the muse

if you've ever talked with me about music, you would know that i often talk about my 'favourite' musician and that who i state is my favourite is often different. its not that my music tastes change often, but that i have a large number of favourites and love them all with great intensity

(actually i have also been known to describe many people as my 'bestest' friends. and in the same way i love them all with great intensity)

last night i went to see my 'favourite' performer, miss paula cole.

can i tell you why i adore her so much?

its partly her intensely spiritual lyrics and equally powerful feminist lyrics. that alone would make me adore her but if you have ever seen her live you may understand what i am going to say next.

paula cole is the most authentic and alive performer i have ever seen.

when she walked onto the stage she looked at us in the audience making eye contact and smiling. one of the most noticable things about her performance is how comfortable she seems in her own skin. she dances freely, twirls, jumps, gets her band dancing. the whole show. so vibrant, authentic, present. she sings as though she is using her full vocal potential.

as if that isn't enough, she ended the show by beat boxing! i had been dancing along throughout the whole show, stopping once in a while to snap a few photos. but when she started beat boxing i automatically raised my hands up in what felt like a moment of praise. its the way i stand when i am calling in a circle. i often think about how music and spirituality are so interconnected for me. sometimes the two intercept without even trying!

feeling so inspired, i had to ask myself after the show...what would arrise if i made more room for music in my life? what if i offered space each day for writing, singing and simply playing. it used to be a part of my daily life back when i lived in victoria and was playing shows once in a while. i've still written songs on and off over the years and i'm so grateful for all of the other creative mediums that have been coming forward in the last year. but i do feel like there is more vocal capacity to be discovered, more authenticity to stand in, more words waiting to be manifested.

time to stop avoiding the muse!