Many artists record Christmas music. I have grown a small collection over time: Amy Grant, Judy Collins, Emmylou Harris, and others. I listen to a few songs here and there.
light shines
through one window
and falls on the wood
frame of another
the light is shared
I am looking forward to COUNTRY MUSIC A Film by Ken Burns. There is more information at PBS.
This morning I watched Washington Journal on C-SPAN, and so enjoyed the interview with guest Ken Burns and host Pedro Echevarria, with all the voices of people who call and communicate in other ways.
I have always loved reading and learning about the creative process. Over the years, I have listened to Emmylou Harris often, and have learned from her – and so very much more to learn.
Ellen Grace Olinger
Silence: I hear the wind, water, and the life of the seasons. Sound of a snow shovel, people mowing lawns in summer, tree work in the neighborhood, and the music young people are playing these days.
recollections
of summers gone by
voices on the breeze
Music: Good to honor all who have inspired me and helped me through the day. This winter I am listening to CDs I have not heard for a time. So many wonderful artists and genres of music. As I type, I think of Amy Grant – original songs, Christmas songs, hymns. I have also listened to Emmylou Harris a lot over the years.
I remember driving to my mother’s home and hearing the voices of Celine Dion and Josh Groban on the radio. When I hear certain songs now, I can picture where I was on my route. I bought a few CDs.
Not possible now for me to ever really comprehend all that artists and authors achieve. Or read every blog post, however worthy. So I enjoy listening, viewing, and reading what I can. All works together in the long-run. Thank you for your visits, according to your schedules.
These past years, I like silence when I drive. In the spring, along a country road, I may hear the red-wings sing before I see them.
Creative chapters vary, as life changes. Sometimes I think a chapter is over, and then the work returns in a new way. Something was happening as I took time away to rest, reflect, renew. Always more to learn.
Ellen Grace Olinger
This afternoon, I am listening to My Dear Companion: Selections from the Trio Collection, by Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, and Linda Ronstadt (2016, Rhino Entertainment Company). Beautiful, healing music.
Since last summer, dear family and friends have been called Home.
Their names are Irma, Marta, Win, Burt, and Avis.
For Earth Day, I remembered my cousin Paul, and the Paul Brandt School Forest in southwestern Wisconsin. How brave my Aunt Irma was, when he died suddenly. She grieved, she lived, and was almost 100 when she died.
Each person has a legacy. Every person has a story, this I know.
I have been wanting to remember – to say their names in a post – and this music helps and restores. The songs are familiar. They will always be new.
So grateful for beauty in all its forms. Restores, heals, inspires. New work to create.
Ellen Grace Olinger
Poems From Oostburg, Wisconsin 