Erin and Esteban asked me to include some words for our late poet, neil's book, currently in process. I believe, but do not know for a fact, it is an anthology of his poetry gathered over several years from the many jewels he scattered widely across the blogs. A number of readers of this blog were equally as fond of him as I was and very likely have something to say as well. If you would like to add your own expression to mine, we can send it together to Erin and Est. My email address is in my profile, just scroll down on the right sidebar.
Bags of Love par avion
neil sent them to me
they arrived by Fedex
at my doorstep
like foil wrapped bon bons
and long stemmed roses
from half a world away
from neil's world of struggle
and loneliness
and rejection, frustration,
local women were a problem
none could be relied upon
to say what they really felt
until it was over
He longed for honesty
because he could never be anything but.
so we gave him honesty in turn
although it was known to be displayed
across the globe
anyway, that wasn't even an afterthought
his honesty
so golden, blush and bird's egg blue
speckled with starlight and moonbeams
an honesty that could save mankind
they say such purity doesn't exist
It existed/exists
we were there, in the right place at the right time
to witness and participate
and take it to our heart of hearts
neil is/was my heartbroken
little boy of Dickens come to life
navigating narrow cobblestone streets
thick with Prufrock sawdust and
yellow fog
in a cap and tattered knickers facing
life out of his chippy's tattered van
homeless it was almost as if
there was nowhere to just be
sometimes his chips were down
And then, a gathering renaissance
rainbows beamed Monet gardens spilt over
into lapis lazuli rivers reflecting moonbeams
his vision clear, his darkness spent
his pastures' promise in the air
everywhere I looked
his writings on the wall
here, here and there and there
positive acknowledgements
arranging the love gathering towards
an indefinite purpose
some sweet finite destination
lay close at hand
And now of course we know
***
In reflection of the spirit
living inside my Dickens Goodheart
in this mortal world of mortal adversaries
in this bleeding, unnatural, world of universal mayhem
and deceit
neil chose a better place
his soul so clean uncompromising
unblemished
rerouted to the higher plane
all karma paid.
peace...
43 comments:
Beautiful nina!
A poem (the first I have seen by you), for our poet.
"neil chose a better place
his soul so clean uncompromising
unblemished
rerouted to the higher plane
all karma paid."
Yes! And now, truly, he can be at ease, as his work is done. And the peace he so freely shared with all, may be his at last.
Very nice Nina.
Z
Good Erin, its as honest as honest can be, thank you for asking me to write something.
Neil was incredibly prolific with a natural style. Some of the most gifted among us make that choice early (always too early we think at the time). We are always shocked and sad, but it really does takes time and serious reflection to understand what actually happened and why.
I miss him. I'm sure he had many more gifts too, we got poetry, presence and honesty which is a sure indicator there was a lot more we couldn't get because of the nature of the web. He was/is a very lovely, divine soul.
Thank you, Zoner.
Zoner, have you ever played a Dobro?
I have played some Dobro but not well.....
Learning to play respectable slide guitar is one of those things I have on my "to do" list. I should have taken the time way back when I had an opportunity to learn from a true blues legend, but I was a dumb kid that just wanted to rock.
I produced/engineered a project last year and found the need to add some slide to a song, but it was on an electric and in more of the Duane Allman style. It came out "OK" I guess.
I'm not very good with the bottleneck, but I LOVE the sound of a metal-bodied guitar in capable hands.
How about you?
I've always been emotional about Blue Highway "Marble Town".
http://bluehighwayband.com/Pages/music.htm
Its so much more like the music I'm most familiar with including John Fahey's timeless compositions on the Vanguard label. Anyway, a beautiful old dobro is suddenly coming into my hands and I'm just very excited about it.
I've never played one.
Very nice nina. I miss his words too.
Scrap
Scrapsan, surely you of all souls can cobble together a poem, paragraph, an expression, maybe not your own at all, but something much like what you just said or says how you feel, to send in to Erin and Esteban? Send it to me and I will forward it to them if you like.
Even if you don't want to post it here, just send to me.
You are so good at this kind of thing, you know.
Neil really lit up when you commented.
Wow Nina, beautiful poem for Neil!!
Gratitude arises for what beautiful souls can accomplish/demonstrate ...
