Musings

A new CD coming out

2012-01-28T03:38:00.000-08:00

Look carefully at this photograph and you will see a very big hawk sitting in the tree. I love hawks and this was such an opportunity because he let me get pretty close to him. So I'm sharing it with you. If you click on the photo, you will have an enlarged copy of this beautiful guy!

Here we go again! Look for a new CD to be released in the month of February.

2012 is going to be a year of intense creativity and sparkling days. As we move toward the movement from one Mayan long count into the next long count around the December 21, 2012 date, we ride the surge of energy. This powerful time feels rich and light.

I feel very privileged as I sit here in my office with my cup of coffee, a bowl of Greek yogurt with blueberries, and my red candle lit. How wonderful! The music of my new upcoming release is playing. Next week I will be in the recording studio doing the final tweaking and mastering. The cover art will be my own photography.

Track one is part of the "woven" series. Title: Woven in Gentleness. Track two brings back the Spring birds which are everywhere in my music moving into a subtle and sensual drum beat....energy moving up the spinal column of mother earth.
Track three: Energy, energy, energy through the wind and the dancing movement....such happiness! Imagine a woman dancing with joy and abandon out in the fields, with here companion wolves. Wolves abound in this piece!

Stay tuned for more tracks...there are seven in all.

We have snow today and lots of wind. Everything is white and beautiful. And cold!
with love.

December abundance

2012-01-19T05:51:00.000-08:00

We are already more than halfway through the month of January. The days are getting longer as light returns. This photo is one I took in very early Spring which will be here in a flash. TIme goes so quickly now that I am really aware not to waste any of my hours on negativity or rumination or any of the other things that might come along to distract me.

I am sitting here in my office, working away. The windows next to me show snow blowing in the wind...in just a few hours we will have a new blanket of pure, white snow. My cup of coffee is next to me and a candle is lit. Yesterday I finished my sales tax report for the State of Indiana and sent the check. December was a month of abundance in so many ways, and sales were great!

What a privilege it is to be able to work in a place that is beautiful and supportive. Since I am self-employed this is my own choice to make of course, but it is definitely something to be grateful for.

January is the month also of taking inventory....time consuming but necessary. It also the month of updating records, connecting with people who have ordered throughout the year to say thank you, and cleaning the office space. It is a time of doing research on music and on markets. It's a good thing that January is a long month!

Mayan Dream Productions began in 1987, so I celebrated 25 years of business last year and this year begins the next 25 years.
Very cool!

Have a beautiful day! Love to all.

The Power of Music To Heal

2012-01-13T04:26:00.000-08:00

What is the essence of music? Is it an organization of sound waves in a particular planned order? Is there some kind of law that music has to be created in a certain way, or that the musician does or does not have to have a certain education? My answer is…nope.

We take sound for granted because it is everywhere. Science tells us that our human organs each radiate a distinct melody. They have been able to translate that melody into our musical notation. We know that certain sounds create the form of a spiral or other forms when allowed to vibrate over sand. Consciously heard sound vibrates in our ear canal and is translated into meaning by our brain. We interpret the vibration as words or sounds or music. However, many sound waves never reach our consciousness, but they affect our bodies and our emotions as they vibrate within us. The flowers in this summer photo are each vibrating with their unique sound and that song connects to the unique melody of the everything around them. Together, they form a song.

All music interacts with us and changes us. Why? Because music is a sound vibration that moves and dances with any other vibration within it’s reach. When I listen to the cicada song at night in the summer, I move into a space of peace. When I hear the early morning bird song, I experience vitality and joy. This is true even if I started my morning in a bad mood. Our own individual “song” interacts with the vibration of music around us and changes us.

Science and medicine now have ample proof that the vibration of music carries the power to bring healing, inspiration, transformation, strength, and support. It opens worlds and walks the individual through the unknown into potential. Here is a quote from USA Today regarding Music Therapy: “Music holds a unique role in human life. Its rhythms help organize movement …almost no one can resist a good beat. Music brings up memories. And music, it seems, can help retrain the speech centers of the brain.”

Music also heals in other ways. Several years ago a friend called me to say that my music brought her young friends’(who was in a coma) pulse rate and blood pressure into the normal range. Another e-mailed to say that The Beloved music was the only thing that brought her dying mother into a place of calm where she could sleep. There are many more examples in my life of people sharing the ability of my music to heal.

Music has the unique power to support you in your own individual journey and the transformation that allows your healing and your unique purpose in life to be realized. Blessings, Beverly

Happy New year!

2011-12-31T03:38:00.000-08:00

In the Catholic Church and for the Tzutzeil Maya, Christmas is not finished. Both cultures began Christmas around the dates of December 23 - 25 and will celebrate the new wisdom through January 6th. In the Catholic Church, this is the date of Epiphany...the arrival of the wise men who followed the light of the star, and the celebration of the light moving out into the world. For the T'zuheil Maya, this is the release of the light of wisdom into the world fully. The Jewish people have celebrated Hanakkuk, the feast of light. And there are many, many more cultures which have similar celebrations

For me the universal nature of archetypes are amazing, and they speak truth. We are now moving through the time when wisdom gathers and grows and then is sent out throughout Mother Earth. We are in the time of the return of light.

Wisdom is a powerful force that asks the individual to look at habits and old patterns, and ask if they are still appropriate for this new time. Even in secular society we have a collective consciousness of making "New Years Resolutions". However, it is also recognized in secular society that most new year's resolutions do not last. We need the support and awareness of the voice of Wisdom in order for change to really happen in our lives....no matter the outer pathway.

For myself, this force of wisdom around me means that I will be looking at these old habits and old patterns, just like everyone else. It means that reactivity is only the indication that something is ready to change. How exciting is this! The support is there for me and everyone else to get larger and live in this new light with happiness and joy, gentleness and kindness.

Happy New year to all!

December 21

2011-12-21T23:57:00.000-08:00

I love the time of the solstice and the return of light. Yesterday I turned 65 and it's a very special gift to me that I was born on that day. This will be a magical year! Walt nailed my feeling about this coming year with a marvelous birthday card from Avatar "May your birthday be just the beginning of a year of discovery and adventure" and a gift. Isn't that a wonderful wish " a year of discovery and adventure". And...I got my car back finally which had been at the body shop since being hit (with me in it) 21 days ago.

My birthday was very private and personal with a few personal e-mails from friends through my gmail account, and a couple of beautiful cards from close friends...and Happy Birthday sung by the choir. It's a strange quirk of mine....I love birthday cards!

There is this virus going around and it seems that I have caught it and am now in bronchitis just in time for Christmas!
Bronchitis is usually a life-changing event for me, and I expect no less from this particular version. Bring it on! What did that card say "May your birthday be just the beginning of a year of discovery and adventure".

December was a month where everything just exploded at Mayan Dream Productions. It was truly a WOW month.

Blessings to all of you and light and peace. Happy Solstice.

Coffee cup in hand!

2011-11-18T05:30:00.000-08:00

What a beautiful morning! It's probably around 22 degrees on this bright and soft November day, and my coffee is at hand as always.

In the first part of November, I wrote a new piece of music which is titled Woven in Fierce Kindness. It is on the home page of my website as my free Holiday gift to everyone.....no strings attached. All anyone has to do is hit the link and it will take them to the music which they can download if they want to keep it.

Meanwhile, DailyOM is going to feature Radiance on November 22nd and then keep it as a featured CD through the end of November. They are a wonderful organization with so much to offer all of us. I am grateful that Radiance is a part of their mission this month.

Marketing went out to the world.....all CDs on holiday special through the end of December. Organizations wait until the semi-annual sales of my CDs to order for workshops, etc, but these CDs also make marvelous gifts and at $5 each, what a deal!

Soul/Deepbody Music is now a major focus for me again. Creating individual Soul Music albums for people is one of my greatest joys. I get to connect with you on a very deep level and friendships have been formed in ways that could not have happened with the Soul Music. And.....creating music and recording music is so much fun!

What does Soul/Deepbody music do for us? We have all read many books, or articles, or heard about the power of music to change the physical, emotional, mental, spiritual bodies of people. The power of music to change lives and to heal is a real structure in our world. Our own individual Soul/Deepbody music is a powerful, transformative, life-changing event for us. It may not be comfortable because Soul/Deepbody music demands change in our life, but it will be a transformative experience.

Meanwhile, the day is calling to me and it's time to leave this post and move out into the world!

11-11-11

2011-11-11T05:27:00.000-08:00

Here in Fort Wayne, as I look out my office window, it is an absolutely gorgeous November day. The sun has that special quality that you can only get in late Autumn, early Winter. The light is sparkling on the still-green grass which is wet from the melting frost. It was only 28 degrees last night. The air will be fresh and crisp.

No wonder that I am inspired to write music that includes so much of nature. This Mother Earth is so beautiful, and spectacular. Sometimes it's also pretty exciting and can turn one's life upside down. That is true of most of the music that I write. It does not leave me or the listener in a place of "status quo".

This week has been a reorganization week in preparation for the holidays. My website home page is being decorated and there will soon be a new writing on it. Beginning November 15, there are new prices on the order page.....the lowest prices of the year. A mailing is going out to wish everyone a joyous holiday season, and to communicate with the many people who are not available on e-mail.

The Woven in Fierce Kindness music has been released as a 5 minute track, and it is now available to anyone who let's me know they would like their very own copy. It will come as an Mp3 file on YouSendIt....just download it, put it in i-tunes and you can listen on your computer, i-pod, or burn a CD for listening in the car, etc.

I am also in the process of re-creating the structure of Soul/Deepbody music.

All of this means that I have to get up really early in the morning for several extra hours of work. The blessing....the early morning hours are the best!

Love to all.

A very special week

2011-10-31T03:44:00.000-07:00

The week of November 1.....a time in the planet where the veil between worlds is very thin. We acknowledge this in the United States with Halloween, Sanheim, All Saints and All Souls Days, Day of the Dead. I will be celebrating by creating music in the recording studio this afternoon.

It has been over a year since I have recorded new music. This year of rest has allowed an entirely new level of music to be created.
I am especially excited that Soul Music is coming back into active being after this year of rest, and will be accessible to people in new ways.

For this week of deep connection to the spiritual forces that support me.....I am focused on loving kindness, compassion, joy, strength, openness to the newness. Blessings to all of you!

Just an Update

2011-10-22T05:45:00.000-07:00

All of a sudden an entire month and one week have gone by and there has been no update to this blog. Yikes! This photo was taken by me at Salamonie State Park looking out onto the dam reservoir.

For me, September is the new January 1 and the beginning of the new year. Life starts to move forward at a much faster pace. I am suddenly in work mode, rather than summer relaxation mode. My biggest challenge is to take time off for personal life and for reflection, because I get caught up in all of this and want to just keep working and working. All of the small business books warn about this tendency and I certainly am a classic example!

Mayan Dream Productions is all about healing music and the spiritual power of creativity in our lives. This vision manifests through my creating music of connectivity between all of nature, and music deeply rooted in my partnership with the unseen worlds. All marketing, teaching, composing, writing, recording, filing focuses on this vision.

In Fort Wayne, the Philharmonic is actively exploring the power of music and healing. They are doing studies with hospitals to confirm and expand the world wisdom that music heals. Their mission is not just the technique of performance excellence, but to explore the deeper realms of what music actually "is".

My part in this collective wisdom work is to bring forth music that will add beauty, wisdom, kindness, love, compassion to our world..... and send it out!

Love to all.

The Cycle of Music

2011-09-15T02:31:00.000-07:00

Over this last month music that I wrote years ago is coming back into public awareness. In 2005 I wrote a piece called "Wisdom Sings Through Violet Beauty". That piece was a gift for a friend, and it moved into oblivion until this last month when I found it again, and sent it to that friend again. It is now being used in a virtual pilgrimage and how cool is that! The Journey of Joy was released in 2000. It has always sold, but this last month it has a new life and has been featured in Daily OM and in other venues.

When music is composed and released, it never really dies. Even if it is outwardly asleep, inwardly it continues to grow and eventually comes back out into the world. It's always a surprise for me!

Meanwhile, we have a change in seasons again.....a full harvest moon this week....and the Fall Solstice coming next week. I am experiencing beautiful and wonderful changes in the texture of light, the colors of nature, and the feel of the air.

Love to all.

What's In A Name??

2011-08-27T05:02:00.000-07:00

August was certainly a time of rejuvenation. We had beautiful, soft weather most of the month, and time for kicking back and letting new music emerge. I spent some time with the name of this business: Mayan Dream Productions.

For me, this business name came about because of my love of the ancient Mayan sacred sites and lands. My own dream of living as a self-employed musician was realized as I traveled through these lands and composed and recorded original music.
The business name "Mayan Dream Productions" is an honoring of the support of the unseen world, and gratitude for all that has emerged since the beginning of my business in 1987.

The ancient Maya were world travelers. My own music has traveled throughout the world. The ancient Maya lived as one with the planet earth. My music celebrates Mother Earth and the interweaving of all of the life forces (including us) that she generates. The ancient Maya had creativity as their primary core: just experience the depth and intricacy of their artwork and their written language which is symbol and you understand a way of living that has creativity as it's spiritual expression of a physical world.

Soon we will begin the year 2012 that marks the completion of a long cycle for the Maya. This completion is on December 21, 2012 which is my birthday. This entire year of 2011 and 2012 is a time of movement for the Maya into a next cycle which emerges from this present long cycle. For me it will be the completion of a 25 year cycle with the creation of original music and Mayan Dream Productions, and my movement into a next long cycle of creativity.

When the ancient Maya built a pyramid, they spent many years working with the core source of the pyramid, and then many years in it's physical construction. A pyramid was built to be a message, a place of connection and generation, and a sacred site that connected with all other sacred sites. Often, new pyramids were built over the original. The core source of the original was confined, and the new core emerged through the strength of the old. Thus the cycles continued throughout the ages and until this day. This is my model for Mayan Dream Productions in this next cycle beginning December 21, 2012.

NOW: a note on the hurricane which is changing the lives of millions of people on the East Coast. We are connected to all of these people, and our support is very necessary today and throughout the next months. As many of you do, we have family on the East Coast and we are keeping them in our love and support throughout this time. May all be safe!

Love to all.

Heat wave!

2011-07-20T07:42:00.000-07:00

It's amazing how hot and dry it has been this July. Indiana is known for it's high humidity and hot July and August, but this year has been truly off the charts. Of course 40 out of 52 states are also experiencing the intense heat of this summer. Even in the air conditioning it makes me want to sleep more and eat less. The grass has gone dormant, and the flowers are showing the stress. We need rain pretty badly, and yet we had so much rain in June that the farmers could not plant in the normal timing. Many corn crops were never planted. Something is happening with our Mother Earth that is leading to extremes.

The music business takes a vacation also in July. The annual July sale gives everyone an opportunity to purchase CDs at a greatly reduced price with free shipping and handling. However, even the impetus of a good sale does not offset the natural ebb that happens in July. So, this is time for me to do the various things that cannot be done in a busy schedule, and also to have some time off from a business. One of the problems with being self-employed is that you have to be intentional about taking time off.

Otherwise......you don't.

These are also very hard financial times for a lot of people and their difficulty is reflecting the extremes of Mother Earth. The jaguar emerging from the fire of a ritual at Lake Atitlan reminds me that there is so much that we don't understand in this life, and there is so much support for us from the world that we do not see.

May we all be blessed with gentleness and kindness.

Back from beautiful Lake Erie!

2011-07-07T06:14:00.000-07:00

Can you imagine going to sleep every night with the sound of waves lapping against the shore? You who live by water understand this feeling. We were right on the shore of Lake Erie and the waves were always with us. I was wondering why I did not bring my zoom recorder, but I did get video of the Lake in it's various moods and hope to use the sound and video in a future YouTube or in a future album.

This week the special sale prices for all my CDs are active on my website. The price per CD is $6.50 with shipping and handling free. What a deal!!

All creative projects come from the physical life of the person who is creating. My music reflects the health and strength of my body, the quiet of my spirit, my connection to my extended family and my connection to the Source of all creativity. My week of Lake Erie was a strengthening of my love for family, including grandchildren and adult children with their spouses. The fun of the week enlivened body and spirit. As a result, my creativity will expand. A big "hooray" for Lysa and Leah who organized the week at Lake Erie. Many thanks!

Love to all.

Watch for the upcoming annual July Sale!

2011-06-23T06:46:00.001-07:00

Every year Mayan Dream Productions celebrates it's July sale.....our profound thanks to all of you. The CDs will be $6.50 each net price with shipping and handling FREE! This price goes into effect July 5th and will run through the month of July.

This coming week Walt and I will be going on vacation for one week up to Lake Erie and will be enjoying family and water and fresh air. Shipping will stop on the afternoon of June 25th and resume on July 5th.

Love to all.

