Ava - Reading material for the trip.

From my bedside pile of Chapter's bargain table fiction I have selected, "With", by Donald Harington as the book most likely to keep my mind nicely occupied on the rather long, non-stop flight to Frankfurt, Germany (this along with keeping my mother company and maybe catching a good, in-flight film).

I started the first page and I was hooked. With only a few opening paragraphs it instantly lent credence to the claim on the back of its nicely illustrated cover, i.e.:

"Impossible to categorize, With is a sensual, irresistible tale, full of unexpected twists and turns. What begins as a suspenseful recounting of a child abduction evolves into the story of Robin Kerr growing up in the wilds of the Ozarks on a remote, inaccessible mountain-top. Forced to live off the land without a single person to help her, Robin is never alone; her animal companions grow more numerous every year, and the 'live ghost' of a young boy who once lived on the mountain is her constant companion. Donald Harington, creator of the mythic Ozark town of Stay More, has given us an engaging, fascinating and ultimately triumphant story of survival - and the most original love story ever told."

Now I have to put it aside to be packed and not read a word more of it until the time comes to fully enjoy this story and to benefit from how pleasurable it will make the hours I am held in the air. If it fulfills its promise I will leave it behind for Worth's collection of treasured reading material.

Ava - "XIV-Temperance"

After having looked XIII-Death square in the eye as he passed you by and - at very least - gave you an invitation to accept his dark gift (and, in doing so, to experience the glorious rebirth which follows the timely and necessary death of something outworn, outgrown and outdated) comes your encounter with "XIV-Temperance" - bringing with it the reviving draught of pure and utter mildness required to temper the new life which springs from the energy which becomes available through that which just died to free it.

As the sun rises on a new day,
Be Ye Revived
Be Ye Refreshed
Be Ye Restored
By this draught so pure.

- Chant from "XIV-Temperance"

Ava - "truth or dare" - A Wolf or A Lamb?

As mentioned two blogs ago, along with "The Tarot Immersions" collection The Open Sesames are working on a new collection written strictly from my personal point of view entitled, "Truth or Dare".

And, I will dare to tell my truths (some of which will be very easy because, for instance, it will be the truth about how a May day feels spent on the farm with Bonnie-Sister and her husband, Jon) and some of which will be more daring to reveal but I promise these truths will never be indelicately worded or intended to offend in any way.

Right now I am formulating a piece about how it feels to be a single woman. I have selected the music it will be set to and the chorus has emerged - which sets the tone for the entire piece. Now, all I need to do is to structure and write the verses.

I spent time with my successfully single friend in Bloomfield last night and from our frank and open conversation I realized that living freely and productively as a single women is like walking a tightrope, i.e., it requires discipline, skill, finesse, courage and self-knowledge.

"A wolf or a lamb?
A wolf or a lamb?
What is it that you think I am?
Me, I know the answer true
So, solving this riddle is up to you!

- Chorus from "A Wolf or A Lamb"

Ava - 28 years ago

Worth Hyatt Darling turns 27 two days before his grandmother and I arrive to check out where he lives and works in Germany. This means that almost 28 years ago I made a decision that literally changed my life forever - and for the better.

This decision was to bear and raise the child who came about through a fateful (but doomed) relationship completely on my own.

Overall, this was an unpopular decision 'mongst my circle and was strongly contested by a few. For a while I was without the support of my family and my friends although new friends arrived on the scene who saw my decision to be a 100% single mother in a different light. But, it didn't matter what anyone thought because I knew ... I KNEW ... this was the right thing for me. And, it was. Worth was totally worth it!

I realized today I feel exactly the same way about the work of "The Open Sesames". I don't care who appreciates it or who thinks (for whatever reason) that it should, or should not, be done. I am contributing what I have to give to the work of "The Open Sesames" because I know it is the right venue for my talents and for my passion to create that which is both meaningful and "highly textured". It is the right venue for me to, as Georgia O'Keefe says, "make my unknown known".

