tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57075118227013734882024-02-22T02:23:12.666-08:00artistryMuseTasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-73085682364856825422012-10-08T22:39:00.001-07:002012-10-08T22:41:27.634-07:00The Art of Children's Stories- Shel Silverstein<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Shel Silverstein has to be one of the best children's poetry writers, or story tellers. His work inspired a lot of my very first teaching experience - teaching poetry to a class of grade five students in Lancaster, UK. Thank you Robin Bundy for introducing me to Silverstein's poetry, especially "Where the Sidewalk Ends". And thanks Ryan for sharing this piece of Shel Silverstein's. I love it. It's going to be my new favorite story by this author.<br />
Check this out everyone- "The Missing Piece Meets the Big O" :<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/MCmZ2jrQooE" width="420"></iframe></div>
Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-15414630664812550882012-10-02T13:24:00.000-07:002012-10-02T13:31:58.084-07:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">"Anyone who's worked in the arts knows that success often looks like failure to others...</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">You do it anyway."</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWpyfZUnzOBB6UuUqTyYoJAsXItFmbMDdN4eiG2dkUQwxdabl1D-3Hh752Mk0jsSTageNe8eGlktEoEfGi7WY9HgEdJGUog_4f9ncfpak2V8b6BJJOFmCITcMuZbhtyyttMkaTnOTE9zc/s1600/successfulartistsjpg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWpyfZUnzOBB6UuUqTyYoJAsXItFmbMDdN4eiG2dkUQwxdabl1D-3Hh752Mk0jsSTageNe8eGlktEoEfGi7WY9HgEdJGUog_4f9ncfpak2V8b6BJJOFmCITcMuZbhtyyttMkaTnOTE9zc/s1600/successfulartistsjpg.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><i>(I found this quote tweeted today on Twitter by Megan Wendell. Not sure who the original quote is by- Cheryl Strayed?- who was also attached to the tweet? Either way, I loved it!).</i></span></span></div>
Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-74984866823077891752012-09-01T02:16:00.002-07:002012-09-01T02:16:42.787-07:00Dare to...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZUfI57656wS2V9MHZXXtj6Q4EqrQtymrjNyWBLNkT4pb2aMwuBbTS2B6HnZ-VAo5P7yHhjRyErpe6L9s9GtI2lei4jCA633O_hwbJragyRQy_EQKB8FgXJGzRrm5GRoXKHHWKUMkX30/s1600/yesenia+dare.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRZUfI57656wS2V9MHZXXtj6Q4EqrQtymrjNyWBLNkT4pb2aMwuBbTS2B6HnZ-VAo5P7yHhjRyErpe6L9s9GtI2lei4jCA633O_hwbJragyRQy_EQKB8FgXJGzRrm5GRoXKHHWKUMkX30/s320/yesenia+dare.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-91243664234310994692012-08-05T17:40:00.005-07:002012-08-05T17:40:52.062-07:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
"Creativity Takes Courage<br />
The job of the artist is to always deepen the mystery"<br />
<br />
Tweet Spencer why you support the arts! @SChandraHerbert<br />
<br />
Spencer Chandra Herbert<br />
MLA Vancouver West End Critic for Arts and Culture<br />
<br />
www.spencerchandraherbert.ca<br />
<br />
"Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time<br />
<br />
EVERYTHING IN THE UNIVERSE HAS RHYTHM. EVERYTHING DANCES."<br />
<br />
-Interesting that this was the first page I flipped to, or that flipped open for me, when I was looking through a paper today advertising the Vancouver Fringe Festival.<br />
<br />
Beautifully expressed - poetry to the eyes and ears.</div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-73457012894596824922012-07-23T15:41:00.002-07:002012-07-23T15:43:42.053-07:00Life is Art is Everything is Art<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGPq5xsNyeGnlTFGIY1xYqE1MiL-iQFCIGkLXLpSZmOGHmbIZRuMGtI9Wag4fP99iVMZXRK0SW0d4MnI5SP55eu752a_QruEAaYnxB5W-sI8TxvmwXmNtGyUcZFeck_jJmhR6S-Yy8BFg/s1600/everything+is+art.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGPq5xsNyeGnlTFGIY1xYqE1MiL-iQFCIGkLXLpSZmOGHmbIZRuMGtI9Wag4fP99iVMZXRK0SW0d4MnI5SP55eu752a_QruEAaYnxB5W-sI8TxvmwXmNtGyUcZFeck_jJmhR6S-Yy8BFg/s400/everything+is+art.jpg" width="335" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Thanks for sharing this Brandon Wint!</div>