Music supports the world around me

2011-06-08T08:16:00.000-07:00

Several weeks ago I received a phone call from a hospice nurse in Honolulu. She had a patient who was dying and listening to The Beloved was the only thing that could calm her down. She later called to say that this person had died peacefully while listening to The Beloved. That is why I do what I do. Creating and performing the music that comes to me is not done to sell music and make sales, but to bring into the world a quality of beauty and connection into the individual's inner world that is transformative.

The ducks in this photo were hatched right outside of my mom's front window. The mother duck came out of the marshes to build her nest where mom could see it every day. Aren't they cute! It's amazing the beauty and the joy in nature. My mom is going through an important journey in her life right now, and family is very supportive of her in this time of transition. Thus, you are not hearing as much from me, but we are alive and well.

Mayan Dream Productions will soon be announcing it's annual July sale. We offer a really good sale in July and in December as our thanks to all of you. Love to everyone.

It's about time!

2011-05-20T04:53:00.001-07:00

Today is the most gorgeous of days. As I look outside my window, I see sunshine and blue skies and the temperature is predicted to be around 75. My huge ash tree has escaped the ravages of the Emerald Ash Borer (with our help) and is in full leaf....extending out over the yard. The rose bush is budding and has grown twice it's original size this Spring. Even though we have endured day after day of rain and below normal temperatures, the flowers and trees have loved it.

May is more than half over. We are only a month away from the longest day of the year. How did that happen? It seems like yesterday that we were celebrating the winter solstice and the shortest day.

Today I am going to be outside as much as possible....soaking up the sunshine and connecting with all of the different shades of green. Last week was kind of hard with me having a good case of bronchitis. I'm going to see if I can let the bronchitis go through lots of fresh air and sunshine. Might work!! The color green has enormous healing properties.

Love to all.

Looking Out My Window in April

2011-04-16T05:42:00.000-07:00

It's the middle of April and everything is responding to the sunshine and rain and lightning that has enriched our world. Trees are beginning to flower...magnolia....red bud....ornamental pear...and daffodils, hyacinth, narcissus are everywhere. A duck is nesting right outside mom's front window. Last week an eagle flew above my car....and hawk, goose and duck are everywhere. It's a beautiful and nurturing time of year!

April reminds me of why so much of my music includes bird song, water bubbling or moving in waves, and frogs of all kinds. We are woven into relationship with all of nature...as part of this big planetary weaving. These songs and sounds support and inspire me in my work and in my daily life.

The trip to Brown County with Samantha and Jordan was just wonderful and then last weekend we had Jason, Leah and Lucy with us for two days. Family is awesome!!

Mayan Dream Productions is in the middle of it's own Spring Emergence. The mailings are out....the newsletter is well under way and it's just plain fun to do this work. Always I am amazed at the opportunities that come to me from completely unknown places or people.

Love to all!

Watching the Jaguar

2011-04-05T04:23:00.000-07:00

>I have an awesome photo hanging on my wall of a fire that is burning in the Lake Atitlan area as part of a ritual. The fire is alive with deer running through it (really!) and from the top of the fire a fully formed jaguar is standing. If you are familiar with the art on ancient mayan stella and temples, you will also notice faces that are found on the ancient artwork. It is remarkable that these forces emerged from the fire, but equally wonderful that someone's camera was able to capture these images which are certainly fleeting. WOW!. This incredible photo is by Conrad Satala.

Another story about the reality of the unseen worlds: My aunt died Sunday night. She had been in a coma, but woke enough to tell her niece that her husband had come to her and was telling her that her time had come and he was there to lead her. Then she died. WOW!

When dad was dying, he saw his twin brother and other deceased family members for days before he died. Sometimes I just need to be reminded that we are in the midst of wondrous unknown supportive forces at all times. Of course this unseen world is the source of all of my music.....but sometimes I forget in daily life.

This week has been all about being very aware of change and it's power in my life. The outer weather has gone from warm to cold and back to warm with awesome storms...the outer reflecting the inner. We are so very aware of what is happening in Japan, Libya, Syria, and so many other countries of the world as they walk through exceptionally hard times into their futures.
My Spring goal....to have my own life change and grow in ways that I can't even imagine right now.

On the daily level.....orders always begin to pick up in late March and early April and this is happening again this year. To help out my distributors and other vendors I always connect directly with helpful materials about this time so I am sending out e-mailing and also (yes!) snail mail.

The monthly Musing will be e-mailed around the middle of the month, so that is being composed right now.

Tomorrow Walt and I will pick up two grandchildren and take them to an overnight in the Brown County area. Fun!

Love to all.

Spring Solstice

2011-03-19T05:06:00.000-07:00

Here we are this weekend at the cusp of the Spring Solstice and also a full moon that is brighter and larger than usual because of it's closeness to the earth. I can feel the strength of the energy that is present at this time. There is decision....I can use this energy to be in conflict and chaos, or in connection with a deep spiritual place. This energy can be brought into my heart and sent to Japan, and Libya, and all the other places on this planet that are in such difficulty. Healing!

When I write this blog, or my monthly newsletter, I focus on the possibilities of life and the radiance of all creation in gratitude.
However, many times during the day I have to refocus myself in choice: will I interpret life's events in a smaller way, or will I let myself change into the unknown and into the radiance? Sometimes it takes me a little time to shift into the larger space of radiance.....life is not always easy.

I know many people who are Japanese and I am sad for them. This is a catastrophe of monumental impact. However, I can send them the love of my heart and continue to do so....may the possibilities of new life be present for them as they grieve the loss of family, friends, home, life as they knew it.

There are several new things this week: I have taken down my personal Facebook account so that in a week or so, I can put up a business Facebook account. You cannot have both at the same time. Also, I have established a wholesaler link on my order page for all of those who are wholesalers for my music....allowing them easier ordering by credit card if they wish. A special thanks to Vern Ceder (my website manager) who made this happen, in spite of an incredibly busy schedule in his life right now.

Don't forget to download "Living The Possible" for your Spring listening. Also, all of my CDs can now be downloaded from the website at $5 each. Just click on the MP3 link to pay (don't be confused by the two options of MP3 or CD), and I will send you the YouSendIt file for your download. Easy!

Love to all.

March 15

2011-03-15T05:29:00.000-07:00

As I look outside, it is raining and about 32 degrees so we have some freezing rain. It is gray and brown and rather dark today. The moist earth is supporting sprouts that are breaking through the ground. Tree buds are swelling. In just a few days we will have 60's and sunshine. Emergence!

The news coming from Japan continues to be so sad. But the people are such an inspiration with their centeredness in the midst of their profound grief and loss.

There is nothing large happening today....just normal life.....lived in deep appreciation for the wonderful gifts that have been given to me.

Love to all.

Tsunami

2011-03-11T04:34:00.000-08:00

This morning we hear of the 8.9 earthquake off the coast of Japan and the Tsunami that is creating such devastation. As I write this, there is very little news coming from that area, but the pictures are just heart-breaking. And....the tsumani is headed for Hawaii, and then the West Coast of US. All of us have family and friends who live in these areas.

Here in the Midwest we experience nature's radical changes through floods and through tornados. I can be in the midst of a regular days work, and a severe storm with tornado could change my entire life within seconds.

Let's keep all of the world in our loving kindness. Earth, our mother, needs our help.

Love to all!

From blizzards to floods

2011-02-28T04:20:00.000-08:00

This is an optimistic photo which was taken a couple of years ago in the very early Spring. I hope to see these flowers along the trails of the state forest very soon.

Last week in the middle of snow storms, the Musings newsletter for February finally went out. Orders were shipped when it was possible to get to the post office. One day, the mail could not even be delivered to us because of snow drifts.....very unusual! Now, we have had thunderstorms and lots of rain overnight and "overnight" our white landscape has turned to brown. The rivers are high and flood warnings are up. All of this weather is a constant reminder to me that life never stays the same. It's craziness for me to worry about what might happen, or what might not happen. Let's go with the flow!

I announced that Living The Possible
album would be on the website for free download. That is delayed a little bit.....until maybe the end of this week and it's posting will be announced with a splashy e-postcard. I still have some writing about the music to do so that the listener has a description and maybe some photographs. I have been falling in love with the music of Living The Possible all over again. It is so rich in wildlife, water, wind and alive with electronic sound and percussion. It fits in well with the month of March and that dynamic, ever changing weather which cracks open the hibernation of winter and brings new life with it's possibilities. Living The Possible was written several years before Radiance, although never released. It was waiting for the music of Radiance. Radiance is the expression of the possible having become a living reality. Like the nature all around me, this music is teaching me about potential, possibility, and the radiance of living the possibility.

What will this week bring? I really have no idea. Onward to the adventure.

GRAY DAY

2011-02-21T04:32:00.000-08:00

Well, we are moving toward the end of February. We've had so much snow this winter, and a blizzard, but the beauty has been phenomenal. This photo is mine of one particularly beautiful snowfall. Today, Mother Nature is having a gray day.....the skies are dark and brooding and we are being coated with ice. It's a very good day for a fire in the fireplace because no one is going anywhere!

The Musings newsletter will be coming out this Wednesday for February....a little late because we are almost into March. However, life's timing is not always exactly on my schedule. Hopefully this newsletter will come to you exactly when you wanted to read it.

We met with our long-time tax preparer last weekend, and it turns out that Mayan Dream Productions increased success this year has increased our taxes, and so less refund. What a good problem to have!

This last week of February has been about my body reorganizing around the shoulders and down my arms. It seems that I have re-injured my right arm somehow....there is a lot of pain and swelling and difficulty picking up objects, etc. However, the reality is more about my body changing to better support me me with the new music, and all of the other parts of my life. When I remember this, the pain diminishes. When I focus on the pain and difficulty, it gets much worse. My arm will heal but the journey right now is how I choose to live day to day and where I place my focus.

Watch for a new album free download.....Living The Possible....which will be posted some time on Wednesday. The link will be in my Musings newsletter and on the home page of my website.

love to all.

Taxes are done and another year has passed.

2011-02-05T05:14:00.000-08:00

This week's blizzard gave me some time to finish up the taxes for Mayan Dream Productions. It wouldn't take so long, but I always spend this time looking at the year that has passed. I look at every invoice and connect with thanks to the person or business that bought my music. Some decisions for this year will be made based on such questions as "Why did my ink cost triple last year?" Could it be because I purchased a new printer that is much more expensive to run? Or....is there another reason?

In the last two weeks between snowstorms and the blizzard, there was precious time to connect with friends over coffee. Playtime! Also playtime was beginning to learn the guitar again with no pressure to perform it, or record it, or do anything but enjoy it. Walt gave me the guitar for my birthday, and I'm loving it!

My sales at CDBaby are really picking up after several years of limping along. That's wonderful, but there is no obvious outer reason. Maybe someone has discovered the low cost and convenience of CDBaby and is passing the word along to his/her professional friends. For musicians/artists, word of mouth is the most powerful way that music or art sells.

The February Musings will be going out near the end of the week. Every month I write the Musings Newsletter which is different than this blog, and also not a sales ad. There is no selling in a Musings Newsletter, but rather a connection with the many people who are sharing the spiritual journey that unites all of us. It takes me about 20 rewritings to have the article that goes out.

It's snowing again and we are expecting another 3+ inches on top of the 12+ inches that we received last week. I'm waiting for the warm weather to arrive again, but I love the beauty of the snow. It's gently falling with big flakes and has arrived about three hours earlier than the meteorologists predicted. So....let it snow.

Love to all!

January Fun

2011-01-26T03:55:00.000-08:00

Photo (c)2010. Conrad Satala. Sacred Space of Paq'alib'al.

Usually I think about January as a time of hibernation. Not this year! Daily OM featured the Healing Music for the 21st Century CD yesterday, and it was fun to see how someone who doesn't know me writes about my music. They produced a fabulous article, and I am already getting comments through Facebook from DailyOM visitors. Here's a really fun thing: they called me a music teacher and travel guide. I have to say that is not how I would have described myself!

If you would like to see the article, click on this link: http://www.dailyom.com/articles/3/2011/27271.html.

Radiance is now up on CDBaby and they gave me an enormous boost by sending the link to anyone who has ordered my music through CDBaby over the last many years (10+). This level of support by a distributor is invaluable to a musician. Thank you CDBaby. The link is http://cdbaby.com/cd/rieger7. As with all of my music that CDBaby carries, they have placed Radiance on i-tunes, rhapsody, and almost 100 other digital sites, and radio streaming sites. Of course people can also order CDs through CDBaby.

As I write this Musings, I am uploading MP3 files of all 10 of my CDs onto my desktop. People will soon be able to order any CD as a digital file for $5 per album, and I will send it to them via YouSendIt. This is a great value for everyone, and it also keeps CDs out of our landfill. The only exception to the $5 price is the Radiance album which is still $10 per download. I expect this option to be up and running within this week.

Of course all of the artwork that was created by Ilene Satala, Ann Beeching and Jamie Rieger as the cover inspiration for the music on Mayan Dream, The Beloved, The Journey of Joy, Heart of Sky/Heart of Earth, Emergence, and Radiance is on display in the entrance space for the offices of Conrad and Ilene Satala. If you happen to be visiting, or attending a workshop, check it out because their artwork is radiant!

Why am I sharing all of this with you? I continue to be awed by the weaving of support all around me. When I wrote the Abundance track for the Radiance album, that music taught me that abundance is a gentle process. I don't have to stress or work myself into the ground, but simply follow the stream of consciousness that is guiding all of this music. I do have to say yes and actually act on inspiration, or nothing will happen in the outer world, but it is not hard work. It is fun!

Love to all.

Rainy January Morning

2011-01-18T03:02:00.000-08:00

Another early morning....and it's raining with the temperature about 35 degrees. Thank heavens! Without that above freezing temp, we would have ice all over everything. After this rain, and then wind, we are going to have more snow and the temperatures will be near zero by tomorrow evening. When you live in Indiana, you don't get too attached to any particular "look" outside, and you learn to live with change.

The photo in this blog is of a display of all of the artwork connected to my CDs. You are only getting a little bit of this display, but it is awesome to see Emergence and Heart of Sky/Heart of Earth, by Ann Beeching; The Beloved, Mayan Dream, and Journey of Joy by Ilene Satala; and Radiance by Jamie Rieger.....all original artwork on display.

Yesterday and today have been good days for my creative self and everything is flowing smoothly. The only glitch was trying to use the online customs forms and finding that USPS has a problem this week. It keeps telling me that I am not filling in the form, and I'm looking right at it all filled in. Yikes! So.....onward to the post office in the rain to hand-write a customs form.

It is a very busy week coming up. My focus is to stay in this flowing space no matter what happens this week in the busyness.

Radiance is glowing its way into people's lives. I am LOVING the YouSendIt application that lets me send entire albums online with so little effort on my part, or yours. And.....it's less expensive than a CD for the customer. All good stuff!

Now...onward and upward!

Second Week in January already

2011-01-10T05:01:00.000-08:00

Mayan Dream Productions is a small business which has been around for 20+ years. As a small business owner, I spend some of each January wrapping up the finances of the preceding year, and getting ready for taxes. Indiana sales tax is due the end of January. Every year, this gives me the opportunity to look at the support that I receive from my music. The support is certainly financial, but more importantly it is the relationships that have built over the years that I treasure.

As I look at each month and its shipments, I remember stories that have been told about individuals' creative projects, and how my music has affected their lives, families and pets. Thank you to all of you who are a part of my life.

Usually, as I take inventory, I find things that I thought were lost forever.

Radiance is now on CDBaby and I have to finish writing the description, etc for that and also get Radiance up on Amazon.

This January, I will be playing guitar again because Walt bought me a guitar for my birthday. It has been five years since I played guitar. I also have a recorder that needs to be played, so probably at some point there will be new guitar and recorder music.

Love to all.

Radiance CDs are here

2010-12-20T04:33:00.000-08:00

Thanks to some pretty quick action on the part of National Media Services during a busy holiday season, the Radiance CDs are now here. They arrived on Friday, December 17.

We had a lovely time with family yesterday....celebrating the 16th birthday of a granddaughter and also Jamie's birthday. This Christmas will be wonderful with all of family coming back to Fort Wayne. What a celebration with good times and happiness!

Tomorrow is the winter solstice...the time of the beginning of the return of light. We are already in a deep freeze with darkness seeming to prevail. The reality is that, beginning tomorrow, every day will be a bit longer. The deep freeze will continue yet for almost three more months, but the hibernation is necessary in order for life to emerge again in the Spring. It's a marvelous cycle.

Radiance.....in hibernation right now in the outer world. However, the Radiance music has changed my life in profound ways....bringing me into a new place of peace within. Events that used to bother me.....just don't anymore. So, the Radiance music is a powerful gift for me, and with the coming of the light, it will go out into the world.

May the celebration of light throughout the next two weeks be a source of love, light, joy, peace to all of you.

December 20th is the magic date

2010-12-10T04:16:00.000-08:00

Photo (c) 2010 Conrad Satala. Vision.