I was right about Worth and I am right about this. And, when I know deep down I am right about something being intrinsic to my nature, to my life's growth and to my sense of well-being and purpose then I am prepared to pay whatever price it requires to proceed on my path including that of shunning, shaming and slandering.

In fact, I found that at some point the more less-than-well-founded resistance I encountered regarding my decision to bear and raise my son the more it confirmed to me that I was on the correct path. This additional sense of certainty was part of what helped me tolerate the loneliness and the bleakness of those days which followed me making the very best decision of my life.

Left to my own devices my head is naturally in the clouds (filled with idealism and imagination) and my feet don't touch the ground. But, if something makes complete inner sense to me - and is as crucial and as life-changing as bringing a child into the world (and, now, as bringing my creative vision into the world) - then I not only touch down on the ground I stay on the ground and I am unshakable on my feet.

And, if I have any doubts about the stunningly positive outcome that results from me finally choosing to take on a responsibility, make a commitment, stand against the odds and give everything I have to give then I only have to look at my son for confirmation of my ability to "make good".

Happy birthday to my son and happy birth day to me. In a very real sense we were both born on May 28th, 1983.

Ava - Monday is Dungeon Day

Well, another solidly productive day for two of "The Open Sesames" in the dungeon.

Not only did we settle on a piece of music for "XIII-Death" - which is an instrumental - we also chose the music and recorded the vocals for "XII-The Hanged Man".

The Tarot Immersions project is definitely in good shape to be parked for the time being while I am in Germany visiting my son.

In addition, we selected a piece of music and recorded the vocals for a kinda off-the-wall piece entitled, "I Am A Community". The lyrics are a small but accurate synopsis of Bruce Lipton's leading edge approach to cell health and behaviour vis a vis his seminal book, "Biology of Belief" (http://www.brucelipton.com/). This particular creation is part of the "Truth or Dare" collection which represents my personal views, experiences and outlook.

I'm going to email Dr. Lipton a copy of this tune just for the heck of it. It might be nice for him to know his work has been inspiring in a way he has probably not anticipated. And, because I think this piece is so totally cool I am going to also send it along to Aszure Barton's musical advisor, Pedja (see earlier blog) to give him a further idea of the track we are on and, hopefully, to find out from him if this is a track that will eventually lead to Aszure choosing one of our pieces to interpret with her artists of movement and dance.

This, from the Dr. Lipton's website: The Biology of Belief is a groundbreaking work in the field of New Biology. Author Dr. Bruce Lipton is a former medical school professor and research scientist. His experiments, and that of other leading edge scientists, have examined in great detail the processes by which cells receive information. The implications of this research radically change our understanding of life. It shows that genes and DNA do not control our biology; that instead DNA is controlled by signals from outside the cell, including the energetic messages emanating from our positive and negative thoughts. Dr. Lipton’s profoundly hopeful synthesis of the latest and best research in cell biology and quantum physics is being hailed as a major breakthrough showing that our bodies can be changed as we retrain our thinking.

"Fifty trillion cells am I,

Altogether getting by,

Healthiness in harmony,

I am a community."

- first verse of "I Am A Community"

Ava - "XIII-Death"

As surely as the day dies into the night so does Death visit us all many times - marking the end of stale dreams, desires, ambitions, relationships and situations - before he makes his final pass.

Therefore, grant us all the grace, courage and wisdom to look this dark knight riding upon his white steed square in the eye each time he approacheth.

Let us all learn to love that which is the most difficult to love.

Ava - "XII-The Hanged Man"

Once XI-Justice has been reckoned with, and applied, in the downward progression from "spirit to flesh" (0-The Fool to XXI-The World) XII-The Hanged Man appears to teach about the importance of seeing from a completely new point of view.

It is through severity (of restriction and position) that the splendour (of new found and hard won freedom) is reached.

"Now I have a new perspective.
It's actually quite neat.
My soles are up above me,
And my head where once my feet."

