Winter Solstice is Behind Us Now
22 Dec
If the early evening gloom is getting to you, (yes, it’s getting to me), we can take comfort in the fact that the days are about to start getting longer. The winter solstice–which marks the beginning of winter and the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere — came last night at 11:30 CST.
Yesterday was the shortest day of the year. Today the days begin to lengthen, and for me that means my walks on the red trail at Warner Park will slowly start getting pushed back. This gives me more time during the day at my writing desk which is a good thing, as I am in the process of writing new songs and feel rushed to get out to the trail in the early afternoon to beat the encroaching darkness. Right now I have to be out there by 3 to walk the 5 mile trail, because it’s been getting dark at 4:30pm.
I love hiking the hills at Warner Park here in Nashville, and I especially like hiking them in the winter, because I don’t have to worry about snakes. I have an irrational, primal fear of snakes, and I have run into timber rattlers several times in the park, and every time I do, it scares the bejesus out of me. They come out in the spring, and they’re out all summer, but in the winter, NO SNAKES.
I like it, this walking in the cold, no snakes anywhere.
The timber rattler is a beautiful animal, but I can’t get past my crazy fear (and healthy respect) for it’s majesty. I got very, very close to one in March….here’s a video taken from my iPhone….
Click on this picture for my video of the timber rattler rattling...
Warner Park in the winter time.
I am a daily walker (snakes or no snakes). Somewhere a long time ago I read that writers walk, and I find it particularly helpful to walk the hills when I am writing. Its part of my creative process, the songs marinate as I climb the hills in silence and listen to the leaves under my feet and hear the occasional train rolling down the tracks in the distance. Problems in the songs somehow sort themselves out without me having to fix them, rhymes reveal themselves, and melodies write themselves as my legs move my body through the woods. There is something bigger than myself at work in these moments, and while the information bubbles up into my conscious mind through my subconscious mind, I don’t think it originates there. I am just the vessel, the recipient of the story. In other words, the songs come through me, not from me. There’s something else at work in those hills, and don’t want to name it because any name I could give it would diminish the experience. Lets just say there’s a power greater than myself working on me. My job is to show up, be patient, trust my gut, and allow for that power I can’t name to do it’s work. Creativity is a magical thing, it flows though humans in the most simple and complex ways, and we are allowed to literally co-create the universe when we embrace our creative powers. The key word here for me is co-create. Of course I can force songs and push them into shape with my will, but if I do, I lose something vital, I lose the spirit of the original inspiration. I lose the magic. Forced songs sound like forced songs, they sound crafty…and I don’t want to write crafty songs. I want to write well crafted songs, of course, but there’s much more to it than that. I want to be an artist. I want to move people, and be useful in the greater scheme of things. Crafty songs have their place, but craft without art, without that magical divine spark, does not interest me.
This idea is articulated beautifully by one of my favorite writers Jame Lee Burke. James wrote a piece for the NY Times in 2002 about it in a series called Writers On Writing. Here’s a nice quote from James from that article, read the whole thing if you get a chance, it’s time well spent if you have an interest in these things:
Mary, Saw you and Tania last night at Bean and Burlap. Just magical. Tania is a great fiddler and I just ordered her last two CDs from Amazon to send to family members. My grandfather (Pepere) was a fiddler. Spent this morning listening to The Foundling (purchased last night) and was moved by the maturity, depth and breadth and poetry. It’s bubbling at the surface now. I am a psych nurse and author (psych) and love how you peel back each layer with your narrative and poetry. I hope you soon record your World War vet “via the train vehicle” song on a CD soon. As I said last night, ” I am so glad you were born!” You are special! Keep wandering….
I saw you last night at the Burlap & Bean in Newtown Square Pa. It was another great show. What I like most about you is your personal intimacy, both on-stage and off. If you could’ve only brought one person with you on the tour, you chose wisely in bringing Tania E. She is such a talented complement to your music. Thanks for the show. You played the blues, and now I feel better;-)
I saw you in Holland once and I just wanted to say how your music is food for the soul…
“A laborer works with hands. A craftsperson works with hands and mind. An artist works with hands, mind and heart”
Ken, this is beautiful. I’ve not heard this before, and I’m probably gonna use it for the rest of my life…it’s says exactly what I’ve tried to say in way too many words!
Thank you,
Mary
I appreciate your discussion of inspiration. There is something in that word that sounds of breathing, and something that sounds of spirit, which of course is not a thing at all. I heard this recently, and you reminded me of it when discussing the forced manufacture of songs over the artistic flow. A laborer works with hands. A craftsperson works with hands and mind. An artist works with hands, mind and heart.
Thanks for sharing your inspiration. Your art.
On this New Year’s Day, I wanted to thank you, Mary, for this particular blog posting. It inspires me as I look to cultivate more deeply my own creativity this year, and especially gives me an extra reason to go walking as often as I can!
Thank you as well for the link to the James Lee Burke essay; I love him, too, and that may just be the finest meditation on writing I’ve ever read. I plan to print it, this blog entry, and Kerouac’s “Belief and Technique for Modern Prose” and keep them all at my desk. Thank you again, and Happy New Year!