'll take care of the money.
So why not now? I need to stay centred and reread my own words from last summer: a new season.
Lethbridge: Conference
The Research in Religious Studies conference was enlightening. It was one of the most inter-faith experiences I have had. The first paper was a critique of gender and sexuality in the Left Behind series. The second paper was an explanation of how yoga tantric sex is used to achieve enlightenment. And the conference progressed from there!
It started Thursday morning and by Thursday afternoon I had written in my notebook: "What's the 'real' value of a conference such as this? Is it just SCR?"
Thursday evening we had a banquet, with speaker Dr. David Goa of The Chester Ronning Centre at Augustana University College in Camrose, AB. It was like he had read my notebook. He challenged us that students of religious studies have a public vocation, that our work is important because we are learning to listen to people of other faiths and cultures, we are learning to understand difference and not merely dismiss it.
Though his voice is gentle and his cadences poetic, he does not speak in the vaguaries that often accompany multicultural tolerance: he challenged us to make and keep commitments, beautifully setting his work in the ground of his own Orthodox faith.
"The best conversations come out of commitment on both sides. So for me the ‘other’ was never somebody to be afraid of. They were always somebody whose face invited me to a great mystery."
My cousin Amy & I were tremendously heartened by Dr. Goa and approached him after the banquet. He asked what we were presenting. When I told him "oral histories of women from the early days of Briercrest" he said, "Oh, we're very interested in that sort of thing. Send me your paper. Maybe we can work together." Amy & I walked away stunned by the possibilities. So I sent him my paper and we ended up setting a lunch date for the end of my Alberta tour.
Calgary: Family
After the Lethbridge conference I went to Calgary until my next conference. I stayed with my brother Tom, his wife Lori, and their kids Jackson, Mackenzie and Emma. They're so easy to be with and it's so refreshing for me to be with my nephews and neice: to take some turns driving the kids to and from school, to have quirky conversations with them, to play board games and card games. (I don't know anything about Star Wars, but who needs information to provide a suitable foil in Star Wars trivia?)
I also got to watch all of season six of Gilmore Girls and the first DVD from season one! (I rarely watch TV and movies at home.)
I was able to connect with other family members, too: Aunt Sherry (who lives in Estevan and Regina) was in town visiting her daughter Brandi. I was able to spend a few hours with each of them. Uncle Bob & Aunt Lorrie were visiting Canada from Australia. I had already seen them for a couple of days in Spiritwood, but we were able to do lunch at the Kensington Pub with Tom, Aunt Sherry, Brandi, and U. Bob's daughter Kelly.
Note: the Kensignton Pub is across the street from Tom's shoe store, Stride ("Because you can't be comfortable in ugly shoes"). Now I've got my eye on a pair of John Fluevogs from the Operetta line.
My favourite thing about Operettas is the quotation on the bottom:
Hey Minstrel
Your Love Makes Me Sing!
Arise! Come! My Darling,
My Beautiful One, Come With Me.
A beautiful pairing of a lyric from "I Could Sing of Your Love Forever" with a verse from "Song of Solomon" -- and perfect for a musician.
Someday ...
In the meantime, I need to make a bit of money!
RED DEER: HOUSE CONCERT
During that week I did a lot of prep for the CACSD conference.
I also held my first house concert at the home of Pete and Audrey Winter in Red Deer. There were about 15 people, including Audrey's brother Gene Zacharias and his family. Gene is a long-lost college friend. We used to sit in the cafeteria and laugh our heads off together. We did laugh that evening, but we also had poignant fellowship. Gene and Sonja joining me to sing the last song together:
I have a Maker
He formed my heart
Before even time began
My life was in his hands
He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And hears me when I call.
After the concert, the Zacharias family wrote in my notebook. Gene & Sonja's son, Seth, is a very good artist, so I asked him to draw something. "Okay," he agreed. "I'll draw what came into my head."
What came into Seth's head was astoundingly prophetic. My middle name is Faye, which means fairy, and this year more than ever it has been meaningful to me. Wings are another meaningful theme, so the butterfly is significant. (The dragonfly and bee were added by Seth's sister Claire, along with the two fairies and the flower on the bottom right.) The peace lily is a symbol from a dream I had in April 2006, comforting me to be contented about not having children (... yet ...).
Seth is about 12. There is no way he could have known these things, but on the evening of my very first house concert, these images were like Noah's rainbow: symbols of promise, affirmations that I'm on the right path.
Claire's other illuminations:
This bird reminded me of "Mother Bird" from a lovely book my friend Lamb gave me for my birthday this year: Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Golden Egg.
