I Believe It’s Official…A New Day!

Well, what can you say, that hasn’t already been said…by doubters and believers both !  Watching the inauguration, witnessing history in this country…I thought about this song.  I figured Celine should be somewhere belting this tune to the rafters with her awesome voice…my blog’s just as good a spot as any *smile*.

God bless President Obama, the First Family, the Obama Administration…God bless America and beyond….a new day has finally come!!  I believe.

My Fave Meditation Song

I think we all can relate to being inspired to write, right?  But how often does writing inspire creativity for something else?

I remember writing the first words of the chapter that introduces one of my characters.  I wrote:

She left the sliding glass door open, just wide enough to hear the music inside.  The pan flute and harp play together in a soft rain…

Right there.  At that moment, I felt this intense desire to hear and experience what she was hearing.  I wanted to feel the music just like she felt it.

I spent some quiet time exploring melodies within, and finally birthed the music to this piece last year…a beautiful first for me as a novice musician and studio head.  It didn’t hit me last year, but lately, I found myself singing over the music.  No real words.  Just syllables that seemed to communicate all I wanted to say, but didn’t have the words.  Last week, I finally got a chance to record my vocals.

And here we are…my first prayer and meditation song!…filled with reverance and gratitude for the Creator.  My Source.  If feel this joint sooo deeply, people…let me know if you can feel it too .  Ashe.Selah

Small Starts

Hey. Remember this wall? The one leading upstairs. Yeah, it’s the same one, where 8mos ago, my kids tacked the welcome home banner for me. I’d been away for weeks in L.A. when Daddy had his brain surgery. Yep, it had been a part of the house all this time.

Well, as of yesterday, one of my best Father’s Days ever, I took it down.

Why was yesterday one of my best Father’s Days….when it was the first one since Dad’s passing? Hmm, no supernatural fanfare, no thunder and lightning from Heaven. By the grace of God, I arrived at a state of readiness, and decided to make a small start for a big change….Letting go.

I think it was the song that helped. What don’t I do without the influence of Music.  Music races through my veins..it’s a life line…as it was for Daddy, a jazz pianist back in the day. From the first note till the last, I felt he was with me. I felt the memories of him playing this song a gazillion times on full blast. Ooooh we (the kids) used to get sooo put out by replay #11. “OMG…Daddy’s gonna play it again?!” He’d say, “ok…ok…one more time.” We knew that meant 20. And for every repeat, he’d walk through the house, or he’d sit there with his coffee, gaze off into another space with one hand raised…tears rolling down his face — “And IIIIIIIII will always love you….”

That cleansing cry I yearned for….finally started yesterday, as I listened to this song, one hand raised, and let the tears flow. May sound crazy, but I could feel Daddy so close. It became a joy to remember, no longer pure pain.

Folks, it only takes another drop of rain to cause a flood. One particle of air to burst a balloon. Never forsake your baby steps…for there’s one inside of you that will blow the lid off the entire ordeal….to the point of no return *smile*. Yesterday was my breakthrough, and I’m so grateful to God for the small start with life changing results I can feel… Ashe.Selah

Winters Have Come and Gone

It was time for a break, doncha think lol . Memorial Day weekend couldn’t get here fast enough. And what better way to spend a 4-day weekend than getting some rest, and taking in the movies with the fam.

There are some cool advantages to having a son and daughter…a complete set lol…so close in age (19mos apart). It’s called the buddy system. I got me a buddy, and hubby’s got one too. Or as we say in our house, “girl business” and “boy business”. So, this weekend at the movies, the boys broke left and saw Raiders of the Lost Ark, and the girls broke right and saw Prince Caspian.

Man, Prince Caspian was awesome…cinematography, costumes/makeup, the landscape of New Zealand – simply breathtaking. C.S. Lewis was a profound writer…fiction (ever read the Screwtape Letters?) and non-fiction (The Four Loves, Studies in Words, and many more). My daughter shared a beautiful takeaway with me. {Without giving away the movie}… “See Mama, children often see what grownups can’t. We try to tell ya, but because we’re little, grown-ups think we’re crazy. We’re right alot of times…we believe!” Interesting. How lovely it is to have the heart of a child…to believe beyond absurdity….that’s my desire.

OK, so here’s the highlight of the movie that did it for me. Yes, that would be the MUSIC — Aahhh! With the end credits rolling, and the theatre cleared, I stood there shaking my head in amazement. A surround sound beauty *smile*. I love it when I stumble upon great music…or rather, great music finds me and makes my world stand still. Take a listen to {drum roll please} A Dance ‘Round the Memory Tree, by Oren Lavie. He’s on my buy list. Timeless….

Music to Write by

Not all words are words to live by. Similarly, not all music is music to write by.

My preferred method of writing (when at home) is to the tune of total silence. With 2 kiddos and a hubby addicted to CNN, you can imagine I don’t visit that perfect world too often. I’m usually tinkering away at the Starbucks around the corner, or squeezing in a sentence or two at night after the kids go to bed.