I have a final shipping date from National Media Services, and that date is December 20th for the Radiance CD. My birthday is December 21 and the birthday of the artist who did the cover art is December 20th, so this a great birthday present of Radiance for both of us,

Radiance is also a gift for the new year 2011. It's so easy to get caught in the outer difficulties of these last years: financial distress on a global level, weather that is more extreme because of global warming, fighting everywhere. Radiance brings us back to center: we are not these outer things. We are radiant beings of light who come from love and can radiate love and kindness to everyone around us. We are creative beings and this will overcome all destructive outer events if we allow the creative love to prevail.

The music of Radiance goes beyond centering music. It is music of transformation and it is certainly transforming me. What a gift for myself from the Universe.

This week I have been nurturing the last stages of Radiance through the process, and also bringing the same creativity into the marketing process. Lot's of fun and excitement!

The Radiance video has touched people in a very personal way. I had no idea that this would happen. Sometimes when I am being my most creative, I don't have a personal appreciation for what is happening and this was certainly the case for the Radiance Video. I am very grateful to all of you who wrote to express your appreciation and to tell your story. The links for the Radiance video, and the Mayan video are at the top of this page.

Happy holidays to all!

Radiance Video is up

2010-12-04T04:07:00.000-08:00

I love this photo and included it on the Radiance video because it is the portal of new beginnings. The photo was taken in the area of Santiago Atitlan by Conrad Satala.

What is the new Radiance video all about? The video celebrates the beauty of plant, tree, water, fire, and seasons and the light that radiates from the center of everything. The link is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpSM1nhRSxc. My purpose with the Radiance video is to provide you, the viewer, with photography and music that uplifts you and supports you in happiness throughout your day. The video reflects the little girl of the album cover artwork who is innocence and joy. Her face shines with delight!

Anytime that I compose new music, it asks me to become someone different....the person who can actually perform the music. With the Radiance music, my life has become more quiet, more reflective and happier. The woman of the album artwork has lifted the chalice to drink, she will begin her next journey in life. It is a process of changing and becoming...supported by the innocence and joy of the child. That is the journey we all travel over and over.

At this time, my favorite track in the album is Deer Spirit with the Abundance track a close second. The music is light in spirit and has a joy to it. It looks like the CD will be available by December 15th....hold that image!

Love to all.

What is Possible to Live!

2010-12-01T04:30:00.000-08:00

The music of Radiance celebrates the possibilities for our lives. Radiance....light and joy and love radiating from our core throughout our body and out into the world, touching those around us with the same light and joy and love. As I light a candle and experience that flame, I know that the same flame exists within me. We are light radiating!

Abundance is track six of the Radiance album. This is gentle music....coming through water and the sounds of water birds....with soft instrumentation. The abundance music has taught me that abundance is not a struggle. It is all around me and supports me with gentle hands. The flame of Radiance bring abundance with it. I don't have to do anything but say "yes" to my life.

Today.....Susan will upload the cover, back tray, disc label to National Media Services for printing and duplication. I will send in
the gold master CD and all of the paperwork for the music. Then within a few days I will have a hard sample copy from National Media for me to check color, etc. We are on track for the CDs to be available for shipment by December 15th.

The music of Radiance has been available to all of you by download since November 8....so it has been almost a month since that launch of Radiance. I have found that the music of Radiance has brought me into a place of much more quiet and much less stress in my life. I have awarenesses that just did not exist before of ways to live more peacefully within myself. This is my greatest blessing from the Radiance music.

I subscribed to YouSendIt so that it would be very easy for everyone to download the music of Radiance if they ordered a Cd for download. YouSendIt is a great tool for me in the bringing out of my music. It allows me to be my own private "i-tunes" site if I wish. As I have said often, my sales are very strong in the digital music form of my albums. I personally never buy a physical CD anymore because it is so easy to go onto my computer, order the music, and have it instantly. Then if I want to play it on my car CD player, I can burn a CD. So easy and effortless!! So I truly understand why my digital sales are such a strong force in my business.

We are into the holiday season and I wish all of you joyful and peaceful holidays.

Radiance of Moonlight

2010-11-26T03:47:00.000-08:00

As I look at this painting for my Radiance album, I am listening to the music of the Radiance album, Track One, Woven in Joy. I can see the joy on the face of the little girl....and the inner joy of the woman who feels like she is in her inner world as she lifts the chalice from the well. She is illuminated by the moonlight. Her eyes are soft as she holds the filled chalice and the child. She will drink.

The moon flowers have their own inner radiance in the moonlight, as do the trees. They glow with that radiance that supports all living things and connects.

The chalice music is track three. The music is not triumphant or "big", but rather soft and with the feeling of weaving. The music of chalice reflects the look on the faces of the woman and the child. The drinking of the chalice is a commitment to living a life connected to the sacred and a promise to let life purpose be realized.

I thank the artist, Jamie Rieger, who spent so much time connecting with my music to paint this beautiful original art. What a gift to all of us! If you would like to connect directly with Jamie, his e-mail is alan.rieger@gmail.com.

Today....we are in a deep freeze. As I look outside the color is a soft gray with black tree limbs outlined. We are supposed to have sunshine today....we'll see.

The Library of Congress has followed through with the necessary information so that I can get copyright permission online successfully. Now, I'm going to see if it works. Wish me luck!

Love to all.

November 18

2010-11-18T04:35:00.000-08:00

This is a photo of Jamie Rieger who is the artist for the cover art of the Radiance CD. Jamie has been an artist since the age of 14 (give or take a year). He worked with Ilene Satala in his high school years, and then moved into sharing his love of art with his love of math (he gets his math from his dad). his musical talent, and his love of history. I don't know of anyone else who would read all about a history topic before taking the class in college. Jamie is an awesome artist, mathematician, husband and father. I'm so honored that he is creating the cover for Radiance.

Today I'm trying to get through the US Copyright Office and having all sorts of problems. They want me to register online but don't recognize either my password or my username (not sure which), won't let me reset username, and won't let me re-register because I'm already in the system. Yikes! So, I tried the form which can be sent in for a little more money, but you have to print it through their system because it creates a barcode, but it won't print through their system. So.....e-mailed for help and will be waiting. It was so much easier when I could fill out a form by hand and send it in! Although...I just received my copyright certificate for Emergence this last week, and I submitted it in April of 2008....so it certainly takes a while!

Thank you to all of you who are connecting with me online. I love hearing from you.

The album is moving right along into CD form: The graphic design work is almost complete; the cover art is almost complete; the digital master for the music is complete; I have contacted the duplication company for final quote; the Radiance video is almost complete; the marketing newsletter is in process for the CD.....it's amazing how many steps are involved in getting an album released into the world. Thank heavens all of this is great fun! When I have the painting that is the cover art, it will be taken to a photographer for a digital photograph. Then Susan will place that into the graphic design template and send it to National Media Services online for the front cover, back tray and disc label. Meanwhile, I will use the digital photo in all of my marketing and in the Radiance video. The duplication takes about 5 days, so my deadline of November 30 should be on target.

The greatest of all holiday sales is moving splendidly. So far the sale has been on for one week and I have shipped to distributors in the US and Canada who will use this music for their various healing ministries. The most popular music is The Beloved and Healing Music for the 21st Century.....and The Beloved has been number one seller for 20 years, selling around 15,000 cassettes or CDs. I am very grateful that I can be a part of the healing ministry of so many people through the music
that streams through me.

Love to all.

Loving Life

2010-11-13T04:36:00.000-08:00

In my personal life two family members have died suddenly in the last 5 weeks. These were family who are my age or younger and were much loved by their family. Now we are looking at a third death within just a few weeks.

Always these kinds of happenings remind me that life is short. Sometimes I live like I have forever in this body....not the case.
What is the most important? Support for one another to be most creative that we can; kindness; gentle, caring actions.

The new Radiance music celebrates life. This particular album is focused on tree, flowers, sun, moon, water, land. But all of life is interconnected....and we are nature in our human form also. Radiance was released on Tuesday: so far two people have downloaded the album. The CD will be coming soon. The artwork for the cover is almost complete and I will be meeting this week with Susan Stamm for the completion of the graphic design work. So....everything should be to the duplicator by late this coming week and then out to the world the following week in CD form.....expected to be available by November 30. Monday afternoon I will finish the Radiance video.

The holiday sale is creating lots of excitement and is moving very well.

Today we are experiencing the last day in a heat wave for Fort Wayne. It's been 65-72 degrees for four days. Tonight the rains move in and the temperatures drop to the more seasonal temps.

Love to all.

November 8 was launch date

2010-11-09T04:38:00.000-08:00

Everything was ready on the website, and yesterday I spent about 10 hours launching the new Radiance music. I'm so excited that it is out in the world. This new music is light and happy and gentle and just perfect for the holiday season. Radiance celebrates the beauty of nature....especially in the world of trees and flowers and water and birds and frogs.....all life is interconnected with radiance.

At the same time, I sent out my holiday sale and this year I followed the example of everyone else and cut my CD prices about 65 percent. Let's see if I can't get my music out in CD form to people who have never heard it before. This is certainly happening all the time with my digital music sales. And now it looks like I will be breaking through into yet another market in Japan with regular CDs.

I have added YouSendIt to my available tools for getting the music out. When you order a download directly from me, the entire CD will come via YouSendIt and it will be very easy to download onto your computer and into i-tunes. VIDA and RADIANCE are now available to download directly from me.

All of this technology is remarkable and so helpful to me. There was a time when all marketing was in paper form, and when all music was in cassette or CD form. And yet....there is something special about holding a CD with incredible artwork on the cover.

We are having a heat wave in the Midwest. After experiencing snow just three days ago, it is in the upper 60s and sunny for the first three days of this week. Then....back to cold. As I sit here writing, the sun is coming up through the bare tree branches and it is absolutely beautiful. Radiance is all around me.

Love to all.

November and everything is changing

2010-11-06T03:47:00.000-07:00

It is amazing to me every year how fast life can change from one form to another. Just a few weeks ago our temperatures were in the upper 80s, and now.....I drove through a snowstorm yesterday. The trees are bare and all of my fragile plants are back in the house. The air is frosty this morning and the black sky is clear with crescent moon and many stars.

The album RADIANCE is ready for launching into the world. Early this next week my website administrator will be clicking over my website to a new website provider and a new domain name provider (of course, my domain name will stay the same). At the same time the RADIANCE music will become available to everyone for download. You will be able to hear bits of each track, and also read descriptions of each track. The track called Deer Spirit will be on the home page for your free download. Happy Holidays!

At the same time, my holiday sale will kick off with very special prices on all stock CDs.

My Musings Newsletter is done and waiting on early next week to be sent to you online at the same time as the website changes and the Radiance music is launched.

All of this change feels pretty appropriate as I experience the dramatic change from Autumn to WInter in the Midwest.

Love to all.

So many new things happening

2010-10-22T04:14:00.000-07:00

Autumn into winter has always been a time for me of newness. Life in the outer world is going into hibernation, but my own creative life is in full bloom. Making music and marketing are effortless and new information and new music streams forward without stress. This tells me that my own natural cycle is being honored. When I try to move outside of this natural cycle, my life becomes very stressful and everything is hard.

My new YouTube site went up on Wednesday and the Mayan Dream video was remastered and placed on this site on Thursday.
Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoQqkgztzZQ.

Jamie has the artwork for the cover of Radiance well underway, and the final mastering for the music will happen this coming Monday. The first track of Radiance was called "Call To Joy", but I knew that this was not the deepest level for this music. When I went back into the recording studio, I deleted almost all of the Call To Joy music and only kept the tambourine track....started again and the music is now in its fullness and called "Woven In Joy". What is the difference? Call to Joy sort of suggests that the joy is not yet within, whereas Woven in Joy assumes that we are joy. The music itself is much lighter and so happy.

I am going to try a new duplication company so that I can copy ONLY the number of CDs that people order and yet have a fully shrink-wrapped and professionally finished product. As always....I need to meet the individual needs of the people who listen to my music, and yet move toward mostly downloaded music, because that is the way of the present time. What will the future bring? Who knows, but I expect exciting options in the music industry to continue to develop.

I am also going to try a new e-newsletter distributor. Let's see what happens.

Here is a sign of the times: one of my national distributors, New Leaf Distributors, has just cancelled almost all of it's print catalogues and it's magazines, and is going totally on-line for everything. This should an interesting journey for those of it's customers who won't use a computer because they feel it is against nature, and/or hurts the energy system of the individual. We are all going to have to adjust to this new world, and of course, not sending out paper, plastic, etc. is so important for the health of our planet.

Lot's of newness and lot's of fun creating. Love to all.

October

2010-10-13T01:49:00.001-07:00

It's just about 5AM and I'm sitting here writing with my hot cup of coffee at hand. A spider just dropped down from the ceiling directly in front of my face.

Today.....back into the recording studio in the afternoon. I felt that Radiance was pretty much complete, but actually the first track needs to be brought into it's deepest level and so...we record this afternoon. This morning and later this afternoon I have quite a bit of work to do, but first I'm going to go out and do a bit of photography. I can't waste this beautiful crisp, clean October on working indoors!

The YouTube video has received about 85 hits. I've waited a long time to put my music and the land of the Maya together and I'm SO glad that it is out. When I watch it, I am taken into who I am in a very unique way.

New YouTube video is up

2010-10-07T04:26:00.000-07:00

This photo is Salamonie State Forest at the Salamonie River and in the early morning sunrise with the mist still on the water....how beautiful is our Mother Earth.

Check out the new video called Mayan Dream by Beverly Rieger: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lg8NDU9I1H8

This short video was so much fun as I watched it be created. As with my music, it comes from the unseen world. Some of the things that I thought would be said were not.....and the final focus of my and our making a difference of beauty, creativity, vision, love in the world is exciting.

The Radiance album is continuing. Jamie is creating the artwork, and I only have a little bit of tweaking and the entire album's music is finished. Now I have the work of writing about this music because each track has a story. That will be the work of the rest of October and then everything will be released, and we will have a CD signing in Fort Wayne at Tempel Recording the first part of November....date and time to be announced.

We are having a beautiful week. Love to all.

Radiance in daily life

2010-10-02T04:05:00.000-07:00

The Radiance album is just about complete. Through these last weeks I have composed music that is joy, compassion, radiance, walking lightly on the earth, the chalice, the deer spirit, and abundance. The abundance music contains aspects of the compassion music. The deer spirit music has a reflection of the joy music.....everything weaving together into one whole that is Radiance. Now, before this music is released to the world, I will be exploring how to live all of these life energies in my own life. How can I release Radiance to the world through my own life.....not just through the music???? That would be the journey.

It was fun to see how my celtic ancestry has emerged in this music. My grandfather on my dad's side was English, Welsh, and Irish. My grandparents on my mothers side were from Scotland....having both Scottish and Irish ancestors. So this ancient
understanding of the Celtic runs in my blood.

During this last week Tom Tempel and I created a u-tube video that has fulfilled one of my visions. When I composed Mayan Dream and the music that followed I had a strong connection to the land of the Maya....the music flowed from the land and the artwork and the sacred buildings. Now this u-tube video connects the land, artwork, buildings directly with the music and when I watch it, it brings me to tears because it is so very wonderful to see. We have a few tweaks and then I will be connecting with you to give you the u-tube link. One of the mental obstacles I had to overcome was the quality of my own photographs. I had taken many of these photos in 1989 through 1999 on those small disposable cameras, so the images had begun already to darken or degrade. But.....these were the images that I had available to me right now and they are mine.....so....these are being used and will carry my own connection energy to everyone who sees them. One of the wonders of this process was observing how Tom Tempel can take a photo and bring it to life and movement. Very cool indeed!

Love to all on this beautiful Autumn day.

Early in the Morning

2010-09-18T03:33:00.000-07:00

Autumn is certainly here. The air is soft again and cool. It was dark last night around 7:45PM....almost two hours earlier than on the Summer Solstice. I will miss summer, but I love the feel of Autumn. This week a group of women will gather again here to mark this change of seasons with meditation.

This week I had to look again at my own beliefs about music and it's sacred character. An acquaintance of mine had asked me to be a musician for a celebration, and then changed their mind and asked me to stay away from this celebration because this person did not want the music to interfere with the sacredness of the celebration. For this person, silence and the spoken word will be the music. I have had others also say that they prefer Silence to Sound and would not use music with their meditation or creativity. There is no right or wrong way for the sacred to manifest.

The new Radiance music is coming out soon, and so this change in plans is a very happy event that allows me to deepen my own understanding of music and it's place in the spiritual workings of our planet. Music is an aspect of silence. Deep silence is the core of the Universe, and the core of the Universe, this Silence, is teeming with energy and life. It creates always. Music and Silence are the same. Why do I know this? Creation/Silence manifesting is a vibration. We have found that all human organs have their own song and scientists have mapped this into musical notes. Color has its own song....each color having a different vibration. Every living thing that has manifested from the Creative Center has it's vibration. There are so many different vibrations that come for the Silence at the center. Music has the power to focus a particular vibration so that I can be aware of it and communicate with it. Relationship happens!