<br /></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-995982595934875892012-06-15T23:37:00.003-07:002012-06-15T23:50:29.949-07:00You Are Invited! Vancouver BattleZone- A dance battle for a great cause!- July 7, 2012.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhivXUwOvPwMuMyHgfQFO10grv4_RUr0g-hf3ZWkKp97jz3IFGiTLFtxtMUmaTV7NTjljw3Uo883_UAW2kzwCfircsFTXtX8FTpP8Egn3XP9eGNUb7CZoSwJCVeEPZ9EpnxpVEFtmFygHw/s1600/AJ's+poster.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhivXUwOvPwMuMyHgfQFO10grv4_RUr0g-hf3ZWkKp97jz3IFGiTLFtxtMUmaTV7NTjljw3Uo883_UAW2kzwCfircsFTXtX8FTpP8Egn3XP9eGNUb7CZoSwJCVeEPZ9EpnxpVEFtmFygHw/s640/AJ's+poster.JPG" width="411" /></a></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: 16.2pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: 16.2pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><b>What
is it: Vancouver BattleZone<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
</div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><b>When: Saturday, July 7th, 2012.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;"><b>Time: 2pm-10pm<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">Where: North Surrey Recreation Centre </span></b><b style="line-height: 12.75pt;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif;">(next to Surrey
Central Skytrain station)-</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">10275 City Parkway</span><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">,<span class="apple-converted-space"> <span style="background-color: white;">Surrey,</span></span>BC</span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">HEAVY HITTAZ CREW is back with Regime Productions to throw
VANCOUVER BATTLEZONE VOLUME 3. This will be our third year in total, bringing
in dancers from all over to battle for prizes and pride. Not only is this
going to be a fantastic event, helping to grow the Vancouver Dance scene, but
it’s for a very important cause as well. We plan to use the revenue
earned from this event to help finish building a cafeteria in Rwentutu Primary
School in Kasese, Uganda. We have been working on this project since
Battlezome Volume 1. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">AJ (MegaMan) and his family are from Uganda. In the
summer of 2009, AJ traveled to Kasese, Uganda for missionary work to help teach
at Rwentutu Primary School. During lunch time, AJ would hang out with the
kids, but was greatly affected by the conditions in which these kids ate.
They were eating off the ground where flies and other insects would crawl in
and out of their food. “The school is built in my homeland,” says
AJ, “but I never had to experience some of the hardships that these children
have to. I was fortunate enough to be blessed to live in a first world
country such as Canada.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: 16.2pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">But it
was exactly this appreciation of the life that AJ was given that allowed him to
feel even more determined to help these kids. He decided that it
would be his goal to build a cafeteria for them and the school, so that they
could eat in healthier, more sanitary conditions. “I didn’t know
how I was going to do it, so I started with a bottle drive,” explains AJ.
“This is where I raised my first thousand dollars for this project, and I sent
all the money to the school.” That money that AJ collected allowed the
foundation of the building for the cafeteria to be constructed. And AJ
wasn’t going to stop there. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">The following year, he and his dance crew, along side Umoja
Operations (an organization began by his father), decided to throw their first
battle to continue raising money for the cafeteria. “We threw an event
called Vancouver Battlezone, Volume 1,” says AJ, “It was a huge success
and we raised $3000. All that money was sent to Uganda towards the project as
well.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">AJ was determined to keep going. So the following year, they
threw a Battlezone Volume 2 event as well, but still not enough money was
raised to finish the project. But here we are at 2012, and AJ and the
HEAVY HITTAZ are not going to give up on the goal- to finish building the cafeteria.