Funny -- I have these hand drawings, but I don't have any photos from the house concert!
We put about 15 CDs and a "tips teapot" on a low, round table in the middle of the living room. Instead of actually "selling" the CDs, people could just take one and put a donation in the teapot.
The amount in the teapot was approximately equal to the amount I would have collected if I had actually sold the discs. Again, a confirmation that the Lord will provide as I continue on this path.
On Wednesday afternoon I had my first phone interview with Incubator Records. Very encouraging.
Calgary: Open Mic Night
In order to have time together, my cousin Brandi & her husband Alex generously let me tag along on their "date night." I was planning to sing during open mic at The House Coffee Sanctuary, so we rendez-vous'd there. The wait for my call was going to be long
so we went for a walk through Prince's Island. Brandi & Alex left before 10 to pick up Aunt Sherry at the airport. I went back to The House, sang my two songs to a warm crowd, and ended up having a long and delightful conversation with a girl named Beka who had lived at Caronport for a few years after doing the Kaleo program. I left a CD and came away with a tentative booking for July 7th!
Calgary: CACSD Conference
The CACSD Executive started arriving on Sunday afternoon. We gathered that evening at Calgary's downtown Sandman for last minute planning. The conference started Monday afternoon and ended Wednesday evening. Using open space technology to organize the conference, I was the main facilitor. Open space is a great way to discover what's really important to a group, and one things we discovered is that excursions are important to CACSD members! We worked hard in discussion sessions on Monday afternoon & Tuesday morning. Tuesday afternoon was also open for sessions, but instead of posting topics, we ended up with invitations for sight-seeing and shopping!
Tuesday afternoon my friend Lamb arrived in Calgary and stayed at Tom & Lori's. (He drove from Ontario and has some business in Alberta this week.) Arriving about half an hour before me, he was entertained by Emma, who told him all about Charlotte's Web after learning that he had neither watched the book nor seen the movie.
Unfortunately, after supper I became quite sick and was completely wiped out through the next day. Missing Wednesday morning of my conference didn't really buy more time with Lamb since, both exhausted (him from driving and me from illness), we went to bed early and slept until 11:00 a.m. Even so, it was nice to spend some time with him. There's a good chance that he'll stop in Spiritwood next week on the return drive to Ontario.
I went back to the conference on Wednesday for a couple of afternoon meetings and the banquet and to help the Executive clean up. Job well done. Next year at Redeemer University College in Ontario.
Edmonton: Lunch with Dr. Goa
Had a lovely lunch with Dr. David Goa at the Mill Creek Cafe. We discussed my research on women from the early days of Briercrest and how to continue it, possibly with the Chester Ronning Centre. He gave me some very useful tips re. a Ph.D.
Ater lunch introduced me to The Bookseller, a used book store underneath the Mill Creek Cafe.
Lovely shop, well worth visiting again. Didn't buy any books, though!
Post-trip pondering
I came straight home to Spiritwood on Friday evening. Waiting for me was the first package from Incubator Records with 4 hours of workshop on cassette tapes introducing prospects to Incubator's approach to ministry. I like what they're saying so far but ... lately I've been wondering if I should find a day job. The idea of a steady income is appealing. The entrepreneurial life of a musician and researcher can be risky. But what am I "called" to? Incubator President, Nathan L. Sakany, says that a calling is "something that just keeps calling to you." Even if I took a day job for just a year or two, the music and research would "just keep calling to me." And the Lord keeps reminding me that he'll take care of the money.
So why not now? I need to stay centred and reread my own words from last summer: a new season.
Labels: calling, family, friends, Lamb, music, performances, travel, vocation
Thursday, January 25, 2007
unity week
You really really would like these sisters. When I returned from working at the home care office yesterday, I got into a wide-ranging conversation with them. They know how to work hard, but they also love conversation, especially about the Lord. I had noticed that their car is a Mercury Mystique Sport and mentioned that it is a fitting car for two energetic mystics! Sr. Therese demured that in the past two months, with packing and moving, it has been hard to be "mystique," but they are thankful that the Lord is always with them. I noted Brother Lawrence with Jesus among the pots and pans. Then I asked if they had read Henri Nouwen and their eyes lit up and they almost melted. Each of them has about 4 Nouwen books on the go. Sr. Therese is currently reading Here and Now; Life of the Beloved; and Spirituality for Laypeople. Sr. Bernadette reads him in French and is currently reading about the Eucharist.
