Sunset at the Park

This musician provides chalk so people can draw on the sidewalk. He also attaches a bubble machine to the light post. Look closely and you can see the bubbles. 

Angels among Us

Angels are amongst us. Sometimes they come from the other side of the veil. Sometimes they are "mere mortals," like ourselves who are heeding God's call to show love and to help.

This Sabbath's worship service and then our women's class were filled with discussion of showing God's love, getting to know Christ and doing what He would do. That's what angels do. That's what I want to do. 

Kristin Chenoweth sings "Angels among Us." Click here. 

9/11

 Commemoration of 20th Anniversary of 9/11

This special musical program of remembrance includes uplifting and inspiring music selections gathered from the Choir and Orchestra’s previous broadcasts and concerts. Interwoven with the music and narration will be commentary from individuals around the world as they remember the impact of 9/11 for everyone--everywhere. The backdrop for Johnson's narration is various locations across the Hudson River from where the Twin Towers were located.   (Tabernacle Choir)

Legacy

 Legacy - I think about this frequently as I work with our family archives. The fact that I just celebrated my 75th birthday also brings thoughts of what I'm leaving behind when my turn on earth is completed. 

What stories, experiences, person characteristics have been left behind for us? What will we leave for those who come after us?

Leigh Nash addresses this in “Something Worth Leaving Behind.” 

…

I keep my eyes on what is eternal 

It's a song that won't fade away 

Still I ask myself what is eternal 

……

Cause I’m desperate for a life that has meaning

Try write a line that's worth repeating

That'll make you think of me when my heart's done beating You'll pass down the line

That'll stand the test of time

Something worth leaving behind

 

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Check out  “Grace Notes” on BYU TV. The host talks with musicians about the connection between their music and their faith. 

Light of the Word - O Come, Immanuel

This music, these words, and the video touched me in many ways. 

Christ is the light of the world. He is real. 

We celebrate His birth, life, atonement, death, and resurrection. 

The video shows acts of healing and comfort. I notice touch and proximity. In this pandemic time, many of us ache for physical closeness and personal contact. Touch is healing and comforting. 

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A Cappella vocal group Eclipse 6 highlights the world’s longing for miracles with the plea, “O come, Immanuel.” To those who wait, hunger, pray, and wander, they sing, “Behold your King.” The video portrays how the miracles of healing performed by Jesus Christ during His ministry can be experienced today by those waiting for the coming of Immanuel. To the hearts that long for a little bit of hope, the group declares, “The Light of the World is here.” (youtube website)

Another Evening At The Lake - With Bagpipes

SunsetSolidarity is a national movement challenging bagpipers to play at sunset during this time of Covid-19. This is being done as a sign of strength, courage, and hope. 

Steve Gengo has been playing in various sites around Kirkland. His 100th appearance was at Marina Park. This time he was in a boat. He played patriotic songs, songs of all branches of the Armed Forces, and some hymns such as Amazing Grace. At sunset he turned to face west and played Taps. It was stirring, awesome, and wonderful. 

The boat with the bagpiper is on the left just out of the picture. 

The ducks got out of the water and lined up to listen

See the paraglider above the Seattle skyscrapers?

And the American flag flying from the boat? 

The bagpiper is standing on the back of the boat

If you look closely on the right you can see a 

snow-covered mountain on the Olympic Peninsula

Taps

Day is done,

Gone the sun,

From the hills,

From the lake,

From the skies.

All is well,

Safely rest,

God is nigh

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Check Steve Gengo out at Facebook  

Read more about SunsetSolidarity here and here

We Are Not Alone

And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up.  (Doctrine and Covenants 84: 88) 

 Most of the time the angels in our lives are family and friends who love and support us. Every once in a while we get a glimpse or feeling of the angels from the other side who are doing the same. 

Sometimes we can be the angel in someone's life. 

Kristin Chenoweth sings Angels Among Us

Faith in Every Footstep

Sometimes faith in Jesus Christ and His gospel is all that keeps us going through difficult times. This video depicts Later-day Saints who were driven out of Kirkland, Ohio; from Nauvoo, Illinois; and from Missouri. Their faith kept them going. 

When I listen to this, I think of our own faith journey. This is a marvelous work. I am filled with hope. I do move forward with faith. 

A marvelous work has begun to come forth 

among all the children of men.

O ye that embark in the service of God, 

give heart, mind, and strength unto him;

For prophets have spoken and angels have come 

to lift the world from sin,

That Christ may reign over all the earth 

and bless his gathered kin.

With faith in every footstep, we follow Christ, the Lord;

And filled with hope through his pure love, we sing with one accord.

Those marvelous Saints who embraced this great work 

and shared it in lands far and near;

Who gave all their heart, mind, and strength to the Lord 

with wisdom and vision so clear;

Now stand as examples of virtue and faith, 

of souls prepared to hear,

Of knowledge sure, born of humble heart, 

and love that banished fear.

