Just a Thought Series ~ June 19, 1975

What is true

Is that when you get down to why

You are doing something

~

Not for the money or ego satisfaction

Not for the expectations 

Or the promises

~

But for the sheer love of what you are doing

There exist no droughts

No dried up wells

~

Awareness of the everyday

Is an endless sourcebook

Rattlesnake Grass, Kortum Trail

Sonoma County Coast

The Unexplained

Sometimes things happen you can't explain ~ I know it as synchronicity. The term was first used by Carl Jung who defined it as "the coincidence of events that seem related, but are not obviously caused one by the other". A group of my friends are well acquainted with such phenomena and we no longer question it. We simply enjoy the ride and share knowing smiles.

A Facebook post from a friend in Oregon caught my eye this morning and I felt it was worth sharing. Dealing with a recent diagnosis of breast cancer and the journey to come, I found the quote both relevant and timely. Doing a little research I found the words were from philosopher Karl Marx, as applicable today as in the 19th century.

"‎There comes a time in your life when you have to let go of all the pointless drama and the people who create it and surround yourself with people who make you laugh so hard that you forget the bad and focus solely on the good. After all life is too short to be anything but happy."

Wake Up Each Morning and Choose Your Attitude

  http://www.etsy.com/people/StudioChamberlain

As I was writing this post, an instrumental came on the radio that just made me stop, listen and smile. I found out it was "Water Song" from Hot Tuna. I think it will be the first addition to my "healing play list".

 

 

 

So now it's time to go outside and enjoy the end of Summer ~ my gladiolas need to be dug up to make room for some fall and winter vegetables. Your mission is to go outside and play in the dirt too.

Cowboy Poetry Gathering ~ Day 3

It's a wee bit crisper this morning, 20 degrees, so we make it easy on ourselves and toddle across the parking lot to JR's for breakfast while the Jeep windows de-ice in the morning sun. We meet up with our friend Michael after breakfast and head out to the trade shows.

"Raku Vase with Horsehair"

http://www.etsy.com/shop/wyopotter

The shows are at 4 different venues around town. A couple were easy to find, two were not: one in a small hotel conference room and another well hidden up the stairs to nowhere at Stockmans. I'm an artisan and have done fairs for over 20 years. There is something to be said for having all vendors at one place. It focuses shoppers on the artisans not the task of getting to the venues. It may be a matter of what space is available for the trade shows, with so much going on during the week, but I decided to email the Western Folklife Center and make the suggestion anyway.

"Bareback Rider"

http://www.etsy.com/shop/3LPhotography

The variety and quality of the work offered was astounding: handmade saddles and tack, quilts, cards, clothing and jewelry, custom boots and hats, furnishings and frames, lamps and sculptures, plus all varieties of wall art from photography to etchings. Each of us came home with a treasure or two.

"Desert Rose"

http://www.etsy.com/shop/sedonaskye

We took the afternoon off to rest up for the evening concert. Carol and I discovered a great little Italian place for dinner called Luciano's near the center of town. The concert opened with poetry and stories and closed with Wiley and the Wild West.  Wiley is the consummate performer: he has a great voice, is an amazing yodeler and has more moves that Dwight Yokum and Mick Jagger combined. We were either rolling in the aisles with laughter or at rapt attention enthralled with lyrics that told amazing stories of the West, of ranching, of rodeo and the characters that made it happen. A perfect closing to a grand adventure.

"Abandoned House in Montana"

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No early night for us though, we again decide to play the penny slots and both Carol and I walk away with pockets jingling. Still not tired we decide to pack most of our stuff so we can get an early start in the morning to head for home.  Dreams of horses and the prairie.

Cowboy Poetry Gathering ~ Day 2

Bounced out of bed at 6am and hit the showers, 5 hours sleep and fresh as daisies. As we head to breakfast we're thinking heatwave, who needs a down jacket, it's up to 24 degrees this morning! The dry cold of the desert creates beautiful ice patterns on the Jeep windshield. Definitely not the wiper strangling sticky mush we get with frost in northern California, but we still need to crank up the seat heaters and defroster and patiently wait until we can get a move on. The strategy for tomorrow ~ park on the side of the hotel that gets first sun. Wise women learn quickly!

"Morning Ice Crystals"

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Coffee and breakfast then we're off the the Great Basin College Theater to spend the morning at the "Song Swap" with Paul Zarzyski and Wylie Gustafson.

Wylie

We're entertained with stories, poetry, music and how the collaborative process works. Wylie's new album "Raven on the Wind" features a number of lyrics written by Paul. The audience was brought into a discussion of how to keep the Gathering, and this genre of poetry and music alive. One woman asked if either artist was mentoring young performers, another suggested bringing stories, songs and poetry to the schools to expose students to a way of life most only read about. It's powerful to have those you admire listen to you and take an idea into consideration that may become part of a solution.

"Raven"

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Our afternoon was spent at the Elko Convention Center for recitals, lectures and readings. Each of the presenters reeled in their audiences hook, line and sinker: making us think and leaving us with a desire to learn more. 