Mom & Dad invited them for supper last night and, sharing a simple meal of homemade bread and turkey soup, our conversation was pure fellowship. I asked about their decisions to enter vocational life and why Sisters of the Presentation of Mary. They have two older sisters (92 and 85) who belong to Sisters Adorers of the Precious Blood, a contemplative order in St. Hyacinth, QC. (Their mother also joined "Precious Blood" after their father died.) The bottom line is that they both wanted to give themselves completely and actively to the Lord.
Near the end of our supper, Sr. Therese marvelled at the goodness of God and how he orders our steps, particularly that they moved into this building during Unity Week! They are very ecumenical, preferring to focus on commonalities rather than divisions.
Sister Therese and Sister Bernadette are a tremendous gift to us already. And they love my cats.
Mom & Dad invited them for supper last night and, sharing a simple meal of homemade bread and turkey soup, our conversation was pure fellowship. I asked about their decisions to enter vocational life and why Sisters of the Presentation of Mary. They have two older sisters (92 and 85) who belong to Sisters Adorers of the Precious Blood, a contemplative order in St. Hyacinth, QC. (Their mother also joined "Precious Blood" after their father died.) The bottom line is that they both wanted to give themselves completely and actively to the Lord.
Near the end of our supper, Sr. Therese marvelled at the goodness of God and how he orders our steps, particularly that they moved into this building during Unity Week! They are very ecumenical, preferring to focus on commonalities rather than divisions.
Sister Therese and Sister Bernadette are a tremendous gift to us already. And they love my cats.
Friday, January 05, 2007
new year, new day planner, & nuns coming "home"
Last Sunday our interim pastor, Vern Munshaw, preached about the new year (surprise) from the perspective of buying a new pocket-sized personal calendar. For years this was the gift he bought himself for Christmas -- always the same, and better than any of his other gifts. "Someone" (his wife) eventually realized how important this purchase was and now she buys it for him.
The image of looking for a new day planner really resonated with me. I had been looking for my new day planner but holding off the purchase. The brand I keep returning to is Quo Vadis, the style Minister Prestige. The paper is creamy (in both colour and texture) and heavy (ink never bleeds through); the layout is ideal (1 week on 2 pages, 8am-9pm, with lots of room for notes); the extras are handy (anno-planning, world maps, time zones, receipts and payments section, address book). And recently, in shopping around, I have learned that the paper comes from environmentally friendly mills in France!
Listening to Pastor Vern talk about new calendars and new years confirmed to me that it was time to really welcome the new year, so I had my uncle pick up a new Minister Prestige planner at Staples on his last trip to Saskatoon. Last night I finished the transfer from the 2006 book to 2007. Feels good.
More than ever a good calendar is imperative. 2007 is starting out crazy!
When I came to Spiritwood last fall, my parents moved down to my grandpa's apartment and I moved into their spacious bedroom suite (300+ sq ft). For many months Mom & Dad have been fielding queries about renting space here, but have never felt like they had the right set-up for boarding. That all changed a few weeks ago when they learned that the local nuns had sold their house and, not wanting to leave Spiritwood, were looking for a place to live. (Sister Therese and Sister Bernadette who are not only vocational sisters but biological siblings, too.)So my parents offered the apartment, the sisters came to see it, and Therese could hardly sit down she was so excited! This is where Sister Therese and Sister Bernadette lived several decades ago when they first came to teach in Spiritwood, so it's like coming home for them -- except that they never imagined it could be so beautiful! They would like Dad & Mom to build a little chapel space somewhere so they "can bring the presence of God into the place." Mmmmm.
It's exciting all around -- a home for the sisters, some rental income for Mom & Dad. But then it also means that Mom and Dad want their bedroom suite back, which means carving out different space for me in the south end upstairs.
Add to the mix a handful of international farm workers (employed at Fast Genetics) who are looking for places to live and a desperate lack of rental accommodations in Spiritwood, giving my parents have other possibilities for renters, which means more potential renovations on this 9000 sq ft 1950s former convent. And a lot of tradespeople have moved to Alberta!
I had hoped that January would be a quiet month to settle into my thesis and finish that thing, but I've been assigned several training & relief shifts at the Spiritwood home care office, I've got at least 5 Norwex shows in the next 2 weeks, and there are some exciting things happening with a glyconutrient company, so I'm going to Caronport and Weyburn next week "on business." I'm also considering getting certified as a Birkman consultant. (Training in Orlando, Florida, February 6-7 or Orange County, CA, March 13-14. Ask me about my introductory rate.) Interestingly, being so busy provides structure and perspective that somehow helps me to be more productive than when life is slow, increasing my motivation to write! Strange how that works, but I won't argue. Guess I'm just going to have to cram that thesis into the small spaces!