Special thanks to Neil, Erin, Est, Vis and You and your gathering ;)
OneLove
Erik
Special thanks to you also, Erik, and special you are welcomes!
XO
love to you Erik!!!
-
very, very well done
thank you nina
i am absolutely sure neil
would be pleased, indeed
he found true friendship
with some of us and you, certainly
erin and i will be working on
the book for neil, forthwith
any tributes or favorites of neil's
can be sent to either of us
by e-mail
found in our profiles
[just click the blue name above
the comment]
thanks and love to all
and of course > ...peace...
est
-
Thank you Est, a high compliment coming from you.
i notice that most people who are reading this post have forgotten how often they had exchanges with neil. That's just a way to avoid pain. Every time I go into my archives, I find more conversations from waaay back. If you have not found them already, I will go through it all and send every one. Yes? No? I have the time now that Visible's latest book cover is on the presses.
Bet your winter has been ah, chilly? I always look at the severe weather map and think of how you are surviving.
...peace...
One instant is eternity;
eternity is the now.
When you see through this one instant,
you see through the one who sees
Wu Men
"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage."
Lao Tzu
Neil's Meditation
three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three were his greatest treasures."
Love to you
Scrap
Thank you Scrap! Right on the mark, exactly. You know, neil adored you, his high regard for you was very often inspirational.
And it wasn't just me who appreciated it, everyone who took the time to read what you two said learned from the experience.
>gratitude<
Hello Nina.....I really enjoyed Neil's rambling honesty.....
"They are not dead who live in the hearts they leave behind." (Tuscarora )
Terrance, thank you. A more simple and truthful epitaph has never been written.
gratitude
***
Don't be afraid to cry. It will free your mind of sorrowful thoughts. - Hopi
Day and night cannot dwell together. - Duwamish
It is better to have less thunder in the mouth and more lightning in the hand. - Apache
They are not dead who live in the hearts they leave behind. - Tuscarora
All plants are our brothers and sisters. They talk to us and if we listen, we can hear them. - Arapaho
Tell me and I'll forget. Show me, and I may not remember. Involve me, and I'll understand. - Tribe Unknown.
When we show our respect for other living things, they respond with respect for us. - Arapaho
If we wonder often, the gift of knowledge will come. - Arapaho
Most of us do not look as handsome to others as we do to ourselves. - Assiniboine
What is life? It is the flash of a firefly in the night. It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime. It is the little shadow which runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset. - Blackfoot
When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced. Live your life so that when you die, the world cries and you rejoice. - Cherokee
Those who have one foot in the canoe, and one foot in the boat, are going to fall into the river. - Tuscarora
The weakness of the enemy makes our strength. - Cherokee
When the white man discovered this country Indians were running it. No taxes no debt, women did all the work. White man thought he could improve on a system like this. - Cherokee
A good soldier is a poor scout. - Cheyenne
We will be known forever by the tracks we leave. - Dakota
Do not judge your neighbor until you walk two moons in his moccasins. - Cheyenne
There is nothing as eloquent as a rattlesnake’s tail. - Navajo
Force, no matter how concealed, begets resistance. - Lakota
Our first teacher is our own heart. - Cheyenne
Everyone who is successful must have dreamed of something. - Maricopa
All who have died are equal. - Comanche
What the people believe is true. - Anishinabe
You can't wake a person who is pretending to be asleep. - Navajo
Beware of the man who does not talk, and the dog that does not bark. - Cheyenne
He who would do great things should not attempt them all alone. - Seneca
If a man is as wise as a serpent, he can afford to be as harmless as a dove. - Cheyenne
A brave man dies but once, a coward many times. - Iowa
When a man moves away from nature his heart becomes hard. - Lakota
http://www.infoplease.com/spot/native-american-proverbs-wisdom.html
Hello all
You know the right side of my thyroid is a little swelled and seems to be growing. Don't know if it is Fukushima or what. It could be from the bastards coming by and xraying the house about 8 years ago. Had 3 green copters with red lights on the side swoop low. In fact it burned the skin on one leg. They can xray about 150 deep from what I read.