Ava - "romantica" - The Four Queens

I think it is clear by now I love arcane and symbolic ways of viewing life and those around me, including myself. Both astrology and the tarot lend significant meaning to the four elements of fire, water, air and earth when it comes to understanding the basic makeup of people, environments and situations. And, whether it is because I know what to look for (or just wish hard enough to see it) I can and I do observe the truth in this approach.

This partially explains why I wrote "The Four Queens" which gives a thumb nail sketch of each element embodied in the character of a queen. The rest of the explanation is I have a life-long fascination with the great archetypes which appear in the Arthurian Tales, i.e., King, Queen, Priestess, Knight, Wizard, etc. because they inspire me to feel my greatest feelings. As well, I believe in chivalrous behaviour (acting with bravery, courtesy and honour) and do not believe it is - or at least need be - gender specific and would that I do so in all areas of my life.

"Come drink a drop from my cup

Sighs the silky Queen of Water.

You'll hold my heart

And know my soul

Now and ever after.

We'll dim the lights

And count the stars.

We'll dream of sons and daughters.

And, it shall be as I say

For I am the Queen of Water."

- second verse of the "The Four Queens"

Ava - Aszure Barton's Musical Advisor

I sent along an .mp3 sample of our new work to Pedja Muzijevic who serves as Aszure Barton's musical advisor and who is a top flight musician and performer in his own right http://www.pedjamuzijevic.com/.

My goal is to have Aszure interpret one of "The Open Sesame" pieces and I wanted to learn, if possible, if we are on the right track to making my goal come true.

I'm still vividly recalling the performance of Aszure Barton & Artists I saw at The Grand Theatre last month and can think of nothing finer than seeing her interpret something we have created.

Ava - "romantica" - Spiritual Marketplace

I routinely receive a catalogue from "Sounds True" which is a provider of books, CD's, DVD's, kits, etc. (you name it) covering a broad spiritual spectrum.

In the Age Of Aquarius all of the hidden knowledge - once heavily guarded and only passed along under carefully controlled means to a select number of seekers - is openly available to the masses.

Mostly, I see this as a good thing - it at least gives the serious-minded and the well-intended a chance to grapple with subjects and matters which used to be kept high out of reach - but it has also led to the commercialization of spirituality which, in my opinion, is not so great.

In my experience (and in my opinion) spiritual progress definitely comes with a price - and always has - but the price has now become literalized into dollars and cents which both cheapens the wealth of the knowledge being sold and misleads some into thinking the price for this knowledge lies only in its purchase.

"My brothers and sisters
Come one, come all
To the spiritual marketplace.
We're all one happy family
In this one great human race,
In this special cosmic place,
In this one great human race,
In this special cosmic place."

- chorus from "Spiritual Marketplace"

Ava - The Tarot Immersions

Three more tarot immersions were created and/or finalized today, i.e., IX-The Hermit, X-Wheel of Fortune and XI-Justice and only 10 more to go. This means we are just past the 1/2 way mark. High Five!

All three of today's interpretations are so completely different from each other and from all those preceeding them. I particularly like the unplugged sound of IX-The Hermit. The simplicity of just voice and one instrument (the acoustic mandolin) really suit the basic nature of this card.

Ava - "romantica" - Zodiac Song

I read my first 25 cent horoscope when I was 12 years old and, I guess you could say, "I was hooked". But, it turns out that as a sun sign Scorpio, this was a completely natural response for me to have to something that hinted at arcane knowledge.

Anyway to make an almost life-long story short, I have never not paid attention to astrology since then and I have paid sufficient dues in my pursuit of knowledge of this system of thought that I actually have quite a nice relationship with astrology now - warm, comfortable and sometimes surprisingly helpful in confirming things I feel/sense.

"And the wheel of the zodiac endlessly turns,
Through lives upon lives each lesson is learned,
We start as a newborn and end in the sea,
Through each of the signs we seek to grow free."