When I create music, I open to this vibration and ask for it to resonate in my physical body. My intent is always that the vibration moves through me into physical sound that expresses the sacred center of whatever the music is about. So...Radiance....already we have four tracks complete: Call To Joy, Compassion, Walking Lightly on the Earth, and Radiance.
I continually ask these forces to support me in my life, and also to change me into the person who can play and also market this music to the world.

This week I will be recording on Monday afternoon and on Friday afternoon. In between I will play for a funeral, and do a lot of paperwork, rehearsals, etc. All of this (I intend and sometimes failing and sometimes in the flow!) will come from the Creative Center that is Silence/Music.

Love to all.

Such a privilege

2010-09-14T04:09:00.000-07:00

Well....it's been 10 days since I have written. Life has been very, very busy but new music is coming. What a privilege! The creative process is such that the artist really doesn't know what is going to happen before he/she begins to paint, or goes into the recording studio to compose. We might have an idea, but creativity by it's definition means bringing something from the unknown into the known....something carrying the unique vibration of the artist.....

I have been into the recording studio twice since September 3rd (last blog) and now we have four tracks of the upcoming Radiance album. Always it is important to actually get the music out in physical form, but then, as I listen to it and live with it, the music begins to refine and become lighter and cleaner. Yesterday I was with Tom Tempel at Tempel Recording working with the editing process. That is one of my favorite parts of the process. Music just continues to become more of what it really wants to be. Very cool!

At the same time, preparations are being made for the marketing of Radiance. We will have a CD signing in the Fort Wayne area, and of course need to let everyone know about this music. It will be out and ready for the winter solstice time, and at the same time I will be reminding people of the other Solstice music: Mystical Rose: From The Heart of Everything.

Other recording is happening: Soul Deep Body Transformative Music, and also new music for the Earth Essence free download album.

Love to all.

More Radiance

2010-09-03T02:34:00.000-07:00

Tuesday I was in the recording studio again, and we now have three tracks of the total album complete: Walking Lightly on the Earth, Compassion, and Call To Joy. The fun thing about creating an album is the unpredictability of the process. The music that was "Walking Lightly on the Earth" last week is now "Call To Joy" this week, and there is entirely new music for the present "Walking Lightly on the Earth". Compassion is mostly new music, but the first part had been composed last week and I thought it would be the radiance track. Not so!

Jamie Rieger has been commissioned to create the artwork for the cover of the new Radiance album. This photo is of one of his other commissioned pieces. I can't wait to see what he does with this new commission.

My website was updated by Vern this week, and Earth Essence is back up as a free download because I intend to add to it.
So watch for that soon!

Don't forget that you probably have to reset your server (for me, Safari had to be reset) in order to get the latest updates on my website. I used to assume that what I saw on my screen was what was really in the system. Not true! You will have an old memory of my website, instead of the latest updates.

In order to release another new album, I had to look at what I have already composed, recorded and released. There is so much music that the question was: why would you want to release another album? The answer: because the music is there and wants to be released.

My music is music for the world. People listen to it for pleasure, inspiration, energy....it is in the homes of people who are friends and family, and people who don't know me.....in retail stores...retreat centers....hospitals....cars.....used for conferences of all kinds...and throughout the world. At this time my digital sales are truly growing faster than my CD sales and I feel that is a sign of the times. The truth is that regular people like me are those who are listening to my music and loving it. Remember the person from New York City who ordered one CD a few months ago and e-mailed me that she has my entire collection and loves them....I had no idea because I really don't know most of the people who have my music. After 20 years, more than 20,000 CDs have been sold. That means that at least 100 times that many people have listened to my music. The amount of digital music purchased and streaming music listened to is simply an unknown quantity to me.

Yesterday I made a list of the tracks that have been released to the world: Mayan Dream/Dancers of the Flame Awakening, Dance, Indwelling, Dancers of the Flame
The Beloved The Beloved, The Watchers, Stille Pointe, Chilam, Walking the Labyrinth, Mayan Portal
The Journey of Joy Dance to the Center, In The Presence, Journey, Dancing the Three Stone Place, Joy
Heart of Sky/Heart of Earth Primordial Sea, Heart of Sky, Heart of Earth, Dawn, Life Dance
Emergence Rainbow Shower, Beauty, Song She Who Walks the Fields, New Sprout, Moon Power, Nature Spirits, Awakened, Emergence
Healing Music for the 21st Century Heart Love, Compassionate Fire, Healing Warmth, Embrace, Deepbody Love, Creative Fire, Vision, Cradled in the Sacred, Heart Rest
Mystical Rose: From the Heart of Everything Love Unfolding, Held in Joy, Laughter, From the Heart of Everything, Creating from the Heart of Everything, Life Unfolding
Ancient/Future Symphony
Velvet Blackness, Wisdom’s Heart, Carried on the Back of the Deer, ONE, Within Maria’s Mantle
VIDA Woven in Love, Vida, Profound Love, Joyful Breath, Tree of Life
Atitlan Fire Lake of the Unknown, Fire Dance, Volcano Spirit, Wind brings us through the mouth of the vision serpent into…. Red/Orange Celebration
Earth Essence Birds of the Morning, Jaguar, Knower of the Unseen, Soaring High, Dusk, Spider Woman, Deep Snowy Night, Dance of Light, Tree of Light
Living the Possible (four tracks)
Deep Snowy Night Joy To The World, Begotten From Love, Angels Song, Infant Holy, Infant Lowly, The First Noel, Dance, Lo, How A Rose E’er Blooming, Silent Night, Deep Snowy Night

This is 79 tracks of music over 20+ years, plus another album which co-ordinated musicians from the Fort Wayne area, plus 40+ Soul/Deepbody music albums, and one album of music for a Yoga Instructor to use with high school students.

AND....the tap has not been turned off yet since Radiance is on its way. There are also more Soul/Deepbody music commissions.

Why am I sharing all of this? As creative people we don't know how much music, art, etc there is inside of us. We just have to start and I remind myself of this every time that I go into the recording studio. This music emerged a little at a time over a long period of time. Each time I had to say yes without really knowing why. Each time I had to open up to a new physical body, deal with financial issues, and become a different person in order to create different music. Sometimes it was difficult but that was usually the most breakthrough moment for new music. It's also important to know that I work full time for St. John the Baptist Church in Fort Wayne as Music Director while I continue to create my own music. One does not deny the other.
Family and friends are also of primary importance, so time is taken for grown children and our grandchildren, my own parent who needs care, and to nurture friendships.

The summer sale is over...Autumn is here! We are finally experiencing cooler temperatures and had rain for the first time in weeks.

Cheers!

Radiance

2010-08-30T10:04:00.000-07:00

Well....the new music album is on it's way. I have recorded the first part last week, and will continue recording now until it is finished. The name of the album is RADIANCE. The first track is called "Walking lightly on the earth".

What is radiance all about? I am looking at many aspects. Radiance is an aspect of fire, and yet it is not the fire that burns in destruction. Radiance is the gentle and powerful light that emanates from all life forms, and ultimately from the center of all that exists. Radiance shines forth when the pathway is clear. Anger, fear, judgement, blame, shame, guilt....all these things block the natural radiance that wants to be our light from within.

So for me, if I am composing and performing music that is RADIANCE, then I have to look at the ways that my own radiance might be blocked. This is a very active process and probably a lifelong process.

The deer is a primary part of this music. The deer is a gentle creature...beautiful...swift. In ancient cultures the deer is the communicator between the seen and the unseen worlds. Radiance is that communication. Radiance is the shining forth of gentleness, kindness, unconditional love.

This is what I have so far, and let's see what exciting music emerges this week along with more information about the music.
My feeling is that this music will be available around the middle - end of October.

Love to all.

New music coming soon

2010-08-05T05:31:00.000-07:00

It appears that we are back to having space for photos. Yeah! Yesterday I commissioned the artwork for the new album of my music. Alan James Rieger will be the artist for this next series of albums. When new music is coming, I always describe the feeling as being nine months pregnant and ready to deliver. This new baby is in that process. Very exciting stuff!

More about this very soon now. Love to all.

Connections that run deep

2010-07-30T04:25:00.000-07:00

Technology! For some reason my blog site has decided that I can't post a photo within the blog text anymore. Why? I don't know! I tried deleting photos from the memory to see if I was "overdrawn", but that didn't help. And.....you can't really reach a person, so finding an answer in 30,000 various comments by fellow bloggers was not helpful. It's possible that blogspot will become a thing of the past for me. We'll see! There are other blog sites out there.

I am on Facebook and for the last few weeks people from my distant past have been coming back into my life. It has been my experience (63 years of life!) that people don't really disappear. They may leave for a while, but these connections and relationships were forged in a mystery. Always there is a reason for people to be in my life.

Over the last week I have been listening to VIDA a lot. Track 3 is called Profound Love, and the music of Profound Love is directly connected to the music of the CHILAM track from The Beloved CD. The underlying harmonic movement is the same, although the two pieces are very different outwardly. Chilam is the Mayan for "sacred speech". Sacred speech always comes from profound love.....and, profound love manifests in the world through our sacred action. Chilam was written in 1990 and Profound Love in 2009. It's amazing how this works because the musical connection was not deliberate on my part.

This week Susan Stamm worked with me to design my Christmas ad in Evolve magazine, and so that will be out to the retail stores in October. The ad in New Age Retailer will also be out in it's magazine in time for the Christmas retail store buying season which is October. 100 brochures from Mayan Dream Productions went to the Healing Touch Program Conference in Colorado. Late July and early August are the months for preparation for Christmas sales and so lots is going on behind the scenes right now.

I am also preparing for a release of the new music in time for the Christmas buying season.

Love to all.

July 26 and five days of vacation

2010-07-26T02:48:00.000-07:00

WOW! Starting today I have five days of vacation. This is so cool! What will I do with these five days? Walter and I are not going anywhere too far away, so I will be spending time outside mostly having fun.

Does this mean that Mayan Dream Productions is being put "on hold" for five days? Not really because I know that I will be checking e-mail and shipping orders, but life will slow down in general. I am looking forward to long naps, and walking outside, and drives out to the country and to the lake, and just connecting with family in more relaxed ways.

Dawn is just starting to break. The birds outside are waking and calling with that special early morning bird call. We are blessed with a cool morning (only one day promised of coolness, then back to the heat). I looked up into the sky into the morning star pattern and remembered how vast the universe really is.....and we are at the time of the full moon. How beautiful this world is! This morning reminds me of mornings when I woke up in Honduras or Guatemala or Mexico....there is that feel of softness.

Last week Walter and I signed our will and power of attorney updates. It had been 20 years since our last will, and Mayan Dream Productions with all of my music had not been a part of that previous will. So now, my music business is officially recognized in yet another way. It's hard to believe that at some point I will be gone from this earth, but of course that is absolutely guaranteed to happen. What an amazing thought! However I will live on in my children and their children and in my music.

Love to all!

Paying It Forward

2010-07-21T04:15:00.000-07:00

Over this lifetime, so many people have given so much of their time and loving energy to me. Now, in these later years of my life, it's time to "pay it forward". There are so many ways for me to give...loving attention to those close to me....continuing to create music....a little financial help when necessary without any payback.....taking time to stay focused in my own heart to help with the loving energy of this planet. These are all small things but sometimes I forget how important these small things are.

This week continues to be very hot and humid....but, after all, it's July and what else would I expect from July. I wonder how a hot and humid July would be expressed in music??

Last week I received a lovely note from a healer in Australia: "Hiya Beverly, I just received my three CD's, they are fantastic...such a quick delivery, it takes longer than that to receive ordinary mail within Australia some time. I'm amazed. I already have your CDs "The Beloved" and "Journey of Joy" which I have had for a number of years, and they get played a lot as I run three meditation classes a week and various other classes and workshops. Once again thank you so much. May all that you do be blessed. Brightest blessings to you."

That note made my day! Thank you to all of you who are so supportive of this music. It is my extreme pleasure to continue to let the music flow. "Paying it forward" means that, like this healer, I continue to let others know how much I appreciate what they do to help me and others. Thank you all!

With love.

July in Indiana

2010-07-13T03:16:00.000-07:00

Many of these posts start out with a weather report from Indiana. This morning I'm sitting at my desk, writing to you, with a cup of coffee at hand, and the window open to hear the birds and feel the early morning cool. We have had a very hot July in Indiana and this week will be no exception. The air is completely still outside.

These weather reports show up in my music......what does heat and stillness and storm and cold and snow and flower "sound" like? There is new music brewing, and I can't wait until it has reached the point where I can go back into the recording studio. I'll know the time because it will feel like I am nine months pregnant and ready to delivery that baby!

Last week.....shipping and more shipping.

Meanwhile, life is rich and full and I am enjoying the beauty of summer. Love to all.

9 CDs

2010-07-06T01:05:00.000-07:00

Ann Beeching designed and painted for me a beautiful home to display my CDs. This display is on my computer desk....my window to the world. All of these CDs represent the journey from knowing that I have music to create, allowing myself to become the person who can create that music, and then taking the time and space to record and nurture a project into the world. Each CD represents lots and lots of time and creative work. I used to think (back when I was an innocent) that I would just simply sit back and create and everything would happen. Ha!! The work and time involved in the creative process is intense. But in the creative flow it is joyful, and an incredible experience unlike any other. I absolutely love it!

As I look at nine CDs I feel the radiance of all of the people who are listening to my music and loving my music. Most of my music is now throughout the world.....literally....even in CD form but certainly in digital form. I'm not sure about the North and South Pole, but certainly I have had feedback from Asia, and Europe, and New Zealand, and Mexico and Central and South America, and sell regularly to Australia and Canada. What a gift!!

Marketing of music is one of the challenges that I face every day. The industry of music is changing rapidly. CDs are giving way to digital music, and indeed I have a lot of digital sales.

However, computer sharing of digital music is so easy that many times the musician (me) is not paid for music created. Instead a person downloads music and then sends it to their favorite people. This is a compliment to the musician, but does not bring in income to the musicians. Hmmmm....

My experience has been that I am always taken care of and my creativity continues to soar as long as I don't get caught in outer perceptions of how my music is used. Money is an energy of the Source, the Heart of Everything. It is an endless stream of possibility. Money is a sacred exchange filled with light.

Right now there are many, many CDs in my warehouse just waiting to find a home out "there" somewhere. We are doing our annual summer sale. Special prices and free shipping are a way of saying thank you, and of giving back the gift of music. Energy streaming out............

With much love.

Life from the Heart

2010-06-28T04:05:00.000-07:00

Hi to everyone....It's early Monday morning after a week at Lake Michigan and spending days with family and with the lake. This was very special time.

Over the last year, I have spent much time deepening my understanding of living life in the world through the focus of the unseen world. This sounds pretty esoteric, but really it is the basis for all spiritual paths. When a person gets past the differences of practice, there is one common focus. Individuals desire to live a life that is based on connection with the Source of all creation, and this Source is the weaving of love that created us, and that supports our lives.

Life always brings forth challenges. Sometimes they are financial, sometimes health, sometimes relationship, sometimes time....but always I am supported through my heart by this Source. It's only my decision to act from old habits, or to pause, and let something new direct my words and my actions. Yikes!

Sometimes when I am caught by difficult outer situations, it's hard to believe that my "take" on the situation may not be the only reality that exists. This is when it is so important for me to take a breath, connect with the unseen world, and let my reality shift into something larger. After all, this world....seen and unseen....is so much bigger than what I could ever imagine or understand. The larger world brings forth my music, and it is the force behind the purpose of my life.

I have a deep appreciation for the difficulty that can arise for myself and for those with whom I interact when I do not choose to speak and live from the larger space of connection to the unseen world. Part of the reason that I have my own business, is that it shows me constantly when I am connected and when I am not. Having your own business is not easy unless a person is moving from the space of being supported by the unseen world.

This week.....refreshed by the love of family and the power of Lake Michigan, I can move forward again with summer music and the business of getting the music out to all of you.

Love to all.

June 8 and the music of the chalice

2010-06-09T05:33:00.000-07:00

As I sit here writing to you, there is a robin outside my window who has been screaming since dawn. This is the same robin who has been "dive-bombing" my head every time I go outside. Obviously there is a nest close by, but also I am wondering if all is well. Last night most of the birds were screaming until the sun set.

EMERGENCE. Old ways of doing thing have to break down as they reform into newness. As I focus on the newness and the potential that exists for me, life is exciting and anything is possible. There is new music coming along.....the chalice image is there with this music. I have always looked at the chalice as an object which held something to drink (usually wine). Now I am exploring the chalice as an action. I am meant to drink. How does this transfer into music? Let's see what happens.

Do you remember that I talked about a video in my last blog? It has been in the interior world process, and will be out and online very soon now. I have talked for a long time about how Mayan Dream/Dancers of the Flame and The Beloved reflect the feel of the lands of the Maya.