Today, I’m in a perfect world. The house is empty, and there’s nothing but the hum of the A/C unit and the cat’s meow to keep me company — PRICELESS! However, I decided to switch things up a little and try some writing-mood music. Hmmm….Something soft, soul-inspiring, but won’t tempt me to sing along. I hear it, but I don’t hear it — feel me?

If you’re ever looking for music that fits this bill, give Enya a try!

OMG’sh I’ve always loved her angelic voice, never knowing who she was…voice with a name…until this year. See, she’s the voice behind my fave songs on The Lord of the Rings and Gladiator soundtracks (click those links for a listen ~ goosebump heavenly).

Hubby teases me all the time, when I’m not writing and pumping Enya through the house. How in the world did a chic from the ‘hood fall in love with Celtic music LOL! Hey, don’t hate cos I’m a renaissance woman *smile*. Sure, they weren’t offering Gaelic as a second language in my high school, but let’s face it, some music you feel with your soul…not your intellect.

Here’s one of my many faves of Enya, entitled (appropriately) Book of Days. My favorite lyrics in this song?…… “One day, one night, one moment my dreams could be tomorrow…… No day, no night, no moment can hold me back from trying…..” Njoy with me .

Words

One hundred of them…remember that? How ’bout their hidden inspirational messages? Well, it’s been a minute since I’ve searched my heart, mind, and soul for the month’s fab 100. Words and I are gonna get real close this year, especially with tens of thousands of them to write to finish the novel (or, do I hear novella lol); this will explain much shorter blog posts in the future…unless I’m just full….flow with me.

So, to kick it back off, I thought I’d start with a serenade to words by the awesome five in The Real Group, with a song entitled….you’d never guess………..”Words”. Njoy

But for God…Lest I Forget

In five minutes, this powerful, little skit sums up me and God…r u starring in this movie too? Njoy =)!

Artist: Lifehouse
Song: Everything (Lyrics)

How Can We Lose When…

JESUS is rooting for us?

And how can I give up when
He’s already said His prayer?
Is there anything a Father
Wouldn’t give a Son He loves?
So, I receive it
My Faith won’t fail me now.
Copyright © 2006.

I remember the morning my spirit heard this song. It was after a long, treacherous night. Most of my music, esp. the 2006 tunes, I simply hear(d). No effort or conjuring up. I’m minding my own business, and it naturally hits me lol. It’s like a radio in my head, and whenever my dial is positioned just right…at the right time…I catch a beautiful song. So cool man.

So, I woke up this morning singing this tune. I sooooo have to record this one for the soundtrack. For me, it reveals a character trait…a persona of Jesus…exposes Him in a way we don’t view Him that often, I think. Sure, some of us know the Jehovah <insert name here> all by heart. Some of us grew up on “doctor in the sick room…lawyer in the courtroom…friend to the friendless” (any holiness chuch amens out there?). But do we ever consider Him simply — our Cheerleader!!?!!

Luke 22:32 is one of my favorite scriptures. Preparing to make the ultimate sacrifice for the world, Jesus tells Peter how much Satan desires to have him. But it’s the BUT that knocks my socks off lol….”BUT, I have prayed for you”. Ahhhhh! That what? That your FAITH won’t fail!!! Can you imagine the Son of God praying for you? I can…and it moves me so deeply.

Even after this statement, He told Peter straight up…”you’re going to deny me 3 times tonight“. He didn’t pray that Peter wouldn’t deny Him. He didn’t pray that we wouldn’t make a mistake…He didn’t pray that we’d never fall and need to get back up…He didn’t pray that we would never disappoint Him. He knew our times of testing were invaluable lessons for growth. He simply prayed that we would never stop believing and trusting in the Father.

Know today and always…Giving up doesn’t have to be an option…with Jehovah Cheerleader in the stands rooting wildly…as we walk, crawl, cry, go through, throw up lol, grow weary, feel super, fall out, run, run away, come back, deny Him, worship Him — all on this hard course called Life……He earnestly expects His prayers to be answered by a Father who Loves Him….and Loves us too! Ashe.Selah

And Soundtrack Makes Two

When I was pregnant with my daughter…my first child, I remember the look on the doctor’s face as she listened to the swooshing sounds coming from my belly. I wasn’t even showing yet….couldn’t feel a thing in there…and she says, “Well, we need to order an ultrasound….we may have 2 heartbeats!” You’ve gotta be kidding!

They say twins skip a generation in families . My grandma had twins, so her grandchildren would be next in line for multiples. So the doc said. I was so relieved to have just one little life within me…she was already a beautiful surprise *smile*. Now I find myself in a symbolic deja vu…pregnant with dual purpose…the first of its kind.

Along side the manuscript gestating within me is a soundtrack. I call these two my twins. Music that corresponds to a chapter in the book…in a character’s life. I’m a novice in the music studio, and on a keyboard, but God has been enabling me to bring forth songs that are beautiful in my spirit. Songs I wrote through the shadows of death…songs that shielded their face when the bright Light came to me.

This past weekend, my spirit received the title song for the book. Woo hoo!, and I like it alot. I only have the chorus, but those lyrics were Love at first sight. Made me do a SOM #5.

I’ll be posting some music previews here at Ashe.Selah very soon…looking for the right .mp3 player as we speak. Stay tuned…hope u can feel it.