Stay tuned! ...
new year, new day
planner--clean
pages, empty
yet full of
possibilities--
familiar,
family,
friends,
vacations,
promotions ...
empty pages,
like an unopened door.
someone knocks,
you open, and there
stands a stranger,
the Unknown.
Release your fears,
welcome the stranger
bringing blessing and bain.
Release control,
open the door,
open your hands,
release and receive,
release and receive.
The image of looking for a new day planner really resonated with me. I had been looking for my new day planner but holding off the purchase. The brand I keep returning to is Quo Vadis, the style Minister Prestige. The paper is creamy (in both colour and texture) and heavy (ink never bleeds through); the layout is ideal (1 week on 2 pages, 8am-9pm, with lots of room for notes); the extras are handy (anno-planning, world maps, time zones, receipts and payments section, address book). And recently, in shopping around, I have learned that the paper comes from environmentally friendly mills in France!
Listening to Pastor Vern talk about new calendars and new years confirmed to me that it was time to really welcome the new year, so I had my uncle pick up a new Minister Prestige planner at Staples on his last trip to Saskatoon. Last night I finished the transfer from the 2006 book to 2007. Feels good.
More than ever a good calendar is imperative. 2007 is starting out crazy!
When I came to Spiritwood last fall, my parents moved down to my grandpa's apartment and I moved into their spacious bedroom suite (300+ sq ft). For many months Mom & Dad have been fielding queries about renting space here, but have never felt like they had the right set-up for boarding. That all changed a few weeks ago when they learned that the local nuns had sold their house and, not wanting to leave Spiritwood, were looking for a place to live. (Sister Therese and Sister Bernadette who are not only vocational sisters but biological siblings, too.)So my parents offered the apartment, the sisters came to see it, and Therese could hardly sit down she was so excited! This is where Sister Therese and Sister Bernadette lived several decades ago when they first came to teach in Spiritwood, so it's like coming home for them -- except that they never imagined it could be so beautiful! They would like Dad & Mom to build a little chapel space somewhere so they "can bring the presence of God into the place." Mmmmm.
It's exciting all around -- a home for the sisters, some rental income for Mom & Dad. But then it also means that Mom and Dad want their bedroom suite back, which means carving out different space for me in the south end upstairs.
Add to the mix a handful of international farm workers (employed at Fast Genetics) who are looking for places to live and a desperate lack of rental accommodations in Spiritwood, giving my parents have other possibilities for renters, which means more potential renovations on this 9000 sq ft 1950s former convent. And a lot of tradespeople have moved to Alberta!
I had hoped that January would be a quiet month to settle into my thesis and finish that thing, but I've been assigned several training & relief shifts at the Spiritwood home care office, I've got at least 5 Norwex shows in the next 2 weeks, and there are some exciting things happening with a glyconutrient company, so I'm going to Caronport and Weyburn next week "on business." I'm also considering getting certified as a Birkman consultant. (Training in Orlando, Florida, February 6-7 or Orange County, CA, March 13-14. Ask me about my introductory rate.) Interestingly, being so busy provides structure and perspective that somehow helps me to be more productive than when life is slow, increasing my motivation to write! Strange how that works, but I won't argue. Guess I'm just going to have to cram that thesis into the small spaces!
Stay tuned! ...
Saturday, December 02, 2006
Grand Ole Country & a new job
I'm so exhausted after playing keyboard with the band for Spiritwood Grand Ole Country Christmas concert/talent show tonight. But it was SO much fun and good exposure. Tomorrow Mom, Aunt Linda, our friend Dawn, and I are singing at the seniors' Christmas supper in Shell Lake. Music. This is in my calling ...
Yesterday I got a job: Relief Scheduler with the Prince Albert Parkland Health Region. As relief work it's very part-time and sporadic, yet will provide at least 2 full-time work weeks for orientation this month at a nice governmental starting wage. Part-time suits me well, since music & writing is what I came here for. With my foot in the door for the health region I'll be able to bid on other jobs that come up.
Part of my orientation will include 1-2 days in Prince Albert with the health region providing a car and paying me 8 hours a day. What a gift: my sister Starla lives in PA and just yesterday was asking if I could come do family Christmas presents with her! So I get to say yes and go with all expenses paid!
This job is an answer to prayer. I've been considering teaching English in Korea. But, the Lord has been speaking to me about that my call is to the nations but English is not the vehicle (for now), that he wants me to concentrate on the music and writing and watch him provide. Well, this week I've been doing a lot of music ... and he's providing, true to his word!
Bev, the woman hiring me, said she's very comfortable with me and that the reference checks (all Briercrest people) are excellent and that they'd love to hire me back. Sigh. Sometimes I long to be doing that work, especially the mentoring of young women. But that will come ...