Now you will be able to really see and hear the connection. Another part will be your actual seeing of myself as I create layer upon layer of music. This will be very cool and fun for me to create and I am so looking forward to bringing these two videos into the world.

In another realm: every summer I have a special sale, and this summer is no exception. All music will go on sale next week to celebrate the upcoming summer solstice. Watch for the information to come your way at the end of this week.

Love to all.

Day of the Musician and Artist

2010-05-06T04:14:00.000-07:00

On the Mayan calendar, today is a special day for musicians and artists. So.....I'm going to celebrate the music that is a part of my life. It's a beautiful, sunny day also today and I ask the sunshine to warm my life and radiate from me out to everyone whose life I touch today.

I am in the process of putting together the raw materials to have a video for u-tube created.

My intent is that my music plays as the viewer/listener sees the lands of the Maya....and also sees me playing. Hopefully, this will be up and running in about two weeks. I also would love to create a u-tube video that shows the process of creating a piece of music "track-by-track". I was listening to NPR last Friday and another musician from the US creates like I do....lays down a track, and then another track, and then another track....creating a full piece of music and eventually an entire album.

May...the month of flower and green and newness of life...Wonderful!

Many options are also coming forward from the various distributors of my music to allow more of my music to be distributed in more effective ways. Mystical Rose, Ancient/Future Symphony and Vida are still not out in the world in large ways because I no longer want to run 1000 CDs in order to place them in distributor sites. So it is very exciting to me that this music can now go out into the world-wide distribution without a large run of CDs.

I created a new goddess piece of music for the Spring and offered it to all of you as a free download. Only 18 people actually communicated back to me. That is very interesting to me

as a composer. Are people not interested in this music? Not able to download? Swapping this music online between one another (which of course I wouldn't know about)? Sometimes I find that people will purchase something that costs money, but will not access something that is free....maybe feeling that "free" equals "not as good"?

It was truly wonderful to create an album of Soul/Deepbody music for an individual two weeks ago. Another level has emerged for me of composing music. Just when I believe that I know how to create, I find out that I have only touched the beginning of the marvelous layers still to be explored. Exciting!

My latest payment from CDBaby arrived this month. No actual CD sales....all money received was through digital distribution through i-tunes, Amazon MP3, Rhapsody, Napster. Usually I have CD sales and digital sales, so the CD is really not my primary mover when I am in the realms of world-wide distribution, but rather, the digital sales. This is not surprising because the process of sending and receiving digital music is SO MUCH easier than have to ship a physical product with the necessary export papers, and, on the customer side, pay more for the product and also shipping costs.

Love to all.

Looking back

2010-04-19T05:13:00.000-07:00

Over the last two weeks I have looked at the business plan that I developed in 2000 and found that almost everything on that plan is now in place. That's amazing. When I work day-to-day, sometimes it seems that nothing is moving. But...looking back just a few years....the change has been enormous.

When I was just developing my business plan, digital music sales seemed very far off. Now it is a reality in my life and a lot of fun. When I get a monthly statement from CDBaby and find out that my music is streaming in Europe....that's an awesome feeling. When someone calls me from Puerto Rico (happened last week) just to say they have my music and are loving it...or orders an MP3 album and we develop a beginning relationship....or just the wonder of knowing that people can order music online that is only digital, and create their own selection of my music....just for them.

In 2000 the projections for sales seemed very far off, and at that time I only had four CDs published. Now, there are eleven CDs published and sales have far exceeded the projections of 2000.

This affirms for me that power of intention and focus....and of partnership between me and the unseen world. Life is not always what I personally think it should be, but it has been for the best and certainly an adventure. A business plan works like an intention. You set it out there and give it lots of energy and then co-operate by actually doing something.

Now I feel that it is time to develop the next phase of business plans. Like my music, it will come from the interior world, and it must be ready to "pop out" since I have been nudged for this last two weeks.

This week.....the business plan, and preparation to record, and the promised Chilam newsletter....that should keep me busy along with the day to day living stuff. Maintaining and growing your own business takes a lot of time and focus!

Love to all!

April....Mother Earth emerges!

2010-04-07T00:30:00.000-07:00

Photos: from Brown County State Park in Indiana.

WOW! This has been an incredible first week of April. We are having record breaking warm temperatures, with just enough rain that all growing things are raising their heads and beginning to blossom.

As usual, I am writing in that "witching" hour of night when everything is so clear. The wind outside is blowing HARD. I hear a train whistle in the distance. I just realized that my usual cup of coffee is not here, so am going to take a short break and go make some.

Back....cup of coffee in hand.

This last week we had to change the carrier for my toll-free number and those kinds of changes are always an "interesting journey". But...we got it done and, although we had to be without the toll-free number for about 24 hours, it will be in operation again today, hopefully; with the same number 877-635-1472. This all came about because we changed our phone/internet server from Verizon FIOS to Comcast, and Comcast cannot support a toll-free number on their phone system. So....we had to find somewhere who could support it, and then "port" the number from one company to another. It turns out that this is a big deal! It's easy to get a new toll-free number, but pretty hard to change your existing number from one company to another. Since my toll-free number is on about 20,000 existing CDs, it was extremely important not to change it!

At the beginning of this year, we also had to update our computer system because it could no longer support the amount of information/energy coming through Mayan Dream. I LOVE my new IMAC with it's large flat screen.

Today I will begin writing the upcoming Chilam newsletter. I am also taking inventory this week. Two big projects will keep me out of trouble for a while!!

I continue to be grateful that I am a musician and have the privilege of creating music. Love to all!

Palm Sunday weekend

2010-03-27T10:33:00.001-07:00

We are entering the time of Holy Week. Outside the sunshine is beautiful and warm. Holy Week.....a particularly Christian celebration, but also a celebration of the movement of the old into the emergence of the new.

This is also a week that I am connected to the Tzut'zeil Maya as they celebrate this "greatest of all weeks". It's been several years since I have been down to Central America. I miss my time there and truly hope that soon I can travel again to the Mayan lands.

This last week I have reconnected to Twitter and Facebook. I had signed up for both of these months and months ago, but neglected them totally. It's hard for me to feel the connection with people through these kinds of social sites. Myspace is also there, but pretty much also neglected. However, let's see what happens.

Love to all.

Warmth, Creation, Change

2010-03-24T04:26:00.000-07:00

This last week has been about enjoying the warmth of Spring and the sparkling quality of the sunlight. We moved to daylight savings time and so have more time in the evening to enjoy light. We are also moving again towards the full moon this coming weekend.

Spring Solstice....full moon...Holy Week....Passover....there are so many collective and powerful spiritual energies moving right now. This is a wonderful time for meditation, creation, change.

I continue to do my musical "thing" with composing, shipping, doing taxes, connecting with people, writing this Musing....and so much more. The Chilam Newsletter is due to come out and also the Musings Newsletter, so lots of writing is on the schedule during the remainder of this week.

Today, I intend to get outside to take some photos and just enjoy the newness of Spring.

love to all!

It's been five weeks....what is that all about?

2010-03-14T13:11:00.001-07:00

February and March have been life-changing months...more than usual. On February 1rst, I was in a bad car accident. My car was totaled and I was home recovering for about a week, and then moving slowing for a while after that. As a result of the accident, I have a new car which is really nice (although we had to pay for it!) with a sun roof, individual heat adjustments, and lots of other really nurturing car "things". I especially love the sun roof. I also now have a deep appreciation for my ability to heal quickly.

Somewhere in this mix, I took mom into the emergency room, and then cared for her for several days.....acute bronchitis.

Then a couple of weeks later, I had acute bronchitis for a week. The doctor said that one of the results of the car accident, during which I hit my chest against the dashboard hard enough to imprint the dashboard on my body, was a danger that I would have a lung problem. Well.....!

Then the first of March we took mom into the hospital for a week-long stay. She was very, very sick and lost a lot of blood due to internal bleeding.

I could look at this and say that I had a very bad February and...so far....a bad March. However, all of this has changed me for the better. One of the most fun changes is that my arm is completely healed and I can drum and record music again. Who would have thought that a car accident would heal my arm. Many wonderful changes are also happening quietly within Mayan Dream Productions.

You have received the new Chilam e-Newsletter via e-mail and/or the new Musings e-newsletter. This has been very creative for me, and is one more way for me to connect with all of you. There is also a new brochure for all of my distributors, and as a thank you to retail stores who order.

A new piece of music has been composed: it is called goddess. This music is all about the goddess, our Mother Earth, dancing with the Spring Solstice, with a large smile on her face, and her arms outstretched to embrace all of us in our newness and creativity. This music is free to anyone who asks. I will simply send it in an e-mail, and you can click on it and enjoy.

Last week we had a meditation at my house for women to celebrate the Spring Solstice. The powerful energy of creativity and healing that was released by this gathering of six women is awesome! Even though all are now at their individual homes, the energy remains within all of us, in the larger world, and certainly in my home where the meditation took place.

Another exciting Spring emergence for me is that I can record Soul/Deepbody music commissions again. Yeah!!!

Have a beautiful Spring.

Let it snow! Let it snow!

2010-02-06T02:26:00.000-08:00

Monday of last week was one of those transformative days. I was sitting in traffic only a few blocks from home....wondering why traffic was stopped....when I heard this huge sound and found myself in my car thrown into the ditch. Someone had become distracted and had not noticed that traffic had stopped, so she ran into the car behind me, and that car pushed me into the car in front of me and then into a ditch. I spent the next five hours at Lutheran Hospital being checked for internal injuries, spinal injuries, etc. No injuries! Just deep bruising and some sprain kinds of things, and the need to take a few days to rest and let my body recover from getting beat up.

There must be some karma working here because this is the third time that I have been in a serious accident due to no fault of my own, and yet have not been seriously hurt.

This accident totally destroyed my car, so now I have a new car that is way nicer than my old car. Without the accident, I would not have purchased a new car at this time....but now it's in my life and is giving me an exciting experience of driving a luxury car. In my entire life I have not owned a luxury car, and now I do!

I do not believe that accidents, illness, etc happen to teach us a lesson. But I do believe that we are supported through these events, and that we can open to be transformed by them. This is a loving universe.

Over the last 6 weeks I have played music for the funerals of five people my age or younger. All of this is reminding me that life is precious. Life is also quite amazing. My mind thinks that it knows what is going to happen, and has quite structured and detailed ideas about what I should be doing. Ha! It is SO completely clueless about the larger picture.

What will today bring? We are in the midst of that large storm system that is moving from the Midwest to dump 10-30 inches of snow on the eastern coast. It's beautiful outside with drifts of white and the sound of blowing wind....25-35 miles per hour. It's about 5:30AM and they have come through with the plows, so I am planning on being brave and going out this morning to an early appointment. Then.....it's Saturday so life can be flexible until around mid-afternoon when I leave for making music again. Tonight and next week are going to be very cold.

February is a perfect example of transition....beautiful and yet a challenge. But February leads us to Spring and emergence of new life.

Looking at last year with gratitude

2010-01-23T05:41:00.000-08:00

January-looking sky. Isn't it amazing how beautiful gray and soft light can be. Notice one tree has never dropped it's leaves, so this is not really a January photo (probably early December), but this is what it looks like most of the time right now. The sun peaks out of the clouds and we have beautiful black and grey on soft gray. Sometimes the ground is white with snow, and sometimes (like today) it is soft browns with a little white dabbling here and there. Mother Earth is SO beautiful in all her aspects.

Taxes....it's astonishing how much good comes from doing my taxes. Of course, we are at the deadline again for Indiana Sales tax. And so I have to add up all of my income for the last year, subtract everything that is not applicable, and then pay sales tax to the State of Indiana on the rest. This is not a hard job this year because sales were REALLY low for all of my music. The why is not important....the fact is there is always an ebb and flow to every creative life. Sales are not the determiner of creativity. I have done a lot of research over the years on the lives of artist of all types. Some of the most creative times for them are the "winter" times when the outer world is not producing, but the sap is flowing deeply in the inner world. This has been an extraordinarily fruitful year for me personally.

Every year about this time I look at my life with Mayan Dream Productions and am so grateful that I get to be a musician. This music does not come from my own personal self, but from the purpose of my life, and from the Source of all music.

2010 is an expansion year for Mayan Dream Productions. I don't really know what this means, but already in January I have experienced a lot of expansion and many new ideas for how to bring my part in beauty and life out into the world.

Today....nature is doing her thing again....we are going to have a bit warmer weather with wind and possibly thunderstorms which will bring the next very cold snap and snow back into the area. Such excitement!!

We had a death this week....one of our beautiful gold parakeets died on Thursday night. We don't know why....she just started acting funny, and then she died. Sad! Our other gold parakeet is now alone and so will be depending on us more for companionship. With two parakeets, they didn't care much if we were around or not, but that will now change.

Love to all.

LIstening to Woven in Love

2010-01-09T04:07:00.000-08:00

As usual, I am in my office in the early morning, listening to my music, and this time it is "Woven In Love" from the VIDA album and drinking a wonderful, hot cup of coffee. It's a Saturday and these are such nurturing days usually. Outside it is about 8 degrees and everything is covered with a thick blanket of snow. The sky is clear and the moon is crescent. All is well!

I am struck by the ever-changing aspect of nature. In just 90 days this tree will be covered in pink and white blossoms....it will probably have a nest or two in it. Since I am a part of nature, my own physical form and my action out in the world also are ever-changing. That is always the "known" world for me: everything will move and dissolve and emerge and change...sometimes slowly and sometimes very quickly. Here in Indiana we can go in 24 hours from a place of ease of movement to no possibility of movement. All it takes is one deep snowfall or ice storm to make movement outside impossible with traditional ways, or a melt of snow or ice, to make it again possible to walk and to drive. Do I have control over these things? Yes...I can get upset or I can enjoy this kind of constant change.

The business of music is in this flow of nature and change. Everything always depends on the weaving of the lives of people around me throughout the world. When someone hears and wants my music, there are orders. Sometimes no orders. My job is to communicate and to be open to serve.....and to create music as it comes forward. Nothing in the business of music marketing can be successfully forced into being. Forcing or pushing is against the essence of nature.

Now....into the day with love.

2010

2010-01-05T05:33:00.000-08:00

2009 was a very intense year. Our society experienced the recession...violence....and our response to these. We had the potential to become people with a vision that was of wisdom.

2010 feels like a year that continues this potential. The unseen world is supporting me into creativity and especially into the creativity of writing and teaching about my music. Daily life is about meditation and exercise and taking care of Mayan Dream Productions and opening to the larger vision of what is possible this year. My ministry with the Catholic Church has become part time, but will continue to allow me to be a musician at St. John's, Fort Wayne. Family and friends are of great importance....both in the world of the internet, and in the physical world of actually seeing one another in physical form.

So what will this year 2010 bring? As usual, it is unknown in one sense. However, the known factor is that I will make the commitment to say "yes" to a more creative life that is grounded in relationship to the Source of all of my music. Several events of the last month have reminded me that my lifetime is not forever. If I am going to write and teach and record and perform, I need to DO IT.....because some day it will no longer be possible. That day could be tomorrow...so today is very important.

Love to all!

The Soft Early Morning

2009-12-12T01:10:00.000-08:00

It's very early in the morning and here I am again, with my hot cup of coffee, writing to all of you. We are almost in the middle of December and heading toward my birthday this month. As usual, it's amazing how fast time is going!

With the release of new CDs Vida and Deep Snowy Night comes the next part of the process of bringing music out into the world. I can write music and record music, but unless I communicate that music to the larger world, it stays inside my studio....with just me to listen to it.

This week has seen the "advent" of new babies into the Rieger household. I have two new granddaughters and have loved seeing their parents welcome these new lives into their life. WOW!

Now...onward to leading a concert this weekend that involves about 45 different musicians....that will be such a creative, exciting, spiritual, uplifting opportunity for me...and hopefully for all of them and for the audience.

Love to all.

LIFE!!

2009-12-07T06:07:00.000-08:00

Vida is now out in the world. The most important blessing for me with this new music is that now I feel in a whole different way the love around me. Vida is about love. Before, I knew that life was all about love, but now I feel that I am loved in a tangible way.

VIDA takes you on the journey of knowing the love that is all around us. It begins with the "Woven In Love" music. Our essence is love and that is what we are created from. Then "VIDA" celebrates the life that we are living....vibrant, alive. "Profound Love" is a feeling experience of connection to the Source of Love...relationship. Then we are breathed in

joy through "Joyful Breath". Finally, the Tree of Life music is who we are and what we are called to embody as human beings. It's all about love.

Two new newsletters were sent on line in the last two weeks: Chilam and Musings. It was so much fun creating these newsletters through Constant Contact. This is just another way that I can communicate to all of you.

Vida is now available as MP3 file sent to you directly, as well as in CD form. This is something new. Several years ago I tried placing software for downloading music for pay on my site, but that was a disaster. So, we took it back off and only offered download music that was free.