- chorus from the "Zodiac Song"

Ava - "XI-Justice"

XI-Justice now appears on the descending path from 'spirit to flesh' to tell those on this path that now is the time to look troublesome matters straight in the eye and to weigh them with the help of a sharp mind. And, upon weighing, to execute accordingly.

With the proper application of XI-Justice severity (of approach) leads to beauty (of purpose).

"Fixed of eye

Steely of mind

Carefully weigh

What your heart's enshrined."

Ava - "romantica" - Ode To Craig Kennedy

Craig Kennedy was a highly unusual and very dear person and, as such, he touched many lives. He died too young and his unique contribution is still missed by his friends and family.

The ode I wrote in Craig's memory fairly flew on to the page and is entirely based on a series of actual occurrences. The four friends referred to in each verse are, without exception, Pamela, Garrick, Craig and myself. This was a golden time and we took extreme pleasure in each other's company.


"Now Craig is a ghost in my garden of Eden,
Where I cultivate music and laughter and freedom,
Where everything here promotes you-dom and me-dom,
And the breeze from the east wind provides inspiration."

- chorus from "Ode To Craig Kennedy"



PLEASE NOTE: This photo of Craig (showing him in his beloved outdoor elements of field and forest) came to me through Garrick and I believe the photo credit belongs to Pam K.

Ava - "X-Wheel of Fortune"

Directly descending from "IX-The Hermit" emerges "X-Wheel of Fortune" to give one who is progressing downwards from "0-The Fool" to "XXI-The World" a taste of his/her final destination.

Pass through the wheel (which exists between the fonts of Mercy and Victory and is overseen by the representatives of the 4 elements and - even more closely - by those of the intuitive, the rational and the instinctual faculties) and feel the profound gratitude which accompanies the knowing of Mercy combined with the profound jubilation which accompanies the knowing of Victory.

Know that once "XXI-The World" is reached there will be times when the wheel spins and fortunes are reversed. One day you show Mercy and the next day you need it. One day Victory is yours and the next day it slips away.

Thus is life.

Ava - "IX-The Hermit"

Emerging now, in our downward progression from "rarified spirit" to a "fully materialized human being", is "IX-The Hermit.

It is time to ask important questions - but, of whom?

Who is noble?
What is light?
How to know
When something’s right.
Where are the answers
Is my plight.

Ava - "romantica" - Web Of Attraction

Upon hearing a Kama Sutra scholar sharing her knowledge and insight into this (once?) controversial and titillating Hindu Indian text on the Sunday afternoon CBC Radio 1 programme, "Tapestry", I was inspired to write the "Web of Attraction".

I learned from her that this text is more about the fine and subtle art of seduction than it is about the sexual act with its various, possible positions (as many in the West like to view it).


With fine threads,
With fine threads,
With fine threads,
We are sewn up inside
The web of attraction.

- Web of Attraction, introduction and ending

Ava - Critical Listening Results

Only one piece, "I-The Magician", had to be adjusted - and this only a jot at the beginning and the ending.

Hurray!

The end result of today's critical listening to the body of work we have created thus far is the knowledge that if we keep on going exactly as we are - not too fast and not too slow - we will reach the end of "The Tarot Immersions".

And, they are/will be (individually and collectively) worthy audible representations of my immersion into the major arcana of the tarot.

Ava - Fire Down Below

Fire came a'callin' in the dungeon to toast and, then, to warm the two "Sesames" at work there today.

After this mid-morning interlude of interaction, passion and exchange of perspectives (which speaking only for myself I found to be ultimately freeing) the vocal track for "VIII-Strength" was laid down to the music of Garrick and Stuart which was waiting to receive it.

Now, it's time to listen to "0-The Fool", "I-The Magician", "II-The High Priestess", "III-The Empress", "IV-The Emperor", "V-The Hierophant", "VI-The Lovers", "VII-The Chariot and, lastly, "VIII-Strength" all together to see how one tarot immersion flows into the next, etc. ...

"Critical listening", if you will.