With faith in every footstep, we follow Christ, the Lord;

And filled with hope through his pure love, we sing with one accord.

...........

Words and music by K. Newell Dayley

It Happened Again

It happened again. Every time I go to Music & The Spoken Word I have an amazing experience with the Spirit. There's something about music that seems to create a conduit for the Spirit to take over my very being. The choir was doing their rebroadcast rehearsal when I arrived Sunday morning. I sat down and almost immediately I could feel the Spirit engulf my whole being. "Fulness" was the word that came into my mind. This is what fulness feels like - filled with the Spirit, surrounded by the Spirit, definitely a whole body, a whole being experience. 

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"On the air for over eighty-nine years and 4,595 weekly broadcasts, Music & the Spoken Word is the longest-running uninterrupted network broadcast in the world." source

The Spoken Word on March 3 was about friendship

The music was glorious

360 volunteer musicians 

I like to stay after the broadcast and watch the choir rehearse

Music of Life

"… Life is not unlike cinema. Each scene has its own music, and the music is created for the scene, woven to it in ways we do not understand. No matter how much we may love the melody of a bygone day or imagine the song of a future one, we must dance within the music of today, or we will always be out of step, stumbling around in something that doesn’t suit the moment...."

"I think of my grandmother, of her empty house, of her room in the nursing home, of her inability to recognize me most days. Tears well up in my eyes. The music of old age is difficult to hear when it’s playing for someone you love.”*

*From "Before We Were Yours" by Lisa Wingate 

More

My heart was full as I sang and felt the words of this hymn at church recently

 *More Holiness Give Me

More holiness give me,

More strivings within,

More patience in suff’ring,

...

More faith in my Savior,

More sense of his care,

More joy in his service,

More purpose in prayer.

More gratitude give me,

More trust in the Lord,

More pride in his glory,

More hope in his word,

....

More meekness in trial,

More praise for relief.

More purity give me,

More strength to o’ercome,

More freedom from earth-stains,

More longing for home.

More fit for the kingdom,

More used would I be,

More blessed and holy—

More, Savior, like thee.
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In my prayers it seems I'm always asking, pleading, for "more" - more strength, more patience, more gratitude, ... more, Savior, like thee - in fact, my prayers often echo this hymn. 

Mormon Tabernacle Choir sings "More Holiness Give Me"

A prayer in song

*Text and music: Philip Paul Bliss, 1838–1876

Hallelujah

"From around the world they came—some 2,500 individually submitted videos of singers to be combined with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir in history’s largest virtual performance of “Hallelujah” from Handel’s Messiah.

… The “Virtual Hallelujah Chorus,” as it has been dubbed, features the choir and Orchestra at Temple Square being led by music director Mack Wilberg. By means of digital wizardry, a mosaic composed of hundreds of video boxes of varying sizes appears near the ceiling above the choir seats and, as the camera pans to the right, along the balcony of the Tabernacle, each box featuring one of the singers who submitted his or her video file.

Some singers actually appear among the choir members in the choir seats. …

“Our goal for this virtual choir was to bring together voices from all over the world and demonstrate the power music has to cross cultural and generational boundaries,” said Scott Barrick, the choir’s general manager. “The ‘Hallelujah’ chorus is iconic, and we are elated that so many people wanted to join us for this amazing experience to celebrate the life, death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

Click March 2016 for more

Wind Boisterous

Sometimes it's windy at the lake and the waves crash against the rocks. 

I am reminded of the "wind boisterous" that caused Peter to fear and falter when he tried to walk on the water towards Jesus. 

"But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?" Matthew 14: 29-30

Dad used to say "O ye of little faith," to assure us things would work out. 

When I think of "wind boisterous," it's often followed by thoughts of the scripture and hymn, "Master, the Tempest Is Raging." 

     

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Master, the Tempest Is Raging

      The winds and the waves shall obey thy will:


Peace, be still.


Whether the wrath of the storm-tossed sea


Or demons or men or whatever it be,


No waters can swallow the ship where lies


The Master of ocean and earth and skies.


They all shall sweetly obey thy will:


Peace, be still; peace, be still.


They all shall sweetly obey thy will:


Peace, peace, be still.

*********

It's interesting to me that peace doesn't necessarily mean an absence of "wind boisterous." It has more to do with the condition of my heart and soul. I can feel peace, and "be still" even when the waves and winds are whipping up things around me. Christ and His gospel are the source of that peace. 

                        

Making Lemonade

What do you do when you're the Mormon Tabernacle choir organist and you injure your left arm? You concentrate on using the organ foot pedals.  

Click here to hear what Richard Elliott can do with his feet!

I didn't realize the foot pedals are literally another keyboard. 