   

After a relaxing dinner we head out to the G Three Bar Theater at the Western Folklife Center. The best venue so far and two great shows: at 6:30 Acoustic Poetry with Paul and Wylie (can you tell we love these guys) and at 8:30 a triple threat: young and talented singer/songwriter Adrian, cowboy poet and story teller Leon Flick and singer/songwriter Dave Stamey. Both shows bring the house down. 

After the concerts we toddle back to the hotel, to wired to sleep we entertain ourselves on the visitor friendly penny slots. Too much fun!

So are you starting to get the picture? It's been a 10-12 hour marathon and we've come away more energized than when we started. We run into friends from around the West at the different venues. The contacts are "more drive bys than visits" according to my friend Margo, but we all understand, it's the nature of this event. The gathering is hard to explain, it just needs to be experienced. Put it on your bucket list!

Oh, did I mention it was going to be 80 degrees in Sonoma County today. This is early February, right?

Cowboy Poetry Gathering ~ Day 1

Good Morning Elko, Six hours of sleep and 22 degrees: okay I can run with that. At least there's no snow, a rarity this time of year. 

Task #1: Carol and I sit down to look at the schedule of events (mind you this is a 15" x 18" ~ 8 column affair for each day of the Gathering). Our strategy is to circle events we have tickets for and then check out all the free events we want to see. Too many incredible options, but some how we make decisions for Thursday.

Task #2: Dressing for the occasion. This is an art form unto itself. Boots, Wranglers, belt, cowboy shirt, vest, jewelry, jacket, and a scarf properly tied. Yes, no, yes, no, perfect - we are finally ready to head out for breakfast with the girls. Most of us cross paths occasionally but rarely have the opportunity to gather in one place since we come from Idaho, Nevada and California.  

"Cowgirl"

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Now fed, we dive into Thursdays menu for the mind: The keynote speaker is Judy Blunt - a gifted writer and eloquent speaker who captivated the audience with her story of growing up in a rural Montana ranching community and leaving ranch life to follow her dreams of becoming a professor. I look forward to reading her memoir Breaking Clean.

We attend a number of Cowboy Poetry sessions throughout the day. The audiences are supportive of poets young and old, first timers and seasoned professionals. There are reciters who bring historical poems to life with mesmerizing voices. We are taken on journeys that teach some and remind others of the dedication and tenacity of ranchers not only here, but around the world, who cling to a lifestyle that is often thought of in historical terms but in fact remains a vibrant way of life for those willing to take a stand. These small ranchers feed nations and survive against all odds, be it the weather, predators, or government.  

"Sundown"

http://www.etsy.com/people/BrucknerCowboyArt

One of our favorites is Montana poet Paul Zarzyski. We got a chance to attend several of his workshops. He's a former bronc rider, now a poet and entertainer. His work runs the gamut from historical to hysterical, sublime to ridiculous, sensual to lyrical. There is indeed something for everyone.  

"Bronc Rider"

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On the Western Folklife Center website there are pod casts from some of the performances and on the list of entertainers you can listen to a selection from each. Well worth a little of your time. The link is http://www.westernfolklife.org/

Elko footnote: Drivers actually stop for pedestrians, something nearly unknown in these parts!

Conversations

I picked up one of my old journals this afternoon and decided I'd share whatever was on the page it opened to. The entry was from October 31, 1975. This is a song I wrote during one of those stages in a relationship when you're questioning why you aren't moving on. A friend put it to music and it was amazing to hear my words brought to life. Because of his sweet gesture I've harbored a lifelong fantasy of hearing it sung by Bonnie Raitt. But, hey a girl can dream!

Conversation

Baby do you ever disagree with what I'm sayin'

Are your thoughts different than mine

Do you know me so well that you're not tryin'

Or can we share more than just the time

I sometimes wonder what you're thinkin'

Questions I have never asked

Are there things being left unspoken

Should I speak or let it pass

Just don't start feeling guilty

For what it is you're thinkin'

If love can't listen to what's inside

Then love's only a ship that's sinkin'

Man is but a mirror

To what it is he feels

He can live his life in fantasy

Or share the thoughts that keep it real

Just a Thought Series ~ June 1975 Update

Strolling through the pages of some of my old journals I found an entry from a June, 1975. I had recently traded my old VW bus in on a Datsun 240Z and was ready for a road trip. Off to Aspen to spend a week with my old roommate Patti. She lived in a small cottage with a very large boulder in the living room. We spent every day hiking and exploring and then would head out in the evening to hear live music.

Maroon Bells at Sunrise (unknown photographer)

On the trail around the lake someone carved these words on an aspen tree. One wonders if they are still there?  I just found the photo I took on that hike. Perhaps it's time for another road trip to Aspen to see if the tree is still there along the trail.

"If you can't find it here, you can't find it" 

I met musician and songwriter Chris Cox one evening and we talked about his love of music and some of his feelings on the subject. His words stuck with me.

What is true

Is that when you get down

To why you are doing something

~

Not for the money

Or the ego satisfaction

Not for the expectations

Or the promises

~

But for the shear love

Of what you are doing

There exist no droughts

No dried up wells

Thirty five years later I look at a creative life well spent and still growing and understand exactly what he meant. It never ceases to amaze me how random and serendipitous conversations can be so prophetic.