I called cowboy Gerry Spence in Wyoming after it happened and his secretary said oh my God. You would not believe the calls we have had from central Florida about this but we can't take cases there. I was struck because she was genuinely horrified by it, it wasn't an act. She said there were hundreds of them.
Shortly afterwards the killler Porter Goss of South American genocide resigned and the chief of police in this town left office, saying he was through with politics and the republican party. I think the word was getting out. Back then I had a Macafee firewall and it started in Rome .... then to Malta .... then a base in Pennsylvania, ... the Hayward airforce base in cali after I simply clicked on a piece about the knights of malta. The copters showed up about 2 hours later. The next day I saw the same article about Legrami and clicked on it. Same thing, about two hours later, the copters showed up. My wife went into depression. The people at the clinic said they had heard the same story over and over. So anybody claiming the church of Rome is not mixed up in this can kiss my arse.
So I don't know how much longer I will be around. I will tap the old blog once in awhile when something seems noteworthy. I will probably make it to the polar shift though simply due to being obnoxious.
It is not a big deal to me, leaving this planet is not the greatest blow I have ever had to deal with.
Of course I will be eating some seaweed but then again it is pretty contaminated.!!!
In fact speaking of rome.
http://dublinsmick.wordpress.com/2014/02/03/britain-is-owned-by-the-vatican-irs-is-not-a-gov-agency-us-did-not-declare-independence-from-king-george-ssa-s-issued-through-imf-there-are-no-us-employees-as-there-is-no-united-states/
REMINDER: if you comment doesn't show, email me right away. Blogger doesn't always notify me by email, lately it is only when I sign in to the blog do I see any notification about comments awaiting moderation for publishing.
Thanks.
Dubs, why isn't your doctor the first line of defense here?
We can doctor ourselves up to a point.
When it comes to problems that require thoroughly complex issues, they've got the equipment to see inside your body. Take what you need from what they can do and the rest can be up to you. No one is forcing you to become their permanent patient. I'd say right now you need to SEE that growth on your thyroid gland to get a handle on this.
You know somebody went into my blog and moved the side bar all the way to the bottom. It stays on the side for older posts but on the bottom for newer ones.
I can click a link from search machines and the newer posts then appear to have a side bar???
I found the problem, I went back through posts until I found the first one where the side bar disappeared. I deleted it and the side bar began appearing again. They said you could sometimes get some bad coding from a post or photo you post that could change it. I guess that is what happened. I was getting all suspicious for nothing
This has nothing to do with neil but I have been listening to Hawkwind's Album "In search of space" and this little ditty below is the last word from the booklet contained in the disc and I just thought it was worth it:
This is the last entry in the Hawkwind log. It was not dated. I have seen the Tao and travelled the middle way. I have heard the word and spoken the word. I have lived in the flesh and I have eaten the flesh. I have been blinded by the light... And now I believe in the supreme and mystic darkness of nothing, in the deepest reaches of the immaculate void, in infinite nothing, in the unremitting realms of nothing, in the abundance of nothing, in the incomprehensible infinity of untold nothing, in absolute nothing.
Scrap
-
the void is not empty
it's filled with light
of this i am sure of
with all of my might
the world is troubled
as i rest tonight
half in darkness
somethings not right
the day will break
the sun will rise
and i'll see things
through different eyes
i hope that my visions
not clouded by doubt
peace among all of us
is the only way out
-
Hi All,
as requested by nina this morning, I am sharing the info for my online radio appearance here with you all.
Cheers! Erin
Please join me this Thursday February 13th @ 6pm PST
I will be the featured guest on Soul Signal Radio!
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/soulsignalradio/2014/02/14/the-daily-message-with-leta-hamilton-radio-show
The host will be speaking to me about my journey in life,
and how it has led me to the work I am doing now in the world
with LifeDance and Luminosity.
~~~~
And if you cannot make it live, there will be an archive recording available on the site afterwards. Just click on the same link to access.
Many thanks Erin, I will definitely be tuning in.
"It is not true, it is not true,
that we come on this earth to live. We come only to sleep, only to dream. Our body is a flower. As grass becomes green in the springtime, so our hearts will open and give forth buds, and then they wither."
Aztec poem.......
Outstanding Terrance! So true.
Thank you.
