GRATITUDE
Filled with lots of gratitude as I look forward to 2020 while glancing back at 2019. Thanks to all of you who have been and continue to be part of life’s adventure. These are challenging times; times too often governed more by grievance than grace; frequently focusing more on what divides us than what unites us. It is Gandhi who said “…be the change we seek…” I remain committed in the coming year to doing my small part to be that change and to help bring about that change in our country and the world with grace and knowledge we are all in this together.
THE WORLD WE INHERIT, INHABIT, AND LEAVE TO THOSE WHO FOLLOW
The world we inhabit continues to send signals and warning signs. James Baldwin published a book in 1963 entitled The Fire Next Time. Whether it’s the wildfires in California or those in Australia, it feels like the next time may well be now. I have two grandchildren whose lives are just getting started. They and the rest of their generation are going to be living a long time with things that I and others in my generation leave for them. We are running out of time to make sure we leave behind a world they will welcome and be grateful for.
THE BROTHERS FOUR
The Brothers Four will share folk songs with the world for a 61st year in 2020. Our first show is next week in California where we will be sharing the stage with The Kingston Trio and The Limeliters. We are all a piece of the puzzle. As a member of The Brothers Four it remains my good fortune to be a keeper of others’ memories. Each time we sing our songs is a chance for us to awaken those memories at least for a moment. It also matters to me the guys I sing with in the group -Bob, Mike, Karl, and from time to time, John – are family. Because of that, when we sing those songs it is, I believe, easier for those sharing the experience to have a feeling of being in this together.
REMEMBERING THE DREAM
n the first few months of 2020, I will be working to complete a project called Remembering the Dream. It is made up of songs and stories from the Civil Rights Movement between 1954 and 1968. That was a time in our nation’s history when a not so large group of people with deep faith, dedicated to nonviolence and willing to give up their lives showed us that the dream of life, liberty and pursuit of happiness should belong to us all. The fact they were aided by all three branches of the Federal Government and the Free Press helped us realize we are in this together and we can be the change we seek. I look forward to Remembering the Dream with you.
PICTURES OF A SEASON
The photos I am sharing in this Muse Letter are from moments in the Holiday Season.