So this year, they are running an even bigger event , this THIRD ANNUAL
BATTLEZONE, and they are encouraging everyone to come out for it. They
have been working hard to help the kids at Rwentutu Primary School, but they
can’t do this alone. They need your help. EVERY contribution will
help get them closer to finishing this very important project. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: 16.2pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">If you
are a dancer, and would like to join the battle and compete, you are welcome to
register on the facebook page. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/events/457419327617925/" style="cursor: pointer;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0068cf;">http://www.facebook.com/events/457419327617925/</span></a><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>(The page also provides further
details about the event, Dj’s and competition).</span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Just sign up on one of the empty slots and you’re in!
There will be dancers from LA, Vegas, Seattle, Portland, New York, Toronto,
Mexico, Detroit and more attending the event.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">But you don’t have to be a competitor or a dancer to attend.
Come and support the dancers by watching and just being present.
And you can help AJ and the rest of the group and the kids at the school
by donating any amount you can. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">For more information about the school, the cafeteria project,
and the Umoja organization, feel free to visit <span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://umojaoperation.ca/" style="cursor: pointer;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #0068cf;">http://umojaoperation.ca/</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><b>TICKET Info: <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: 16.2pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><b>- May
29-June 12: $15 for competitors & $20 for spectators. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: 16.2pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><b>-
After June 12th: $20 for battlers & $25 for spectators<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: 16.2pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><b>- At
the door: TBA (more than presale price)</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; line-height: 12.75pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 16.2pt; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Get them at the following locations OR off of any Heavy Hittaz
crew member. </span></div>
<div class="ecxmsonormal" style="background: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: 16.2pt; margin-left: 0cm; margin-right: 0cm; margin-top: 0cm;">
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 12.75pt;">Pauls
Boutique -Guildford Mall Surrey- (604) 951-7597</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 12.75pt;">Eastside
Urban Wear - Metropolis at Metrotown- (604) 451-3310</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 12.75pt;">DIPT
Outfitters - Downtown Vancouver-(604) 669-9990</span></li>
<li><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 12.75pt;">Beat
Street Records - Downtown Vancouver -(604) 683-3344</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: 16.2pt;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Out of town dancers coming to compete, please contact Heavy Hittaz or AJ
for more ticket details.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 12.75pt; margin-bottom: 16.2pt;">
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">You can also reach AJ at <a href="mailto:kkambere11@hotmail.com"><span style="color: #0068cf;">kkambere11@hotmail.com</span></a> or by phone
at 604-317-4787 for tickets or if you have any further questions or inquiries.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-35836727912036196612012-05-21T23:49:00.001-07:002012-05-22T00:05:15.407-07:00To People Who Love To Dance<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
DANCE MOVES YOU...<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/WoAjE1aioHE" width="560"></iframe></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-65632535774951791232012-05-21T23:37:00.004-07:002012-05-22T01:26:14.655-07:00A City Without Art is a City Without A Heart- by Tasleem<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<h5 style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;">
<em style="color: black;"><br />“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and then go do it. Because what the world needs is people who come alive.”</em></h5>