Here are two delicious links from Charles Hugh Smith's Musings, i.e.; email essays' "out in left field" column.
http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2014/feb/06/morocco-motorbike-women-pictures-kesh-angles-hajjaj
and
http://www.ribbonfarm.com/2011/07/31/on-being-an-illegible-person/
Hello Nina .....noticed the crypto article on nuclear backpacks and just happen to have a friend who trained in Germany during the late sixties with these devil devices....
My friend is an amazing guitarist, who trained at juilliard....Just recently he attended a party in Big Sur with his psychiatrist girlfriend and her peers from Berkeley....
Needless to say my friend talked to some of the physicists who developed these nuclear backpacks. They were fascinated to talk with someone who was actually in the field with the device. He told them about his experience and all the protocols he learned and about the shut off sequence....To his surprise, he was told there was no shut off sequence....mmmmm imagine that!
I was rereading through the posts and missed tha part of the dobro. How is it going. John Fahey was a giant. Dave von Ronk another giant.His song "Anotheer Time and Place" is one of my alltime favorites. I am messing with that tune again and seeing if I can do it justice. By the way it is a song that makes me think of you nina.
If you like Fahey's American music (his term) check out Glenn Jones disc "The Wanting". Also if you can find it read Fahey's book "How Bluegrass destroyed my Life"
Scrap
Well Terrance, there we have it. Who were the original suicide bombers? Hint, not who we've been led to believe.
I saw the articles too.
But it appears throughout history, regardless of weapon, this has always gone on. We can't say those who delivered smallpox blankets to the Native Americans didn't expose themselves in the process.
And now we also hear of drones accompanying squadrons of fighter planes. Like they need backup...
If one cannot come to agreement as a human being without his killing embellishments, then one is A. wrong in his entire approach and B. not worthy of the title "human being".
Scrapsan, can you too flatpick Candyman?
Z kinda set me straight about the dobro, metallic slide wasn't what I was looking to create. But in the right hands, its an awesome thing to behold.
And it is exciting to know that John Fahey left us with a book, finally! Words! A must read for sure! Fahey was never a true bluegrass man, he was a composer of magnificent journeys wherever he wanted to take us, mostly deeper and higher into the expansion of the sublime.
I used to think I was Fahey's number one fan, in the sense that I "heard him" even though I was very young. But, it pleases me greatly to find out this just wasn't so at all. PRAISES
And I'd say pretty much the same thing about Dave Van Ronk. And while they were SO different, both hold an eternal high and special place of reverence in our hearts.
TO ALL: Please don't hesitate to email me in order to get your comment up quickly.
Thank you.
Transfiguration of Blind Joe Death led me to perform and produce my Dark House Jams.
No I am more of Fingersyle player. But I state i am just a Cowboy with a lame technique.
Scrap
This is a whole other side of you, Scrapsan. I'd love to hear more about your Dark House jams. Bholanath and I were talking about this very thing recently, how the medium doesn't really matter much to the vessel, the vessel just accepts the message and passes it on. What we would speak of as talent and skill in one area, usually means talent, skill and a huge variety of interpretations in other areas as well. This also means when one falls into a "block" where the medium just doesn't do it for you anymore, change the medium. It is very simple and works every time. When you are a vessel, you ARE a vessel all the way and it doesn't matter if you express it through a tenor sax or a sharpie paint pen, or poetry or woodcarving or watercolor. The message will reveal itself.
-
i went to the market
to buy my bread
from the soul
that made it
and this is
what she said
"chew slowly -
and lose the dread"
-
Hello Nina ....empathic people are perfect targets for sociopathic people....protect yourself!.....we live in a predatory world......onelove. Make yourself unavailable!
Out of the blue.......
Terrance, what brought that on? Of course I agree with you completely. What you are saying is a priority life lesson.
Love is our true destiny. We do not find the meaning of life by ourselves alone - we find it with another.
Thomas Merton
Hello Ms. Deep.....
Waiting for our next words on the present state of affairs in regards to the end of the iron age and our transition into the next phase of living....or not!
Your insights are most welcome.......
One love!.......
Thank you Terrance, wonderful Terrance. I'll be composing again soon, there is a lot to be noted concerning our current state of affairs.
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