Now, I have had success in having you pay for an MP3 version of Vida and then sending you the tracks. Very successful, and an instant way to get this music. Then, you simply place the music in a i-tunes playlist and burn yourself a CD if you wish.

Mayan Dream/Dancers of the Flame, The Beloved, The Journey of Joy, Heart of Sky/Heart of Earth, Emergence and Healing Music for the 21st Century are all available on 70+ e-sites, including i-tunes. They are also available in e-form through Amazon. My digital sales are growing and this is certainly a sign of the future.

Vida and Deep Snowy Night CDs are shipping early this week. Hopefully today, but it may be difficult to get to the post office.....ice again on everything!

What is the journey of producing a new CD? I feel new music and allow it to begin to build inside of me. When the timing is right, I go into the recording studio and begin the process of recording. Sometimes this goes quickly and sometimes it is months. VIDA took 9 months to complete the recording process. Recording includes also editing and the mixing process. After a significant amount of music has been created, we begin the graphic design process. Sometimes the artwork is an original painting that is then photographed and used as the cover design, and sometimes I use a photograph that holds the feel of the music. We have to design a cover front and back, a back tray, and a disc label. Then all the graphic design and CD master is duplicated by either Discmakers, or locally if it is a smaller run. Finally the product is ready and the marketing is the breath that sends out the word: you can have this music!

This week coming up: sending out the word in many different ways....deepening this new music within me....shipping the music.....

I am also welcoming two new grandchildren!! Love to all.

A week of intense work

2009-11-28T04:40:00.000-08:00

Well.....it's not snowing yet although we have had a snow shower around 3AM on Friday morning. It's almost December.....where is the snow??

This last week there was no doubt that a window of opportunity and support had opened. I knew that VIDA and Deep Snowy Night had to be out by this weekend. Why did I know this? I just knew it, and it had nothing to do with Black Friday.

So, Susan Stamm has been really busy with CD cover design and with marketing flyer design. I have been really busy with editing music, and creating a new newsletter that is an online event called Chilam, and with sending out electronic and snail mail invitations to all of this new music.

Deep Snowy Night is an album of Christmas Music. We call this time of the solstice by different names, and we celebrate it in different ways. Our music sings of love and light and warmth and friendship....at this time we can choose to celebrate our oneness, or to get into fights about whose terminology is the right one for this time of year.

VIDA has undergone many transformations since it first began creating last March. For a while it was called VIDA, and for a while it was called PROFOUND LOVE, and now it is released as VIDA. Because of the name changes, some of you are going to get a marketing flyer that calls this music Profound Love in the marketing text.....before I caught the lack of name change....and some of you will get VIDA in the marketing text. My ability to proof-read seems to be a bit lacking this week.

What is the VIDA music? It is a celebration of the love that supports all of us in our life journey, gives us joy, and allows our life purpose to manifest. Enjoy!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day, and now are waiting on the birth of two new grandchildren. Awesome!

Love to all.

It's Amazing!

2009-11-24T04:00:00.001-08:00

This is the area of Santiago Atitlan and the inspiration for the new VIDA music. There has been so much happening in my life in the last few weeks. It's truly amazing! The inner work that I have been doing is bearing fruit in a big way. I have clarity regarding projects and the energy to actually follow through. As a result, we are releasing two new CDs this week, along with the option for people to purchase MP3 files of one of the two albums: Vida. There is a new marketing newsletter that is online.....very cool looking and soon to be coming out to many of you. It's a very exciting time to be alive.

This will be a short posting.....to be followed by a much longer one with more pictures. Many thanks to Conrad for allowing me to use his photo of the fire ritual for the Vida Album. More to follow later today maybe?

Cheers!

Change!

2009-11-17T02:57:00.000-08:00

Lot's of new music.....new look outside....new look for the website.....new look for Musings....

This latest look for Musings reflects the outdoors in the Midwest. We are in the "earth" colors of browns and soft gray and muted sunshine. All of life is moving into hibernation and we are waiting on the first snow.

Vern spent some time on the website this last month, fixing links, and placing a new infrastructure so that the website could be changed and updated more easily. It now has a new look, many thanks to the website master.

This coming week you will be reminded of the new music that has emerged. I am having so much fun with the Christmas music. The CD is called "Deep Snowy Night: A Celebration of the Return of Light". I really pondered about doing a Christmas CD....it's SO commonly done. But...I LOVE Christmas music with it's joy and focus on love and light. So.....here it is!

Coming right along with the Christmas music CD is the CD called Profound Love. Yeh!!!!!!!!

Lot's of love to all.

November Sunshine and the Musician

2009-11-07T05:03:00.000-08:00

We are experiencing a beautiful weekend, and already the sunshine is pouring down on me as I type. For some strange and unknown reason, I love the browns of harvested fields, and dying plants, and the beauty of bare branches against a November blue sky.

November is for me one of the most creative months of the year. It feels like the veil between worlds is very thin. This week I am completing the new album that was originally announced as "Vida" but is now going to emerge under the title "Profound Love".

As I was composing this music during the summer and early Fall, and then editing on Thursday afternoon of this week, I was very aware of the various ways that my own music is emerging. When I was in college, we had to study composers and be able to identify them by the way that they created music. That was a pretty intellectual process, and at that time I felt that the composer was unique, and thus the music would have the uniqueness of that particular composer. As my own awareness grew, I felt that various musical motifs would carry the energy of particular aspects of our world. Now, I am beginning to know that the Heart of Everything, Wisdom, brings forth various styles, motifs into the world through the composer to weave the energy of a particular time and place. I have always said that I don't determine what my music is, except to say yes. There are motifs that run through all of my music. Wisdom has placed them....and as they weave differently in relationship to one another, and to the music as a whole, they weave an energy that is released into the world for the weaving of the world.

The new album "Profound Love" has (of course) a track that is called "Profound Love". This music carries the same harmonic progression as the music of Chilam (composed in the early 1990's). They don't sound the same at all, but they have a relationship: Chilam=Sacred Speech and Profound Love. I had no idea that this would happen when I began the music of Profound Love.

Other motifs that carry the energy that is being woven through this composer: The melody from track one "Awakening" in Mayan Dream/Dancers of the Flame (composed in 1989) is repeated in track seven (Awakened" in the Emergence album (composed 2007). There is a melody line that keeps showing up in Soul Music, in Ancient/Future Symphony, in "Living as Soul in Human Form"....I can't describe it here, but it is always woven differently and carries the uniqueness of that particular Soul, or album and is bringing that energetic aspect into the world.

NOW...onward to the weekend and all of the newness that next week will bring.

Music of Abundance

2009-10-24T02:18:00.000-07:00

In the Midwest, we are now at harvest time. Fields are brown as corn and soybeans are already out of the fields and into the bins. Most vegetables and fruits are long ago harvested.

This photo comes from Salamoni State Park last Thursday on our last warm day this week. The trees are well into their winter hibernation process, and the quality of sunshine is changing. Everything is softer....preparing for the winter soon upon us.

I love photos of pathways that lead into the unknown. There can be such a wonderful feeling of adventure....what might happen?....where might we go? That is my feeling when I am connected to the larger world of possibility. However, if I get caught in fear......look out! The pathway into the unknown becomes a road less traveled and life quickly becomes small.

Music of abundance....all of my music has been written as celebration of The Beloved in her various forms....as lover, as mother earth, as Heart of Sky, as joyful companion, as sacred portal.
Autumn is her time of abundance. We and she have planted and cared for life, and in the time of Autumn we are harvesting the fruits of our caring.

I am pulling the threads of so many projects into completion.....in effect, harvesting them.

This week has also been an exploration into the power of ritual and the "what" of ritual. Ritual goes beyond a particular form, or a particular belief structure. In it's essence ritual is a communication between worlds.....it can be with people present or individual ritual. The portals open....silence flows as active presence moving from one world to the other.....nurturing and nourishing. My music flows from this space and supports this space of ritual for myself and others.

So...onward on the pathway of adventure. Love to all.

Life in the Slow Lane...or is it really

2009-10-17T05:24:00.000-07:00

September and October so far have been very slow months for blogging and connecting through the written word in any way. I suspect this is because I have been focused elsewhere for a few weeks. Usually I avoid mentioning my personal life in this blog, but all of life is interconnected (as you know!). We have had quite a bit of serious family illness this month. Family is more important than anything else, so many of the outer parts of connecting with all of you dropped off for a couple of weeks.

The love of family, and the effort that it takes me to "go the extra mile" to help out when someone needs help, is a great food for my music. Music does not exist in a sterile bubble. It emerges from the person creating it. When I have to reach inside to find strength and courage for family emergencies, that changes me and changes my music....hopefully deepens the spiritual life of me and my music.

The inner world of creating music has been bubbling right along. No matter what kind of music a person creates, it all comes from that wonderful, imaginative, creative, exciting, unknown place inside. That place never stops working and music comes at the most unpredictable time and in the most unusual ways. In 2008 January, I had no idea that Ancient/Future Symphony even existed. By June, Ancient Future symphony had made it's existence known to me, and was recorded in only a few days and released quickly. What a surprise to me!!! After receiving this CD as a gift, one of the prominent teachers and psychologists on the West Coast called me to say that she thought it was my best work ever and loved it! That teacher gave me a precious gift that day of affirmation, and of realizing that creativity happens in unusual ways and not in the path of consensus reality. All of you who are painters, potters, photographers, sculptors, musicians, etc know this path of creativity.

So......what will October and November bring for me? These are months (especially November) when the veil between worlds is very thin. I expect for creativity to be bringing some surprises to me.

Many of you who are connected to me through my music and maybe have received soul music from me, are caring for parents or friends who are very ill. This is such a hard task, but such a gift. In our society, so much is focused on the individual's wants and needs. However life brings something very different. To all of you who are reaching out to the world to bring light and healing and warmth and love....blessings.

Love to all of you.

What Can I Do For You?

2009-09-26T02:45:00.000-07:00

Marketing is an interesting thing. It can become a deal where everyone is viewed as a customer, when actually everyone is a brilliant soul walking in their own journey. Lately I have seen quite a few marketing resources.....telling me how to get my message out.....use online Facebook etc to ask people to be friends, but then try to sell them music. Obviously, if I don't get the word out about my music, no one can find it. So...the concept is valid, but the method is manipulative.

I do have a Twitter account and it's time that I started tweeting. I also have a MySpace account that is just waiting for people to stop by and chat.

So, to all who are reading this Musing.....you are not a "contact"....you are a friend whether we have met or not.

As I write this, I am listening to a new piece of music that I have written which is called "Reaching Out". Going into the recording studio to create this music, I didn't bring my Kurzweil, my Mayan flutes, or use any drums......hmmm...none of the usual instruments....

My wrist/arm/hand is now completely healed and soon I will be drumming again. We just need a bit more time for strength to return. This has been a time of profound change and I am grateful.

Have a beautiful day!

Sacred Marketing

2009-09-12T04:52:00.000-07:00

This week brought many opportunities to be outdoors as September brings the change of seasons. The skies are brilliant blue and the trees still have enough green to contrast the new oranges and reds. On my computer monitor, these colors are bright and clear. On Walt's they are more muted and a little more gray...reminding me again that everything online is filtered through our own personal equipment.
What I see is not necessarily (or probably) what you will see.

When I send something through regular US mail as hard copy, I can be pretty sure of what you will see, although a lot of that kind of mail is thrown away before being opened. There is also the issue of sending out more paper to be thrown away and add to the pollution of the planet.

On the other hand....many computer spam filters make sure that you don't even get a chance to see anything that I send online. So.....yikes! How does a person market to the larger world? That is the dilemma of someone who is marketing. And yet, when I market from an inner world perspective, and not from my powerful left brain, answers come in unexpected ways.

Marketing is a sacred action. It is the breath that brings creative projects out into the larger world so that people can know that they exist.

Next week....recording on Tuesday afternoon.....focus on marketing and the new Chilam newsletter.

As I Stay The Course

2009-09-08T00:49:00.000-07:00

Of course it is not quite 4am and here I am with my cup of coffee and writing to all of you. As I read back on my blogs, I realize that there is mention of early morning hours in almost all of them. Obviously my biological, creative "clock" is set for being awake to enjoy the beauty of night and early morning. There is a light and steady rain this morning, and the peepers and crickets are calling outside my window.

I have created so much music over the last few years that I forget what I have actually done. So I am listening intentionally to all of my albums. What do I notice especially? Lots of nature, lots of rhythm, strong melodies in some pieces, and no melody in others, but always the center point is the heart and the sacredness of all of life around us and our own personal journey for this lifetime.

This last week I have had the privilege of responding to e-mail correspondence from customer/friends whom I don't hear from often. That is one of my favorite treats! Also, new customers/friends have come into my life. You bring richness and new perspective and it's great fun.

"Staying the Course" in a business such as Mayan Dream Productions allows me to have enough years to form and deepen relationships with people in all walks of life. Music transcends boundaries and breaks down walls.

So what will this week bring? The adventure is in not knowing the exact details of any day, because anything can and does happen. What I do know is that music will be created, orders will be shipped, people will call and e-mail and share, and life will be full of energy and excitement if I allow that to happen.

There is a book written by a man who started a clothing store which has grown to be very successful. He started it with his wife on a shoestring, but with the intent to provide the very best service possible to anyone who walked through the door. This book is called "Hug Your Customer". To this couple, and to me, the customer is not a commodity, but a relationship. You have come to me for music which supports and energizes your life purpose. As I send you a CD, or create music for you, I hold you in love. Many hugs to you!

Love to all.

Beyond the Boundaries

2009-08-26T01:50:00.000-07:00

Several times in the last two weeks I have sat down to write and there was nothing to say. That is the same as how music comes to me. Sometimes there is no music to write....and when music wants to be composed, I feel it's presence.

So here I am in the middle of the night again. I was awakened and there was nothing to do but get up. My mind wanted to tell me how much I had to do tomorrow and that I needed my sleep. However, this beautiful night with the movement of the moon toward full moon, and the frogs and crickets singing is supporting me to write. For the ancient Maya, frogs were a sign of new life.

Linear time is a boundary for me. It binds me up into segments of days and weeks and limits me in my creativity. Who says that nights are for sleeping? Or that I need "x" amount of hours of sleep at a certain time? I am writing with my cup of hot, awesome coffee, my candle lit, and the music of the night with me.

We are near the end of summer, and moving toward the Fall Solstice. So what is this movement toward the Fall Solstice going to bring for me? Change....and more change. During the month of August, I celebrated with you the 20 year anniversary of Mayan Dream Productions and all of the music that was created during that 20 year cycle. From that 20 year base, a new 20 year cycle is emerging. September is a month of change in nature for the Midwest....the movement of all life forms from summer fullness to winter hibernation and growth underground. That has actually been my path during the last few months with so much growth happening in the dark of the creative womb.....and birth just now ready to happen of the new life of my own creative cycle.

New life...change....and for me the release of boundaries that limit creativity....

My right arm and wrist have been experiencing radical change since May. This has forced me to change how I play music...and this is another boundary released. The energy that moves through me and becomes sound can be expressed in so many different ways. I love the music that I have already created, but this new way of creating is becoming very exciting.

We are expecting the birth of two new babies in our family in November....new life....wonderful!

Love to all.

What about those 3:30AM hours?

2009-08-08T02:12:00.000-07:00

I just heard a train whistle outside my window. What is it about the early morning hours that makes the air so transparent that a train whistle will carry miles and miles and be heard by me? I love train whistles. They remind me of the wide open spaces that exist and the travel that can be had. (Don't I sound a bit like that guy on 60 minutes who reminisces for about 5 minutes at the end of the show?)

These days have been very full and sometimes I wonder how it is possible to do everything that seems to be on my plate. When I find myself wondering "how? it's time to laugh a little and reconnect with all of the people that I love. Time is such a magic concept...it's very elastic...not linear....expansive....

I wrote a little piece on joy....and here it is:

"Joy....running through the veins and arteries of my body....living in the smallest parts of my cells. It is there as one of the basic components of the physical body. Joy shows up in the
elation felt by the athlete who is in the flow of the moment. It is profoundly felt in the runners high. I feel that joy as I create music through my body drumming or playing keyboard or flute or singing. I feel the journey of joy as I laugh, share stories with friends. Joy...the journey of artist, musician, healer, teacher fulfilling their greatest potential and flying high with their dreams realized in action. Joy is within just waiting for my notice. Joy.....holding a newborn baby....walking in the woods at dawn.....journeying deep within in ritual and prayer....listening to birds at sunrise....making music for a bride and groom....creating..."

To all.....have a beautiful, wonderful weekend.

Full Moon

2009-08-05T23:15:00.000-07:00

What a beautiful, magical evening. The moon is high and full, and the cicadas and frogs are singing. Here I am up again at 2AM....soaking it all up...and writing.