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Click here for another post about Richard Elliott's skills

Fun Music

Official title - Tabernacle Organist Richard Elliott and the Orchestra at Temple Square perform "Hot Pipes" (Movement no. 4 - Jazz Concerto for Organ and Orchestra) 

It's very happy music!

Check out the keyboard camera as well as the foot pedal camera

Notice that the organist doesn't have any music in front of him!

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A Charlie Brown Christmas

We took a friend along with us to enjoy “David Benoit Christmas Tribute to Charlie Brown.”  

From Kirkland Performance Center website - “This show is a family friendly, hip jazz show that is warm and entertaining. This is a show conceived by Pianist, composer David Benoit. The show features the music from the original hit television show “A Charlie Brown Christmas” performed by David Benoit and his trio …  While primarily focusing on the music of Vince Guaraldi, the original composer of the show, Benoit and the trio also feature new original music, (Benoit was the composer of the last several episodes,) and music from “You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown” the hit Broadway musical.”

The music was wonderful. Vocalist Sara Gazarek was born & raised in Seattle. There was a wonderful children’s choir, a bass guitarist and a drummer. The music was so happy.

Click here for an interesting account of the Charlie Brown music and Christmas special

Beautiful Sabbath Morning

I woke up about 6 this Sabbath morning and had a feeling I should look outside. I peeked out the bedroom window and saw that the sky was magnificent. I hurried out to the balcony to take in the awesomeness. This kind of sky usually doesn't last very long. As I soaked up the beauty, I felt I was receiving a "good morning" directly from God. 

Then I went to church and was touched when one of the speakers in sacrament meeting talked about a Sabbath hymn written by Robert Baird. The first few lines are: 

When the rosy light of morning

Softly beams above the hill,

And the birds, sweet heav'nly songsters,

Ev'ry dell with music fill,

Fresh from slumber we awaken;

Sunshine chases clouds away.

Nature breathes her sweetest fragrance

On the holy Sabbath day.

Come Away to the Sunday School

Text and music: Robert B. Baird, 1855-1916

As I heard these words, I felt a nudge from the Spirit and I knew that morning awakening and beautiful sight did come from God. I am abundantly grateful - for the beauty of the earth. For Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Spirit. 

Music

I drafted this post back in the summer of 2011. A granddaughter and I had gone to BeadWorld in downtown Kirkland and made necklaces. 

BeadWorld played music from the 1960s. I found myself singing and remembering the words to almost all the songs even though I hadn't heard many of them in more than 45 years. I mentioned to Granddaughter that 45 years from now she could be sitting with a granddaughter when a Justin Bieber (her favorite at the time) song comes on and she'll remember every word. Then I said that's a good reason to be very careful what you listen to because it stays with you forever. "That's Grandma talk," said Granddaughter as she smiled.

Back to 2016 - When Granddaughter said, "That's Grandma talk," it brought back a memory. Grandma (Florence Holton) and I were doing the dishes at Oak Street. The song was released in July 1962 so I was ready to go into 10th grade. I was singing "Strangers by Day, Lovers by Night." Grandma very quietly and gently suggested that I might not want to sing that song. I asked why. She didn't say why. I didn't have a clue about the meaning of the song (as she was interpreting the words I was singing). Click on the picture to hear the song by the Fleetwoods

Back to summer 2011 - Lauren, Joe, and I talked about our favorite music. I wrote in my journal, "[Granddaughter] didn't know what to think about Grandpa's high school favorite, "Wild Goose." Click on the image to hear Frankie Laine sing this 1950 hit. Lyrics here

This summer two granddaughters were staying with us. Joe played "The Cry of the Wild Goose" for them. They didn't know what to think of it either. 

We often have music playing throughout the day. It's usually classical music during the day. Lately we've been listening to music from the 1960s, "Golden Oldies," as we wind down our day. We find it very soothing - and I still recall most of the words to most of the songs. In fact, I'm very surprised when I correctly guess the song after just a few opening notes. That music has stayed with me forever. 

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Click here for more about the Wild Goose song

Beauty

For the beauty of the earth,

For the beauty of the skies,

....

Lord of all, to thee we raise

This our hymn of grateful praise.

Hymn

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Rhododendron are abundant in this area. The colors are spectacular. 

We are indeed grateful for the beauty around us. 

Sharing the Journey

My sister told me about this beautiful hymn. It has a powerful message about helping each other in this journey here on earth.  

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The Servant Song by Richard Gillard

....

We are pilgrims on the journey

We are brothers on the road

We are here to help each other

Walk the mile and bear the load

I will hold the Christ light for you

In the night time of your fear

I will hold my hand out to you

Speak the peace you long to hear.

I will weep when you are weeping

When you laugh, I’ll laugh with you

I will share your joy and sorrow

Till we’ve seen this journey through.

............

Hear the hymn here