Yesterday I got a job: Relief Scheduler with the Prince Albert Parkland Health Region. As relief work it's very part-time and sporadic, yet will provide at least 2 full-time work weeks for orientation this month at a nice governmental starting wage. Part-time suits me well, since music & writing is what I came here for. With my foot in the door for the health region I'll be able to bid on other jobs that come up.
Part of my orientation will include 1-2 days in Prince Albert with the health region providing a car and paying me 8 hours a day. What a gift: my sister Starla lives in PA and just yesterday was asking if I could come do family Christmas presents with her! So I get to say yes and go with all expenses paid!
This job is an answer to prayer. I've been considering teaching English in Korea. But, the Lord has been speaking to me about that my call is to the nations but English is not the vehicle (for now), that he wants me to concentrate on the music and writing and watch him provide. Well, this week I've been doing a lot of music ... and he's providing, true to his word!
Bev, the woman hiring me, said she's very comfortable with me and that the reference checks (all Briercrest people) are excellent and that they'd love to hire me back. Sigh. Sometimes I long to be doing that work, especially the mentoring of young women. But that will come ...
Labels: calling, jobs, music, performances, vocation
Friday, December 01, 2006
making millions?
If you think of it, please pray for me & my Mom, my Aunt Linda, & our friend Dawn. We're doing two concerts this weekend: Spiritwood's "Grand Ole Opry Christmas" on Saturday evening and a seniors' supper on Sunday evening. We're all feeling like our health is challenged in one way or another.
The Opry committee has hired a country group, Dixie Highway, as the house band to play for all the performers. Dixie Highway said they needed a keyboard player, so my mom offered my services and they accepted. I received the CDs and lyric sheets last week, on Wednesday night I practiced with the band in Saskatoon, and on Saturday afternoon we'll put it all together with the performers (individuals & groups). Whirlwind!
Should be a fun weekend -- but a lot of work. Mom, Aunt Linda, Dawn & I are praying that we'll shine like stars in the universe.
You know, lately I've been wondering if I should go teach English in Korea. A person can make millions there. Millions of WON, that is. In fact, I sent away a few resumes, interviewed with a Toronto placement agency, and was offered my pick of jobs.
Yet, every time I pray about my vocation I sense the Lord telling me just to do what he told me -- to sing and write (alongside my Mannatech & Norwex businesses) and watch him provide. I know that my calling is to "sing release to nations," so would going as an English teacher be kind of like Sarah giving Hagar to Abraham to shortcut the process of securing an heir?
Well, the Opry is a paying gig, furthering my professional music career. :) And this week I've had some great and unexpected Norwex and Mannatech activity. The Lord will take care of the money as long as I'm obedient ... Do I really believe that?
My friend Mary reminded me to ask the Lord for wisdom and not to doubt.
James 1:5-8
From The Message: If you don't know what you're doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You'll get his help, and won't be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who "worry their prayers" are like wind-whipped waves. Don't think you're going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open.
From the New Living Translation: If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.
The Opry committee has hired a country group, Dixie Highway, as the house band to play for all the performers. Dixie Highway said they needed a keyboard player, so my mom offered my services and they accepted. I received the CDs and lyric sheets last week, on Wednesday night I practiced with the band in Saskatoon, and on Saturday afternoon we'll put it all together with the performers (individuals & groups). Whirlwind!
Should be a fun weekend -- but a lot of work. Mom, Aunt Linda, Dawn & I are praying that we'll shine like stars in the universe.
You know, lately I've been wondering if I should go teach English in Korea. A person can make millions there. Millions of WON, that is. In fact, I sent away a few resumes, interviewed with a Toronto placement agency, and was offered my pick of jobs.
Yet, every time I pray about my vocation I sense the Lord telling me just to do what he told me -- to sing and write (alongside my Mannatech & Norwex businesses) and watch him provide. I know that my calling is to "sing release to nations," so would going as an English teacher be kind of like Sarah giving Hagar to Abraham to shortcut the process of securing an heir?
Well, the Opry is a paying gig, furthering my professional music career. :) And this week I've had some great and unexpected Norwex and Mannatech activity. The Lord will take care of the money as long as I'm obedient ... Do I really believe that?
My friend Mary reminded me to ask the Lord for wisdom and not to doubt.
James 1:5-8
From The Message: If you don't know what you're doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You'll get his help, and won't be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who "worry their prayers" are like wind-whipped waves. Don't think you're going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open.
From the New Living Translation: If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.
Labels: calling, family, music, performances, vocation