Two years ago I wrote and recorded the Mystical Rose music for the season of Winter. The rose was photographed by Leah Welty-Rieger and placed within the white of ice and snow and fox by Susan Stamm. This music is very popular right now in August of 2009. "From the Heart of Everything" is a phrase that comes from the Maya and that term for God, or Source, or Light spoke to me immediately when I heard it. All that we are and create is cradled in the Heart of Everything. When I create music...especially individual music for people...I sometimes image myself as "falling" into the center of the rose.....into the Heart of Everything. The fox is a symbol in indigenous cultures of our ability to walk in many worlds.
As human beings we are flexible that way. We are physical/spiritual. We have minds that can travel and imagine and we have spirit that is in intimate relationship with God. Our bodies live the constant connection with the "Heart of Everything" in order to be whole.

Since the age of about 9 I have created music within the Catholic Church. In November, I started a full time position again at Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church as a musician. This outpouring of music and connection to the hearts of so many wonderful people is life-giving to me. So....I have the music that creates through me and is recorded and sent out into the world as Mystical Rose: from the Heart of Everything; or Emergence; or The Beloved....and I have music that creates through me in the Catholic ritual. How wonderful is this!

Love to all.

Wednesday morning

2009-07-29T04:54:00.000-07:00

Last night was one of those "non-sleeping" nights. Usually for me that means that the creative juices are high and running...and often I will get up and be creative with something. For sure it was a beautiful night. We had lightning and thunder and rain.....love it!

I've had a week or so of reminiscing about the last 20 years, and thanking everyone in any way that I know for being with me these 20 years. Well...now it's time to focus on these next 20 years, which have already begun.

Today is very much a business day. There are bills to be paid and papers to file and stuff like that. It comes from the same central core of The Heart of Everything.

To all.....have a beautiful day.

Now it's Wednesday evening and I am adding to this mornings blog. It was a very busy day and finally late in the afternoon I crashed and slept for 2-1/2 hours. Then up...Walter bought pizza (yumm but putting pounds on my waistline for sure)...what a guy!

Marketing for this next cycle is focusing on all of the people who I don't know, and probably will never know, who will purchase and listen to my music. This means getting the word out in Evolve Magazine and other national magazines....especially as we move toward the holiday season. Best wishes!

Continuing Story

2009-07-27T17:11:00.000-07:00

So many of you are artists, writers, sculptors, photographers, musicians, body workers, etc. and you understand deeply the process of creativity. We cannot "order up" our creative projects...but rather they find us.

That is, of course, how it is with me. My work is to get busy with the creative work that emerges for me.

Don't forget to download the "Love Breathes" music. It will be up for a month, and then down again to be followed by "Mi Corde".

Love to all.

The whole world

2009-07-23T17:20:00.000-07:00

Here is our resident "power animal"...a cockateil who knows just how powerful a presence he is. His name is Pacal...he is named after one of the greatest Mayan Lords and shamans from Palenque. He is a master at teaching Walter and myself patience! You do not put Pacal in a cage, or leave him out of the action. He also understands the energies of healing, meditation and ritual and becomes very quiet and fluffy during those times. Feel his presence radiating in this photo. Notice too the beauty and grace of Walter's hand, resting near Pacal...a healing hand.

Ilene is doing a series on the musician Philip Glass. Her reminder that he will be playing in Chicago in October brought me into some reflection. Philip and I are both musicians who create and play from the heart. Our music is very different because we are on different Soul journeys, but we share the process of creating from the unknown and with passion. Sometimes I forget that I am part of a large group of musicians who are sharing their music with the world.....continuing the journey no matter what outer events might happen.
As I celebrate 20 years of creating a business, of composing, recording, teaching, marketing...I celebrate all of the people throughout the world who have purchased my music either as CD or online, and I celebrate all of the people who have made my music a part of their daily lives.

To date probably 20,000+ CDs have sold, and downloads continue to grow also. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

During these twenty years with Mayan Dream Productions, I have experienced illness, a life-threatening car accident, death in my family, and various other events that could have taken me from my music for long periods of time. Walter and I raised children and created a home. Through all of this, because of the support of my own inner world, of the unseen world, of my friends, family and mentors, my music continued to emerge from the Heart of Everything and move into the world.

One of the greatest honors of my life has been the opportunity to create Soul/Deepbody music for people. Those of you who opened your hearts and lives to me in this way so that I could create music for you....you were an awesome gift.

The Vida album continues to move, shape and form. There is free download of one of the tracks called "Love Breathes" on my home page. Please enjoy!

The 20 year celebration continues as a Journey of Joy.

Love.

Now.....back to work!

2009-07-15T02:11:00.000-07:00

So....it's back from vacation and onward to the next adventure.

July is a big month for orders because of conferences and classes. One of the things I love about shipping orders is the connection with the people who are using my music.

From the first week in May through this week I have not been able to record any music that requires drumming or a "hard" keyboard run. My right arm and hand have gone through many layers of difficulty, pain....lack of co-ordination. There were times when I wasn't sure that I would play again, but I believe that I will play again, just not in my own timing. Walter and Conrad have been wonderful sources of healing with their intuitive abilities and connection to Spirit. And....my own music is primary source of transformation for me.

This week.....finishing the 20 year celebration mailings....sending Healing Music for the 21st Century off to New Leaf Distributors....connecting with people.

As usual, I am writing early in the morning with my cup of coffee at my side and the clear morning air pouring in my window.

All Sorts of Celebration!

2009-07-09T08:07:00.000-07:00

This week we traveled to Philadelphia to visit Andy, Lysa and Caeli, and tomorrow we will go to Chicago to visit Jason and Leah. There is no substitute for actually being "with" children and grandchildren. We can talk on the phone and e-mail....but being with them...it's awesome!

In between both trips, I am shipping orders at the celebration of 20 years special price with FREE shipping to all customers. The ad has gone into Evolve Magazine for the holiday issue (imagine....thinking about Christmas when it is in the 80's outside!). There is a new newsletter that is different from the Musings blog that will have it's premier issue mailed next week....part of the celebration of 20 years also.

Everything that I am doing to celebrate the 20 years of Mayan Dream Production's existence is coming from a flow of energy from the spiritual core of myself, and of the spiritual core of Mayan Dream Productions. This flow gives me clarity of direction. There is a peacefulness with the action that comes from this flow of energy. I used to say that I didn't know what the future would bring. Now I say that I do know the future...it is me moving with the flow from my own spiritual core.

Love to all.

Walking the Pathway into the next Cycle

2009-07-01T01:03:00.000-07:00

This summer I am very much open to each day as it presents itself. I have no idea when I wake up what the day will actually bring, except to know that I will "go with the flow".

A twenty year cycle of creating music and releasing it into the world has built a strong foundation for the next cycle that is emerging. For me....the best image of this process is of the Maya of ancient times. The wondrous pyramids that now exist were built through cycles. The first 20 years or so was of placing the "energetic" foundation. Only when that was in place did the actual stones start to rise. In our time, people spend years creating the "energetic" foundation of their lives as they get master's degrees and doctorates, and at the age of maybe 28 or 30, start the actual work of the outer career.

I remember being 30 and thinking that my life would be pretty much over at 60. (Remember how that was?!) Instead life seems to be expanding as I move through my 60s. A new cycle of excitement and possibilities is moving and carrying myself/Mayan Dream Productions Int'l out into the world in new ways.

It's been 20 days since I've written. Yikes! These have been busy days of redoing my website, of marketing a very special "celebration" price on all of my CDs with free shipping, of creating Soul music, and of course doing the day to day stuff that keeps a business running.

As I write to you at 4:30AM on a Wednesday, the first of July 2009, I am listening to Ancient/Future Symphony and feeling the depth of compassion in that music. The air is breezing in from outside and it is clear and lovely. My ever-present coffee cup is full of hot Starbucks. Tomorrow we plan to travel to Philadelphia to visit Andy, Lysa and Caeli and their as yet unborn new baby, and then to Chicago to visit Jason, Leah and their as yet unborn new baby. Two new lives are coming into the world to awesome parents in late November!

Much love to all.

The Beloved

2009-06-12T02:52:00.000-07:00

This week I picked up another shipment of The Beloved CDs to bring my stock back up to a reasonable level. It's amazing that The Beloved continues, after almost 20 years, to be my best selling CD, and the "banner" music that carries all of my other music forward. In 1990, I was driving down Bass Road out in the Indiana farmland. The melody of The Beloved starting running through my head. This is unique for my experience, because I don't hear music as melody, but rather see it as shape and color, and feel it as vibration. So...from the beginning, The Beloved has been special. In 20 years it has traveled throughout much of the planet, carrying the vibration of being loved and of loving as the primary life-force that supports all of us.

NOW....It is early in the morning. I am listening to a podcast from a keyboard musician who is just brilliant in internet selling.....and who has a passion for his own music and for all of those who listen to and buy his music. We don't do the same kind of music (he creates medleys of Christian music) but his experience enriches my own professional life.

As I listen to the podcast, I have the early morning bird-song from outside my studio. Some crows are particularly vocal today.

I also subscribe to Derek Sivers (founder of CDBaby and a musician/composer) materials on marketing, and am listening to his 5 minutes videos on marketing which are really helpful and practical. Thank you Derek!!

Why is marketing so important? All of my music will stay in my studio unless I actually spend the time to let people hear it and let people know that it exists. My music has a purpose and that purpose is realized when my music is out in the world.

The CELEBRATION of 20 years is underway. The order part of my website is being reconfigured to bring all orders through Mayan Dream Productions, Int'l again. When you order you will no longer go to CDBaby. I missed the customer interaction of seeing your order, and shipping to you directly. The anniversary special will come on line within the next week....you will see a special price for all CDs, and shipping will be free. Why? Because I value our relationship and this is a tangible way to say "thank you".

Have a beautiful day.

June Explosion - 20 years!

2009-06-04T05:02:00.000-07:00

2009 marks the 20 year anniversary of Mayan Dream Productions. How can it be 20 years since I first discovered that I would be creating original music?! Remember, I had NO idea that I would ever write and record original music, and then the music of Mayan Dream exploded into my life. Mayan Dream changed me in profound ways, and was followed by The Beloved, Watchers, Stille Pointe, Mayan Portal, Walking the Labyrinth, The Journey of Joy, Heart of Sky/Heart of Earth, Earth Essence, Atitlan Fire, Emergence, Living The Possible, Healing Music for the 21st Century, Mystical Rose: From the Heart of Everything, Ancient Future Symphony, 40+ Soul/Deepbody albums, ...and now VIDA! What an awesome journey! Thank you to the unseen world for this unimaginable gift and thank you to all of you for walking with me on this journey of love.

Today also marks the one month anniversary of my journey through carpel tunnel. This has been a gift. As my music expands and deepens, my body needs to become more in tune with it's potential....more relaxed...stronger...more alive! In the midst of a very busy May schedule, I could not play any musical instrument for two weeks and had to get substitutes for any of my playing commitments. This gave me the time and space to rest, meditate, experience deep body energy work, rest some more, be outdoors in the warmth of late Spring.....focus on the change that wanted to happen. It's amazing how, when I "think" that I don't have time, time is given to me in a way that I cannot ignore!

Now I am back to playing and with an entirely different physical body in place. I pay attention to how my body wants to move....before I would just DO IT without really paying attention. It's an amazing journey and it continues.

On May 19th, I spent an hour with women and men who are experiencing cancer. My invitation was to talk about music and meditation, and to meditate with the group. It was an honor and a privilege to be with these individuals on their transformative journey. We talked about music as a vibration and the body as an energy system....atoms vibrating....water moving...and the power of music to be an assist in their own spiritual journey of healing. We also talked about how much it matters that I create music from the space of the heart, and that my own body has to carry this vibration. Otherwise my music will not bring the vibration of healing and transformation, but rather will encourage a smallness and victimization. SO....from my own mouth, more learning for me. These men and women have tremendous courage and a light that inspires.

The WISDOM WOMEN group is taking it's summer vacation...but will meet again monthly beginning in September. To all of you who have not experienced this group, you are welcome!
Dates and times will be released soon.

The new album, VIDA!, is in it's final stages of creation. I had to wait to record the final tracks until my body had changed to support the release of this music. I have learned that it is not JUST the recording, but the process of releasing the music into the world in a new way that is changing my body.

Watch for lots of celebrating throughout the summer for 20 years past...and 20 years + to come! Love to all. Beverly.

Publish Post

What happens when the unexpected hits?

2009-05-12T05:36:00.000-07:00

Tom Tempel in creative mode....photo by me in his recording studio when he wasn't expecting it.

Hello to all on Tuesday morning. Taxes are mailed in time....and the usual Monday paperwork is complete. This week is busy with shipping. My arm and hand are still in healing mode, so recording music is not an option this week. Such an unexpected event..but an opportunity for reflection and for rest.

My body is so intricate and magnificent in it's design. It holds the capability of taking vibration from all that is around me, and turning it into sound. That is incredible!

We live in a wave that joins all of life. I know that I have parts of distant stars in my body, and that someday this particular body will also be a part of some other form of life. But meanwhile, in this time and space I have the opportunity to live in the wave in my own shape and my own particular purpose.

David Spangler described living on the planet Earth as a form of extreme sport. I agree with that!

We are in the midst of severe recession, and showing sign of coming out of it as a nation. It's interesting how perception works with all of this. Many businesses that you would not expect to be successful in the midst of a recession are booming. Here are some examples: Vera Bradley in Fort Wayne had 60,000 people from 48 states at its semi-annual coliseum sale this last week. What does Vera Bradley sell? Unique bags in various paisley patterns that are pretty pricey but are unique. Tempel Recording in Fort Wayne is also so busy that Tom cannot always schedule everyone who wants his time and creative energy. My sister Jean sells online cosmetics that are Earth and Animal friendly...very special...more expensive...yet her business has bloomed and is expanding also. Mayan Dream Productions grew this year in CD and digital sales, and in fact the Soul Music has also blossomed and grown in ways that I never expected.

Perception....an interesting thing...Where are we going to place our focus? I really believe that if we are bringing a product forward that is honoring and supporting the spiritual path of all of life on planet Earth we will live in the flow that supports us in our own creative work.

Love to all.

Transformation

2009-05-07T04:28:00.000-07:00

What an incredible week this has been! On Monday when I wrote, I had no idea that by Thursday I would be watching my life transform through a reoccurance of an old arm and hand injury that has put my right arm in a brace. This is going to be a swift and profound transformation and WOW! For everyone who might think this is a bad thing for a keyboard player and a drummer....not so. It will effect a wonderful change in my music and my life. I am sure of this. This happens every so often and always means that a new person is emerging.

Meanwhile, the fourth track of the new "VIDA!" album was created on Wednesday. It still doesn't have a title, but I am in awe of what is happening with this new music.

My website has a new look on the home page and a new description of who I am and how my music is traveling. Musings also has a new look and focus. All of this has happening since Monday.

On Tuesday, I took the photographs that are included with this Musing writing. Let's soak up the beauty of the emergence of Spring into Summer.

Walking in Beauty

2009-05-04T02:22:00.000-07:00

"Walking in Beauty" doesn't sound much like the daily life of a composer, but it reflects how I feel about my life right now. There is so much beauty around me. As I write this Musings, it is very early morning and the birds are just beginning to wake. They sing that early morning soft chirpy sound. The air feels clear and cool. We are expecting sunshine and 70 degrees. The new life that emerged in March when these flowers were photographed is delicate and soft. Now in May, we are being delighted with splashy red, yellow, orange tulips, and ten foot tall bushes loaded with lilacs.

I expect to be recording quite a bit this coming week and next week. I am tweaking the music of VIDA! and recording the next new tracks. This is such fun!!!

You'll notice (if you have been a regular visitor) that this Musings has a new, fresh look.

My business property tax forms have to be filed by May 15th, so finishing that is also on my agenda for the next couple of weeks. I really don't mind tax time, because it is such a good opportunity to look at Mayan Dream Productions and celebrate the growth of my business.
I also take the time to celebrate all of you!

So.....I continue to walk this journey in the beauty of Spring on Earth. Love to all!

VIDA!

2009-04-14T13:30:00.000-07:00

Over the last few weeks I have been opening to a new music. There are now three tracks in existence and this album has a name: VIDA!

VIDA! is music of action...life expressing purpose and meaning.

Track One: Vida! (Life) Track Two: Aleinto de Amor (Breath of Love) Track Three: has been created with drum and with the coyote flute. It's name: Mi Corde (My Heart)

As always, this music is asking me to become a new person. You can't create music about action without taking action in your own life!

So.....tomorrow back into the recording studio for a time to finish track three.

Onward!

Spreading Seeds and Sprouts and Other growing

2009-03-25T00:50:00.000-07:00

Spring has come! The seeds that were sown in the late summer of last year have been growing underground and are now coming up into the light. I see it all around me in nature, and in my own living. This is a vital time! One big sprout is the new music that is being created. This coming week I will be doing a little mastering at Tempel Recording and then sending about 10 minutes of something very new onto the website. Meanwhile, you might want to revisit the Earth Essence free download CD music for the Birds of the Morning music....a little blast of Spring for you.

