Wow! What a hit in the gut 2020 has been. It’s 2 days before Halloween, a Blue Moon, and everything in life is upside down and backward. A guy on the radio said the world is grieving. Yeah, I can relate having just lost my Mom in September (not to COVID-19 at least, but to a severe stroke) and I am reeling ever since. But radio guy said were grieving, the country, the world, because of the pandemic, well yes – kind of. Grieving because 230k plus and counting have been lost, of course – and that is unfathomable. But were also at loss for our daily normal lives, for having to worry if the person in line at the market who is coughing is infecting everyone. For not going to the theater for a show, or a drive to that restaurant that was a fav – which is probably closed forever. For having the kids at home and making too much noise. And running out of paper towels and money, and – and- and – .

So what then? Chin up, survive like a warrior? Well, easier said than done, but when you have to, you have to.

It seems harder than ever to accomplish something worthy. I lost my recording studio, my teaching studio, nearly ALL my students on March 17th 2020. Happy Saint Patrick’s Day! Also on the same day, my day job of almost 10 years. The teaching was a solid 20 years. ‘Change’ is the one thing in life that you know will be there.

No, I haven’t stopped. We have all taken quite a hit. But the focus has changed. The general goal of musical artistry is more important than ever, that we share our effort to learn and move ahead – and really, that we communicate the feeling that music can bring about. Distant things return in the mind. Like telling myself never to forget how powerful the music can really be – and to never stop, never forget about the power of the moment. And sure enough, it holds true and continues to hold true. So lose site of that powerful inspiration even if it means going through that dark tunnel in what seems like forever to find that power.

What “dark tunnel”?

You know, those years of working toward an idea, paying the bills, and daily life seemingly near pointless repetition. But it isn’t. The deep artist keeps that little bit of light going. It for sure, cannot happen if the bet isn’t risked on the table. And if it never pays off, well this artist won’t die having given up on it. Hey, the Dodgers finally won, right?

Hugs All Around!