Ava - "romantica" - Seven Sisters

"Some natural phenomena support the notion that seven is important. For example, the moon changes phase every seven days and seven phases of the moon are visible.
There are seven continents (Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Australia, and Antarctica). We see seven colours in the rainbow and the seven musical notes of the diatonic scale (do, rei, me, fa, so, la, te) are considered the most pleasing to the human ear."

For some unknown reason I wanted to write a poetic story recognizing the significance of the number seven throughout time and throughout various traditions and was inspired to give it a unmistakeably feminine slant. When it came to naming the sisters (Ashlin, Birgit, Coleen, Deidra, Etta, Falon and Glenna) I chose to follow a Celtic scheme because of my ancestral roots.

"Seven sisters dancing

Seven all a-twirl

Seven means completeness

In seven days a world."

- chorus from "Seven Sisters"

Ava - "VIII-Strength"

In the direct line of progressive descent from "VII-The Chariot" we now encounter the wisdom of "VIII-Strength".

We learn a woman is elevated in the world under the "god spoken into being by the word" when she possesses sufficient strength of purpose to subdue the "untamed heart" she naturally possesses (and has been solely exercising in a diminishing capacity since she emerged from immaterial spirit as "0-The Fool").

She must learn to accept the fact her heart's deepest and wildest desire is only acheived by surrendering her heart's deepest and wildest desire and, in this learning and this accepting, she will have the strength to quiet the roaring within her breast and to feel herself become free and whole.

"Be still my untamed heart and set my spirit free."

Ava ... "VII - The Chariot"

In the direct line of progressive descent from "VI-The Lovers" we encounter the wisdom of "VII-The Chariot".

We learn a man is elevated in the world under the "god spoken into being by the word" when he develops a rational mind and yokes it to the instinctive/irrational mind he naturally possesses (and has been solely exercising in a diminishing capacity since he emerged from immaterial spirit as "0-The Fool").

With his two minds yoked equally together he will be drawn through life in such a way that he garners respect and well-deserved accolades.

Ava - B.B.B.B.

byebyebackbarbering

for the next 3 days

Ava - Blog Editing

I don't know if anyone notices but I often go back and edit my blogs after I first publish them. If a blog has to do with something I view as "key" (for one reason or another) I will go back and edit it as many times as it takes for me to feel I have gotten things as right as I possibly can.

For instance, the "Understanding "The Open Sesames"" blog was very important to me and received the most editing so far.

I wonder if other bloggers do this? It may be, somehow, an anti-blogging thing to do. I don't participate in, nor do I understand, the whole "social networking thing" so I'm not sure how spontaneous blogging is "meant" to be.

I am simply treating "The Open Sesames" blog as a place to write (and this, of course, almost always related to "TOS" ) and I am approaching the entire process the way I would approach any writing intended for public consumption. By this I mean I am not content until I feel the end result is as refined and as truthful as I can possibly make it and I will work tirelessly to get it to this point.

Except (and this exception is interesting to me) if someone is a quick enough or a close enough reader, he/she can actually witness my editing process as I refine and refine and refine my feelings=thoughts=writing. This would never happen in the normal course of events where I write and edit privately and then submit the finished product for publication.

Ava - "romantica" - Raree Show Song

Wikipedia: Peep shows, also known as peep box or raree show ("rarity show"), trace back to ancient times (15th century in Europe, by Leon Battista Alberti) and are known in various cultures. A peep show could be a wooden box with a hole or several holes, containing a set of pictures which the show-man could set into a viewing position by pulling a corresponding string. The boxes were often decorated inside to resemble theatrical scenes. The show was accompanied by spoken recitation that explained or dramatized what was happening inside.

The "Raree Show Song" started out as the title track for a previous body of work Garrick and I collaborated on.

The concept of the "Raree Show Song" easily arose from its actual meaning (as above) but I found it both more romantic and more poetic to imagine the "show-man" having the raree show stored in his head - created from all the noteworthy things he had observed in his wanderings.

"Look into his eyes
And see pictures in his mind
It's a raree show, indeed
Yes, a raree show, indeed!"

