Alpha by the River: May 2006

Sunday, May 28, 2006

Selected Poetry from THE DARKNESS OF DREAM TIME

2005 was a mix of intensity, movement, brilliance and darkness. Thank goodness for pictures, because in looking back through them, I realize how much wonder is in my life and how little I have to worry about! Photographs usually highlight the joyful and the reflective moments, but in the lulls or turbulent periods, I often turn to poetry. So here are three poems - two were written in 2005: And for you curious types - no - there is no one person in any of the poems. I used my creative dream 'muses' and other experiences to reflect and symplify the complexity of it all.

Be Still and listen...

Be still and listen--it beats within. . . .

The embrace of love, two hands that meet;

a kiss between two strands of hair;

the wind upon a lonely face. . . .

So surely beats the rhythm

in the chaos of senseless sound

that the God in every man might hear

the heartbeat of THis child. . . .

Can fear distort a rhythm so pure

Or deeds deafen heart's inner ear?

Could truth be robbed for lifeless death?

And the Goddess soul cries out in pain

for withered petals after lusty blooms

and passion born from fragile guise;

remembering the pulse of love

lost in a whirlpool of forgotten dreams.

Despair is the voice for a world lost

beneath the whisper of Her breath.

And still we do not hear--so cannot know

the heartbeat of Her soul.

************

In The Darkness of Dream Time

..for my dream muses Black Cat and Bunny.

When I wake in the night

with you beside me

dreaming in your quiet lullaby breath,

the soul of night time rests between us.

We were together in your dream

before I left to watch you now,

and part of me is with you still,

because I know you feel me there...

And when in the day you turn your mind to mine,

you touch me as deeply

as when your quiet dream voice

steals into my soul.

My heart cannot now rest in empty light.

Its conquest was in the dark,

and it beats for you in the daylight hours

waiting for another dreamtime.

***************

Just For Once.

Just for once my heart does not beat

for only you.

Just for once my mind does not think.

It rests from you.

Just for once the memories fade

and I do not remember you.

Just for once you do not live.

There is no you.

It must be the souless sound of the wind

that breaks my heart in two.

Just for once my will is firm

You cannot enter now.

Just for once I do not feel.

It is not your touch upon my brow.

Just for once I do not listen

It is not your voice I hear.

Just for once I do not see

It is not you that is standing there.

It must be the souless sound of the wind

that breaks my heart in two.

Alpha Mae Woodward

Saturday, May 27, 2006

Planes, Trains, Automobiles...and a lost bus.

Although there was a great deal of movement, and intense focus in this very short period it was really about the people that I am fortunate to have in my life at this time, and the treasured moments of this very focused trip. I hope you get a sense of the many special moments amidst a furious schedule. This is the Toronto CN tower taken from the shuttle bus on the way home! But let us begin at the beginning....

CHISWICK, LONDON .... 1st after leaving the Balkans

Ruth Waterman is a lovely, vibrant woman and a brilliant violinist who's home I stayed in while passing through London. Her playing captures my heart even with its dazzling uncomplicated virtuousity ... I highly recommend her CDs - especially the Bach Sonatas for Violin and Keyboard (Volumes 1 - 4)!

Part of Ruth's warm hospitality - a lovely walk through this park, a home cooked dinner and a chance to stumble around on her grand piano!

...love at first sight! He had soul - what can I say! ..and so he is a keeper - one of my special people and stuff.

A quiet Sunday morning.... and a classic english bridge complete with young lovers .... yup, they are there - we passed them in their own world... totally unaware of us.

what a beautiful time to visit England. Chiswick is exceedingly lovely...reminds me of a similar picture I took in Blagaj two months ago. (see emerging from the chrysalis of winter)

Native american indians had a sense of spirituality that 'soul' - or 'spirit' existed in everything and, so - must be honoured. In the busy travel of this week, Ruth's back yard provided such 'spirit' - and the moments to appreciate it.

Later that same day, I was MONTREAL, QUEBEC

Had to have the flags.... fleur de lis, maple leaf and the even the british one...

Odd... i started to see 'spirit' everywhere....

It was happy synchronicity that my itinerary brought me to Montreal and Tiffany who volunteered for us in Mostar last year. Tiffany helped me spend a lot of money! You can see she is pretty focused about anything she sets her mind to... which is why I ended up broke, but with GREAT sandals... and a GREAT dress... and....

WINDSOR, ONTARIO

Early the next morning, after intense shopping and talking and dining with Tiffany in Montreal, I caught a train et voila - 8 hours later I was in WINDSOR, ONTARIO!! This was my ultimate destination where, together with my former colleague Brian Harris, I would present our work to the national conference for music therapy.

That would be Detroit as seen from the Canadian perspective - and once again a river!

Brian Harris, my colleague from Mostar - and I on our first night in Windsor - at the speakers reception. I was very anxious about our presentation the next day, but I dont think it is showing.

While planning our presentation, Brian grabbed my camera and spontaneously took this shot of me - and since he is now a professional photographer, I thought ... well, maybe it might be worth something.

Ellen Lindau, another Canadian music therapist who had worked in Mostar prior to both Brian and I came to our presentation. So it was great to have this connection - the three of us. And yes, our presentation went very well - to a full room of interested people.

TORONTO, ONTARIO

- which is a city I was surprised to be impressed with. Old and new mix together comfortably and artfully. Everything is intentional in this city - and it shows that mankind's need for aesthetic sensitiblities were part of that. I have never experienced 'space' and 'spirit' in the overall architecture of the business centre of a large city.

MOSTAR - again (after arriving in London one day after my announced arrival time... resulting in anxious messages around the globe that I was lost!... but there is more...)

This most amazing journey ended in an extraordinary way - a routine bus trip from Dubrovnik to Mostar ended up in a medium-high adventure through unknown territory, lost luggage - a private small auto packed with 3 confused bus drivers, (none of whom spoke english) - me and another traveller - and a curious rendezvous on the roadside with a bus that had our luggage - and my meeting with Meral Abay, an attorney from Istanbul who ended up being an overnight guest in my home... and another story...

Saturday, May 13, 2006

The brevity of our time on earth....

For some strange quirk of fate or destiny, we get to visit earth for a brief while, and it seems a pity that we are here for such a short time, while all the interesting bits carry on, evolve and change long before and after our tour. But in the Balkans, one becomes aware of time in a different way - as a manufactured measurement that means nothing. All is possible in any moment.

Stecci...ancient burial cairns from a mysterious period

following along a small stream, we approach an ancient cavern...

This limestone cavern lies beyond the casual observer and provides a path for water that ran the mills here in years gone by.

Pools of limestone water emerging from the mountain.

Within a 30 minute drive we find another pool of water... The colour of this lake gives it its name... Blue Lake. A long descent down to the rocky shore is rewarded by crackling cold water - for those of us who dared to swim - bathing suit or no.

A modern plaque on the descent to Blue Lake, I dont know what this says, but maybe future generations will read it too.

Velez - another time, different people and another place.... We are listening to coocoo birds and the distant ring of sheep bells on pod velez. For eons man has tended his sheep in high remote hills and valleys such as this. Time stands still in these hills, and we returned to our normal reality 3 hours later...quite bemused by our escape into a time warp.

Hiking on Velez was one of my favourite things to do. The ground felt sacred to me - but it was some kind of frequency or vibration in the are that made it special.

The Balkans are dotted with decaying ancient castles, fortresses, and more recent structures that mark man's historic use of this fascinating area

... but the land is timeless.