The Beloved is continuing to move throughout the world. In 1989 when I first heard that melody I could not have imagined it's purpose in the world. Today...I have to order more CDs again of The Beloved. It's life force and it's healing presence are very powerful. How many people have heard The Beloved and have made it a part of their lives? Tens of thousands.

I'll share with you a challenge that I face every week. How do I do everything that seems to demand my attention. I forget that the natural flow of life..supported by the deep love of all of life around me: seen and unseen...is not stressful unless I choose to move out of this flow. Since I am a fire sign, this will probably be my challenge for all of my life...to be gentle in the flow of life.

Have a beautiful week.

Here we are again!

2009-03-21T21:03:00.000-07:00

My last post was March 9th .... and today is March 22nd. There is a rumor that the older you get, the faster time goes. I'm getting older and that rumor may be true! Where did the last two weeks go?!

Yes, there is new music created although it doesn't have a title yet. I went into the recording studio on Monday, March 16 and had lots of fun recording. I expect to record the next music throughout the months of April and May. Here is the family of instruments to your left.

Last week was all about shipping orders because Spring brings EVERYONE to life. This month I intend to redo the look of my website because Spring invites a new look! You know how that goes with all parts of our lives in a change of season....the new growth emerges and we become transformed people. My website is my window into the world of all of you. As I change, it changes.

One of my customers in Australia reminded me last week that it is a change of season for them also, but into Autumn. They are looking forward to some rain and cooler weather because they have had intense fires in their country.

Have a wonderful, juicy, splendid day!

See it in Vogue

2009-03-09T16:30:00.000-07:00

Hawks are everywhere around me right now. I see them sitting in trees, on posts and one flew directly over my car last week. They are in the sky every day. What is HAWK to me? Vision that sees from a place that is above the ground level of ordinary, limited perception, and with great clarity. I love watching the ease with which hawk glides on the winds. I love the sudden dive when it spies it's prey and (although I may feel sorry for the poor mouse) the accuracy of it's journey. You can hear the hawk cry on the Emergence CD.

SOUL/DEEPBODY music: I was asked to send all of the Soul/Deepbody music that I had ever created to Conrad this week so that he can place it in a separate and easily accessible file. As I was doing this, I realized how much music had been given to me through the commissions of all of you these last two years: 42 CDs of Soul/Deepbody music...plus the 11 minute piece that is called Living As Soul in Human Form. I also understood more deeply what this music does. When a person experiences their Soul/Deepbody music it opens a direct communication into their heart, and into a vision of a much larger world. Even though I always ask a lot of questions about "who you are" before I create your music, your is not "who you are". It is the non-physical world speaking to you in the most loving and powerful way. It is life-changing for that reason. It is not like listening to Mozart to change your brain, or make you smart. As I understand more and can put it into words, I will talk more about this.

This last week was all about gratitude and understanding that gratitude is an archetype and a place that I can move into instantly and it changes my whole being. Gratitude is not about being grateful for any particular thing....and yet I am very grateful for all of the music that has created through me in these last two years in the form of Soul/Deepbody music. And.....I am grateful
that......

Mayan Dream/Dancers of the Flame was featured in the Vogue Mexicano/LatinoAmericana December issue. I knew this, of course, but it was real when the magazine itself finally arrived on my doorstep this last week. In the midst of the beauty of a Vogue magazine, was the CD cover of Mayan Dream/Dancers and my website address. The CD is right next to "The Jaguar Smile" by Salman Rushdie....recommended as unique ambience for Tulum. You may remember that I didn't search out this contact (not on a conscious level anyway), but Vogue found me through a google search. Now Mayan Dream/Dancers is out in the world through the vast extensive network of Vogue. Orders are starting to come in through Amazon and CDBaby for this particular CD. I am sure that it is being downloaded through i-tunes and other digital sites
because my digital sales are increasing.

What is Mayan Dream/Dancers of the Flame all about? This music supports all who dance the flame: are edgewalkers...who dare to dream...who act on their dreams from the place of their heart. In this age of Aquarius, the living of the dreams of the possible and the potential is pouring forward. We are calling on beauty, wisdom, kindness, vision, love, courage....to live
our purpose. There is certainly a reason why we are here on this planet at this time and in this place.

Mayan Dream brings me into a feeling that I am walking on sacred ground. Dancers of the Flame challenges me into my potential. Remember the story of Dancers of the Flame's creation? I was in a mammoth cave in Mexico (75ft ceilings) and the stalagtites were coming from the ceiling almost to ground level. These were tuned to certain pitches by nature. It was obvious from the artifacts that were still in this cave system, that it was used by the ancient Maya. Since the darkness would have been absolute, it was probably a place of "dancing the flame" or in our terms, spending time in deep contact with the unseen world. There was evidence also of fires being built, and of sleeping areas for people to live there. A shaman from that area walked with us and showed me the tuning and how it affected my body energy system. I "soaked up" the vibration from the sound and the cave and brought it back to be created out here in the US in music.

Now this music is out in Mexico, Central and South America in a larger way than I could have imagined or made happen through my own plans.

This week....preparation for recording next week. Performance plans in the future....preparation continues now.

Love to all.

Fierce waters!

2009-03-02T06:10:00.000-08:00

You can almost see the movement of the river as the snow melt from the approach of Spring brings a fierce motion to the water.

This is the outlook of the Salamonie River near the dam last Monday.

The sky was beautiful blue...soft browns and grays...a little white remaining....beauty in late February.

I am grateful that I live on Mother Earth at this time and in this place. She is lovely in the Midwest in all of her aspects. Through her seasons in the Midwest, she brings to me a constant reminder of change and of the tumult that is sometimes part of change. Today, March 2nd it is only 13 degrees outside. In the middle of the week it will be 50 degrees (so they say!) and storms will most certainly bring about this change. On Saturday early morning, we had thunder and lightning as the temps plummeted from upper 50s to lower teens. So....thus it is! Eventually new life will emerge from all of this, and we will have the beauty of Spring green.

My life reflects this in the ebb and flow of creation of new music. Sometimes music emerges with little outer effort, and sometimes it takes a storm to bring forward the new me that can create a new outer CD or download. My desire is that I am open to emergence of new music and a new SELF in whatever way it comes to me.

I am grateful for all of you who are a part of my life. I am grateful for the music that draws me into ritual and into the portal of the Heart of Everything.

NOW this week.....exploration and adventure into new ways of using the internet. This is time-consuming work but lots of fun!! There is Soul/Deepbody music to create. And who knows what else is in the unknown for me this week!!

Love to all.

Saturday

2009-02-28T04:37:00.000-08:00

Weekends....why is it that we have structured our Western world time into five days of work and two days of rest? Why does Saturday and Sunday have a different "feel" than Monday through Friday? This is true for me even though Saturday and Sunday are days of work for me. It's a mystery!

Last week I sent a paper mailing to everyone....letting all know that I am still around and that music continues to be created. It's always a question of whether to send out paper because of landfills filling up, but e-mails tend to go into that great darkness of spam filters, etc. So, I still send out a few mailings per year and target them only to those people who are connected directly to me in some way. All mailings are also another way to bring beauty and light into the life of the person receiving the mailing.

I love Spring and it's force of new life beginning. From the darkness of the cave of winter we emerge into action as a new sprout. For me.....performance.....a new piece of music.....more Soul/Deepbody music to be created for individuals....

Love to all.

Pathway

2009-02-23T02:52:00.000-08:00

This is a photo by Greg Beck, professional photographer in California. Many times I have walked this path toward the dancing platform in Copan, Honduras. I have sat on the top of this platform in the hot sun and felt the ancient dancers bringing dreams into reality through the action of their dance.

It's Monday again.....and my day stretches forward with many possibilities. I will be taking photographs, and doing some paperwork for Mayan Dream Productions, and dreaming a bit. Right now it's early morning and my hot cup of coffee is at my side as I write this Musing.

The third in the series that is Heart of Sky/Heart of Earth, and EMERGENCE, is coming forward. I can feel it creating within. It's title is still unknown.

Spring is also bringing a concert for myself in the Indiana region. More specifics on that later. There is also marketing to be done for the Healing Music for the 21st Century CD and the EMERGENCE CD.

Much love to all!

Music and Art and Hot Coffee!

2009-02-16T07:50:00.000-08:00

Here is an image from the summer of last year....a bridge over flowing water...surrounded by the green of the heart and the life force of the tree....going into the unknown.

I am sitting in my office...in the February sunshine...Ancient/Future Symphony is playing...The artwork of Emergence (Ann Beeching's art), Mayan Dream/Dancers of the Flame (Ilene Satala's art), Heart of Sky/Heart of Earth (Ann Beeching's art) and The Journey of Joy (Ilene Satala's art) surround me. The graceful sculpture by Patricia Crane of the filly Prelude is with me on my desk...keeping me company, along with the beautiful indigenous pottery of Judy Madlem, and the carving by Nicolas that is Maria holding the new life. Greg Beck's photography of the Mayan lands graces the wall right outside my office with a profound spiritual energy....the wall is literally pulsing!

Mother Earth is so blessed to have artists...sculptors...photographers....musicians....bringing that special life force that ensouled art IS in it's essence. She (Mother Earth) needs this outpouring during these years of her healing.

I am so blessed to have this level of support around me, giving me ongoing life as I live in the world as musician, writer and teacher! Thank you to the many, many who bring their support to my life...and whose names I have not mentioned in this Musing. You are so many, and I am so grateful.

Today is Monday, and so that means paying attention to the paperwork that is so much a part of being a business. I have filed, and written, and generally taken care of those details which are necessary for music to come forward.

My car is in the repair shop and that outer event is keeping me close to home today. So....I have been gifted with time for gentle quiet as I work. No temptation to go to the store, or visit, or anything else....just time for me and my music. My hot cup of coffee is near at hand, and there is a very large pot of ham and beans on the stove for this evening.

My youngest son and his wife are both PhD's in Physics. This week they are visiting Switzerland and the CERN Laboratory for Particle Physics...the largest in the world. I know that these two talented and wonderful young people have come forward for a very special purpose in their lifetime, and it probably revolves around physics. Another help for this Mother Earth!

We are more than half-way through February. Spring emergence is very close....what will life bring with this new and powerful energy? The adventure continues!

Love to all.

Life Emerging From Love

2009-02-09T06:08:00.000-08:00

There was a time when I thought ("thought" being the important word) that I knew where I was going and what was going to happen. There was excitement in running toward a goal and knowing that if I kept up with the race, my goal would happen.

Now, it's very different. There is no goal to be achieved. There is no race to run. What will happen? I seldom know.

The excitement now comes in discovery of what is being created....moment to moment. Always now I find that I am having to let go of what I thought life would be. I am letting go of what I perceived my music was all about. I am letting go of what I thought Mayan Dream Productions would accomplish in the world. All of this is being consumed in the fire, and something else is emerging that is unknown.

What will this day bring? I don't know. Is life going to be emerging from love? Yes.

Many life-long habits are being released. One of the most important is the release of looking at my schedule and being overwhelmed by it's busyness. That is the old running the race habit.
When I look at my schedule, I see lots of stuff, but I actually don't know what it will be. That is the new unknown. Life will be emerging from love. I will be supported in the flow. So...my schedule is really pretty irrelevant as a static "thing". Life no longer works that way for me.

SO...onward into the day. Blessings to all of you.

Mother Nature at her best

2009-01-28T05:23:00.000-08:00

She has done it again! We have many inches of new snow and it's still snowing. It is absolutely, fabulously beautiful outside. Everything is covered with pristine white. This photo is a color photo (believe it or not). We are seeing a bit of deep green peeking out of white and brown.
Awesome!

How does music capture the essence of this kind of beauty? I am out in the snow soaking up the living vibration of everything around me. This vibration becomes a part of my own body and eventually will come out in sound waves.....carrying this beauty.

Deep green....white....soft browns....deep silence....softly falling snow covering me quickly as I walk.....MUSIC.

Profound Love carries this essence. So does Deep Snowy Night and Tree of Light. There is other, new music that will come.

These three pieces are free downloads from this website. Some time ago I understood that some of the music that is coming forward through me was meant to be offered as free download. All of my music...whether free download or CDs sold....is gift to the world. So some have asked....why would I not put everything on CD?

The process of creating a physical CD is a major undertaking, both physically and financially. After recording the CD, the music has to go to a duplication center for duplication, and professional packaging. It needs to have a UPC code. Someone has to design the graphics for the cover and disc, and someone has to create the artwork. All of this goes into creating a physical CD. Lots of work and all of this has a financial cost.

At this point, there are nine CDs of mine available for sale. If all of my music had to go on CD in order to get out into the world, the music of Earth Essence CD, Atitlan Fire CD, and Profound Love would not be available to anyone at this time. Maybe in the future...but not now.

Also.....CDs are environmental stressors if they are not kept for several lifetimes in a library.
They do not biodegrade.

So, I do believe that is why we have discovered the miracle of downloading music. Eventually, CDs will go the way of cassettes, and 8-tracks. Music can be created and immediately sent to millions of people via the internet....no stressors on the environment that we know of at this time. AND.....when I create music, you can receive it almost immediately. That is a wonderful aspect of downloading. Will the switch from CD to digital downloading happen within the next couple of years? No, I don't believe so, but I am doing my part to begin the process.

Mayan Dream/Dancers of the Flame, The Beloved, The Journey of Joy, Heart of Sky/Heart of Earth, Emergence, and Healing Music for the 21st Century are all available for download through i-tunes, rhapsody, MP3tunes, MSNmusic, napster, and approximately 50 other digital sites throughout the world. At this time, my digital sales have increased about ten-fold from last year.

What are the advantages to you, the consumer? You can download part of an album if you don't want all of the music on a particular album. That is a HUGE advantage! It is less expensive.
You can place parts of CDs together to create your own meditation CDs. You can have new music of mine, or your own Soul/Deepbody music almost instantly after it is recorded. Hot off the press!

The disadvantage? There are still so many "bugs" to work out in the systems. Patience and lots of talent in the online community will bring downloading into it's potential. We just need patience!

What else is going on in the Mayan Dream world? Daily OM featured EMERGENCE again this last Friday. I am working on taxes and dreaming large dreams for the future.

Much love to all.

THE POWER OF OUR PURPOSE

2009-01-19T05:53:00.000-08:00

What does this photo have to do with the power of our purpose? Nothing directly...but I felt that it would be nice to be reminded of what Mother Earth will look like in five months. It is snowing again this morning...keeping everything a beautiful white. But this white is only part of the ever-changing wholeness and soon we will see the beginnings of Spring, and then this rich green of June.

THE POWER OF MUSIC
The concert yesterday that was part of the inauguration was a powerful reminder that music is primary to our lives. Music carries the energy of vitality and color and ongoing change. Music heals and inspires. Yo Yo Ma will be front and center when Obama takes the oath of office. When Yo Yo Ma plays cello....performing, or playing cello are just too weak of language to describe what happens. His beauty of spirit pours through the cello. The unseen world of the sacred is ours to experience for a powerful moment in time. This moment will last forever and that is the gift that music (or art, or writing, or photography, or sculpture, etc) brings to the world.

THE POWER OF OUR PURPOSE

Obama, Yo Yo Ma, all of the musicians at the concert in Washington yesterday, you, me....we are giving a precious gift to the world when we live our purpose. Does it matter if I create music....Yes! And this is the week to be reminded that IT DOES MATTER.

Have a beautiful week.

Life Continues

2009-01-17T07:49:00.001-08:00

It is a beautiful, snowy, windy Saturday. Friday night our temperature dropped to -19 with a wind chill below -40. These are certainly records and much of the country seems to be experiencing this kind of radical weather. This weekend we experience the inauguration of
Barak Obama as president. Another radical event for this planet.

So...with radical events all around me, how does my life reflect these outer stories? The online trip that I am part of is an opportunity to be different in a very radical way. The stories that I tell myself which are so limited can be let go. The perceptions of life that are small can be let go. New journeys are possible concerning my music...my relationships....my inner world.

Happy Saturday!

Online trip to Guatemala

2009-01-16T04:54:00.000-08:00

For the next ten days I am participating in an online trip to Guatemala with a group of maybe fifteen other people. The photo is of Lake Atitlan and my online trip is in this area. This is the miracle that internet can bring.

What is an online trip? Taking the time in my life to be connected through meditation and through ritual into a retreat type of experience in the midst of a very busy life. Video...music....will all stream through the internet. More on this as these 10 days progress.

Nature is participating also in this retreat. It is 14 below zero in Fort Wayne with a wind chill of -40 so much of outer life is shut down. Thus it is much easier to travel inward because outer distractions are minimized.

Today I will be finishing the description of Healing Music for the 21st Century on CDBaby, and also placing the Healing Music CD on Amazon. Then there are copyright papers to file with Washington DC. Next week there is more Soul/Deepbody music that will be created (wonderful, wonderful!).

Love to all.