<h5 style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black;"><em>- Harold Thurman Whitman</em></span></h5>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjk0dZZV3IYAaAmxFmH80RJAPLxfyjAMryzUt0w7JkJ95GO5IOTRBv8Y5TSUrntZ8wAjAPlxcZx3Uw05SRzQQWz7LWU_yYTYumM8BSLer9cZ2Cy9oMIABK3W4H_ZhKLXW1yCBXe4hA3CU/s1600/luciana+alvarez.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjk0dZZV3IYAaAmxFmH80RJAPLxfyjAMryzUt0w7JkJ95GO5IOTRBv8Y5TSUrntZ8wAjAPlxcZx3Uw05SRzQQWz7LWU_yYTYumM8BSLer9cZ2Cy9oMIABK3W4H_ZhKLXW1yCBXe4hA3CU/s320/luciana+alvarez.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hastings @ Richards by <a href="http://lucianagallery.com/Gallery%20Main.html">Luciana Alvarez</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: black;">And what is it that makes people come alive? Culture, Arts, Music, Movies, Dance, things creative and passionate. It doesn’t matter if we are the ones who are doing the painting, or performing the dance, or acting in the movie, or if we are watching it. We could be the observer or the artist, but what matters is that we are surrounded by this creativity and charisma, the freedom to express through, or share in, quite simply Art.</span></div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: black;">We are all artists in one sense or another. We all have an artist within us. This is because we are all human- living breathing beings, with a soul. And this soul desires to be nurtured and recognized and moved through various modes of expression and communication. Whether it is coming home after work to watch a good movie, or grabbing a good book off the shelf, or singing to a favorite song in the car, or playing an instrument in a band, we all make use of the artistic environment around us, whether we recognize it or not.</span></div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: black;">But because we have gotten so used to it being there, often times, we can take this artistic environment for granted. What if, however, one day, you went to turn the dial on your car radio, or walked into a movie theater, or went to an art gallery and there was nothing there? No art, no music, no movie? Not because you got to the theater when it was closed but because the artists of all these different venues simply disappeared? What would it be like without art in our lives, without art in our city?</span></div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: black;">It sounds ridiculous, but the thought crossed my mind very seriously today after reading an article about how artists in Vancouver in particular are not being recognized or valued. Many of our most talented painters and dancers and musicians cannot afford the rising real estate prices in this city and some of the most creative artistic hubs of Vancouver are being shut down.</span></div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: black;">Even the The Vancouver Playhouse Theater Company, lasting almost 50 years, in this city, had to close down recently due to debt. It seems that much of the problem is the lack of support and recognition towards artists in this city, and the lack of understanding of how important these artists and art really are to sustaining the energy of the city.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="color: #333333; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAU7UZOfBZRwnLJ7MVXCcSKEOOc0kUIi6_qzxuk-5fsc_St5frY7_1C25q_zDuf5PJHPZODBiQesblTnZsZe5bNMWZaAldfoEiEqK6CwwIcZwNcGFhcHs2elNOE41spl9OEnLPr87HfH4/s1600/luciana2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAU7UZOfBZRwnLJ7MVXCcSKEOOc0kUIi6_qzxuk-5fsc_St5frY7_1C25q_zDuf5PJHPZODBiQesblTnZsZe5bNMWZaAldfoEiEqK6CwwIcZwNcGFhcHs2elNOE41spl9OEnLPr87HfH4/s320/luciana2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Robson @ Howe by<a href="http://lucianagallery.com/Gallery%20Main.html"> Luciana Alvarez</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="color: #333333;">
<span style="color: black;">Art in its various forms is what gives a city its flavor, its rhythm, its heart. That’s why we feel so alive and inspired in places like New York, Montreal or London. The architecture and the music create the vibe that we feel as soon as we enter it. Art is not only seen throughout the city- with people dancing in shows, music playing throughout shops, billboards of all the upcoming concerts and theater productions displayed everywhere- but more importantly, artists are welcomed and valued in those cities. Writers, painters, designers, musicians and more are given opportunities to foster their talents and be recognized. And this allows other artists to be even more creative, to feel supported in their dreams. “Artists, as much as they need affordability, they also need each other. They need an environment to bounce ideas – a critical mass, a velocity of contact, a really, really creative environment.”</span></div>
