Metta circle Sudan/ creative mindfulness/Being Peace Fundraiser and Monastic Visit/Crossing Borders
Syria ep/ Peace Sounds 3/New own album
Silent, listen – same letters. I find that wonderful.
Joy Harjo
Writing crossing the UK by train to be with family in the Southwest. Trees and fields out beyond the tracks, here I am listening to myself writing in my notebook and stopping to look out the window. A million leaves in the sunshine. There’s a quiet knowing isn’t there to the trees I think, when asked who is your idol Buddhist teach Thich Nhat Hanh said, the pine tree is my idol! Through the seasons, evergreen; offering shelter and all year.
In Islam, there’s a prayer with one instruction; to look at the sky, I love that, in-between sentences I’m doing that as I write.
It’s been a few months with some moving events for me and my guitar and I’d love to share some of them with you with a few recordings and photographs. This journal post takes me online for three events, to the Lake District, Durham, Newcastle and London and finishes up back here on my online home with an invitation to 3 recording projects planned for release this year and an opportunity to let me know if you’d like a physical or digital copies.
Let’s go…
Appreciation to Rehena Harilall at BAT (Buddhists Across Traditions) an organisation bringing people interested in Buddhist teachings together around critical and compassionate dialogue and events, engaged with international events. In May the situation in Sudan was reaching a tragic level as the country became part of the power games of army generals there. Metta for Sudan brought together : Artists Ha Down, Sita Brand, Melissa James and myself with Buddhist monastics Sister Peace and Brother Duc Hien, also an artist, to collect funds and raise some awareness around the situation there. It taught me so much, I can hear items on the news though not until we began considering the event did I look more into the situation and contemplate it. What I didn’t first realise is that the two characters who are at war in Sudan once, it is reported, were friends. Opinions have separated them and power and their command of military resources has made this conflict have massive impacts on people who live there. How sad, that strong emotions lead to such destruction. How do I watch tendencies in myself of control, a small contribution this may seems, though to me seeds are in us all. Relief work continues, props to all involved that evening and organisations involved. For more on what BAT do please search: buddhists across traditions.
2 more events that had me online this month were Creative Mindfulness and Being Peace Fundraiser, both in the Plum Village UK community of Thich Nhat Hanh. Thanks those who have been online with myself and teacher in the community, Susanne Olbrich, exploring what it mean to be creative through the lens of mindfulness. The last 2 sessions looked at the Lost Words, a folk music project with UK folk artists, bringing musical life to a poetry book by Robert Mcfarlane about nature’s lost words and in the second session, how we can use our creativity to create a mythical being – our support spirit to enliven us and our arts and otherwise in life. You can find more about the events here, continuing in September after our Summer pause.
The fundraiser brought together around 30 guests, tuned into by 300 Plum Village friends from around the UK. The only way to take it in is to watch it really – you’ll see me here supporting on tech from the sidelines and playing a song at the beginning, enjoy talks by the bell hooks centre, Lama Rod Owens, Joan Halifax and many more:
Crossing Borders Festival
July saw the first outing of the Choir from Southwark Day Centre for Asylum Seekers at the Horniman Museum’s Crossing Borders Festival. I can’t express my gratitude enough for the Museum for this beautiful day. People in the Current Asylum System in the UK have a tough time. Reading current reports around Small Boat Laws, Denial of right to work, Bibby Stockholm and proposed Army Barracks accommodation, paint, for me, a picture of people as a problem – not bringing into the picture what they (and at large) the human family is going through with climate, conflict forced migration. Life at the Horniman that day was a different picture with our choir amongst others on stages, leading workshops and …smiling … a lot! Here’s a little bit:
Lake District and Durham
Monasticism is a part of my life! I’ve been close with the Plum Village Monastics for about 10 years now, knowing many as friends before, during and after their time in robes. My time living in the monastery certainly had an impact on my life, my life plans to be involved in peace work; living existing models and discovering also what that meant, has become important to me ! This Summer saw 8 monastics travel around the UK in a van, band on tour style, to share their Plum Village life with all who came to listen. As an invited musician, I joined them in London, The Lake District and Durham and thank them for their warmth and generosity in bringing the energy of the monastery with them, feels like the best way to describe it.
Christa Awad
In Durham I had the honour of singing with Christa Awad, a new friend from Syria. Christa and I are now working on an ep together of peace songs in Arabic and English, including poems by Christa. Growing up in Syria, the proceeds from the ep will go toward the humanitarian work of Sandra Awad, Christa’s sister who is supporting families in their hometown of Damascus. Here are some photos and a little of one of our songs ‘Over The Mountain’. Release date to be confirmed. See more here and pre order.
Peace Sounds 3
Monday 9th of October sees the release of Peace Sounds 3, the latest release from the Peace Sounds Label project, I helped to get going in 2012. Following Peace Sounds 1 (2012) and Peace Sounds 2 (2016) the album features 12 new songs from international artists involved in and associated with peace work. The album will be available digital or physical copy if you need one, and all proceeds are being given to the Being Peace Practice Centre fundraiser, a venue project for the Plum Village UK Charity. If you’d like to be on the pre-order list visit https://peacesoundslabel.org and follow the links
Own album
This year will also see the release of my next album, the second LP of my own songs. Some lovely reviews here from early versions of the songs. Thank you for your support so far. My hope is that the record will bring conversations up around the songs themes: from LGBTQAI2S+ to Environmental peaceful protest and from Whiteness and Racism to the wisdom of Women and more… There’s a pre-order page on the site you can find clicking here and there’s a Crowdfunded here to go toward my recording and traveling fund. This record had been funded by the sale of the last one and I hope to continue in this way.
As part of the project I have been traveling around to places that are significant for the songs. Here is one for you about grief filmed in Cornwall, it’s called ‘The Letting Go’.
Lovely to be seeing some of you in the quiet space, still running daily am: 7-7:30 and pm:10:30-11. Otherwise lovely to hear from you.
Love Joe
Releases – on request – by donation – free if you need them to be. click the pictures below.
Joe Holtaway 