- chorus from the "Raree Show Song"

Ava - The Tarot Immersions

Entry Word: immersion
Meaning: a focusing of the mind on something (e.g. a complete immersion in the lesson is the only way youʼre going to learn a foreign language)

It occurred to me on the way home from my day and half at the Fiddleguy's Place (where The Open Sesames worked together to finalize "I-The Magician" and create "VI-The Lovers" for our new "The Tarot Renderings" project) that it is more truthful to understand, and experience, this new material as "The Tarot Immersions" instead.

First of all, I see it this way because I gain entry into each card through a process of immersion - only for this particularly beautiful and instructive work I am focusing both my mind (as above) and my feelings. Secondly, I strongly anticipate that the highly original and intriguing material being created by "The Open Sesames" as a result of my immersion in the major arcana of the Tarot will yield the greatest results for the listener if he/she allows herself/himself to be immersed in it as well.

Ava - Understanding "The Open Sesames"

After Monday morning's session in which "VI-The Lovers" astonishingly materialized right before our senses, I now understand who "The Open Sesames" are and what we are doing.

From my point of view "The Open Sesames" consists of archetypal representatives from the elemental worlds of Water (Ava), of Air (Stuart) and of Earth (Garrick) - with indirectly direct influences from two representatives of the elemental world of Fire (i.e., Garrick's Arian Pamela and Stuart's Sagittarian Patricia).

Each elemental world is completely equal to - and completely unique from - the others and it is from this strong position of being equal but unique that we combine our talents as "The Open Sesames" and use them to tell the truth (as we each best understand it) about something, or other.

Ergo:

"The Open Sesames" are a merry band of truth-tellers and their combined efforts result in musical truth-telling.

By this I mean the work of "The Open Sesames" - from left to right, from front to back, from bottom to top, from inside and outside - is the truest we can possibly make it ... word for word and note for note.

Ava - "romantica" series - Introduction

What is "romantica" in terms of its written content?

It is a collection of 9 poetic stories which are, first and foremost, deeply felt.

These stories may be highly personal, e.g. "Ode To Craig Kennedy" and "To Whom It May Concern" or they may reflect areas of on-going study where I use my feelings to gather information and decipher my findings, e.g. "The Zodiac Song" and "0-The Fool". Or, they may reflect my deep love of formal language and of heroic figures, " Raree Show".

So, what I am saying is:

deeply felt = romantic = romantica = raree show song, seven sisters, web of attraction, ode to craig kennedy, zodiac song, spiritual marketplace, the four queens, to whom it may concern, 0-the fool

Bloggin' Good Idea

Before I forget, I plan to blog a little background piece on each of the "romantica" stories.

So, stay tuned ...............

Ava - Dear Stuart

It's been a long, hard day at the barbershop (41 haircuts in a literally non-stop 8 hours). I am home practicing 0-The Fool right now and getting ready to stop for a late, late dinner. I will be continuing on to practice the other 6 songs I am now consistently exhibiting appropriate levels of competency in (last Tuesday's rehearsal was powerful) after I eat.

Anyway, what I wanted to say to you right this moment, my friend, is tonight (while I am practicing) I am once again struck by how very, very much I enjoy your drumming and how very, very much I appreciate every beautifully nuanced sound you contributed to "romantica".

"romantica" wouldn't be nearly what it is (even though it is but an infant) without you

Ava - Gord Downie

A co-worker's husband, Dan, who is a huge "Hip" fan said the work of The Open Sesames reminds him of some "spoken-word-to-music" work Downie has recorded. Dan was very positive about the direction we are headed. He said, "Ava, you just have to know how to promote it and get it heard in the right places.

One of my very favourite clients, Mac, a highly educated and high-minded individual said, in response to hearing "romantica" on his own at home, "Ava, I found it intriguing, enjoyable and puzzling". All of which led to a really good conversation and Mac left wanting to listen to it again.

Dan also said spoken word material has to be closely listened to more than once to really "get it".