A Poem for Saturday: Ezra Pound - "In a Station of the Metro"

The apparition          of these faces          in the crowd      :

Petals          on a wet, black          bough      .

Voy a reir, voy a bailar

So I've started my 6:00 am (!) workout routine, and one of my favorite classes to go to is Zumba. Without fail, EVERY TIME we do our cool-down to this song, I start to tear up. How embarrassing. Hopefully everyone just thinks it's sweat dripping out of my eyes or something. It's just such a great song, and I'm such a sap these days. Give it a listen:

Great, right? For those of you who don't speak Spanish, it's a seize-the-day sort of song. Here it is with English subtitles if you're into that sort of thing.

I've gone through a lot of emotions since my dad passed away. Pretty much every emotion possible. The one that has been hardest to explain, is JOY. Joy that I'm still here. That my mom, and Christian, and Jeremy are still here. Joy that I can make changes and progress. Joy that my dad is in a better place, doing what he loves, without any pain. Joy that I have a job, an education, my health, and the ability to do what I want.

I knew 2013 was going to be a big year, I just didn't know why. I spent New Years Eve by myself, reflecting on the edge of darkness at the Great Salt Lake. I knew I would need to make some changes. And after our world turned upside down in June, I knew I had to start NOW. So I'm starting to get my finances in order and build a career. Trying to break down assumptions I've lived by. Trying to be pro-active and find more ways to serve others.

You guys are a great help. You keep me in check.

Thank you for that.

Music for Your Midweek: Airhead

 Sunday was the vernal equinox, so it is officially fall!
Here's a song to kick it off. 

Dreamy.

AmeriCorps turns 20!

Here's a little video celebrating 20 years of AmeriCorps. It's pretty great! I'm so lucky I've gotten a chance to serve with this organization. It's dramatically changed the way I think about poverty, community outreach, and public policy. If you're interested in AmeriCorps, (especially AmeriCorps VISTA) shoot me an email, and I can tell you about it.

Your old people video of the day

Can't get over it.



And remember my favorite Young @ Heart Chorus? THEY HAVE A MOVIE!!!



I need to watch this yesterday.

Something for Sunday: "...burst into a Song"

After an unintentional summer hiatus, I joined again with the Sacred Harp singing group a few weeks ago. They meet at the Provo Episcopal church once a month to see, and I had forgotten how much I missed it. Here's a rendition of one my favorite songs. Singing to this feels like the purest form of praise:

If you're unfamiliar with Sacred Harp music, you sing through the song the first time with solfegge. That's why it may seem like they're singing nonsense :) Here are the lyrics.

Now shall my inward joys arise,

And burst into a Song;

Almighty Love inspires my Heart,

And Pleasure tunes my Tongue.

God on his thirsty Sion-Hill

Some Mercy-Drops has thrown,

And solemn Oaths have bound his Love

To show'r Salvation down.

Why do we then indulge our Fears,

Suspicions and Complaints?

Is he a God, and shall his Grace

Grow weary of his saints?

Can a kind Woman e'er forget

The Infant of her Womb,

And 'mongst a thousand tender Thoughts

Her Suckling have no Room?

Yet, saith the Lord, should Nature change,

And Mothers Monsters prove,

Sion still dwells upon the Heart

Of everlasting Love.

Deep on the Palms of both my Hands

I have engrav'd her Name;

My Hands shal raise her ruin'd Walls,

And build her broken Frame.

We usually just sing the first three verses, so I had no idea that the rest of the song referenced once of my favorite scriptures:

Isaiah 49:13-16 

13. Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted.
14. But Zion said, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me.
15. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.
16. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.

Wishing you a happy Sunday.

A Poem for Saturday: Kay Ryan - "Shark's Teeth"

Everything contains some
silence. Noise gets
its zest from the
small shark's-tooth
shaped fragments
of rest angled
in it. An hour
of city holds maybe
a minute of these
remnants of a time
when silence reigned,
compact and dangerous
as a shark. Sometimes
a bit of a tail
or fin can still
be sensed in parks.