<div style="color: #333333;">
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: #333333;">
<span style="color: black;">If you don’t support the creator of these arts- the artists themselves- they are forced to leave. “The loss of Vancouver’s talent to LA, Montreal, New York and Toronto is something that should concern us all,” says artist and lawyer Sandy Garossino.</span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: black;">And if the artists see no other choice but to leave, you risk taking away the heart of the city.</span></div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: black;">Art gives us energy. And that energy gets emitted from us out into our environment, into the city that we live in. Vancouver has amazing talent throughout the city, artists who could keep the city alive and growing, but who need to feel supported by the city to create, to grow and to be inspired and to inspire.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhsil5khF9ucBGe6vHBdcY530Pnzfo7RUEYlILzf4xaDPrqgZqrx-LucX5jrEanLh_xiubYoI1BO6FFisNCZ55_6vjlJplOOiKnFkT25TUIDZ7W1iuWavt1X19mdDNQoeMIURr7tuDOMM/s1600/luciana3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhsil5khF9ucBGe6vHBdcY530Pnzfo7RUEYlILzf4xaDPrqgZqrx-LucX5jrEanLh_xiubYoI1BO6FFisNCZ55_6vjlJplOOiKnFkT25TUIDZ7W1iuWavt1X19mdDNQoeMIURr7tuDOMM/s320/luciana3.jpg" width="242" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Steam Clock by <a href="http://lucianagallery.com/Gallery%20Main.html">Luciana Alvarez</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: black;">In my own life, I have learned, especially over the past few years, how the arts cultivate not only our imagination, thoughts, and minds, but also contribute to our physical and spiritual health and well-being. And this, in turn, contributes to our society as a whole.<strong> </strong>It gives our life depth and meaning. But when we shove the arts and artists aside, or do not consider their needs, the city suffers:</span></div>
<div style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Verdana; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="color: black;">As was described so powerfully in the article, “This (Vancouver) is such a beautiful city, and it’s a huge risk the way real estate is going here. It’s becoming a postcard of itself – so smooth that no one can afford to live in it. It risks becoming increasingly one-dimensional. If we really lost our artists – and we do take them for granted – we would feel it in ways that we can’t begin to describe.”</span></div>
</div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-65500632195976486412012-04-22T13:35:00.002-07:002012-04-22T13:48:39.702-07:00Inside you...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">"Inside you, </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">there's an artist </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">you don't know about...</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">say yes quickly, </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">if you know, </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">if you’ve known it </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">from before the beginning </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">of the universe.” </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">- Rumi</span></div></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-20925548580023896322012-02-15T14:15:00.000-08:002012-02-15T14:15:30.388-08:00Check it...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Sometimes, we need to be reminded not to hesitate, or over-think things, or second guess our first instincts. As Nike said, Just Do It! <div><br />
</div><div>I was looking for an attractive Nike image with this slogan, and instead, I found something that was even more inspiring. Check this out...</div><div><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqA58JXEjKg4grVlvI5UTMeJRZIebR12gSS1JuAyuj6RFvCy2MrwUvkOLxkU0flo05R1qnogmdRZHfFc6NHBcDmEKACSUWEIAGZkBetAHeS-xq4-3dBvzi2AwHZ2gJwJ5kvXzETYhI5bE/s1600/just+did+it.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqA58JXEjKg4grVlvI5UTMeJRZIebR12gSS1JuAyuj6RFvCy2MrwUvkOLxkU0flo05R1qnogmdRZHfFc6NHBcDmEKACSUWEIAGZkBetAHeS-xq4-3dBvzi2AwHZ2gJwJ5kvXzETYhI5bE/s1600/just+did+it.jpeg" /></a></div><div><br />
</div><div>Imagine how it would feel to say this about each one of your dreams?</div></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-42340702438020354882012-02-05T23:30:00.000-08:002012-02-06T00:01:29.898-08:00Stroke of Insight<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">"I felt like a genie liberated from her bottle...I remember thinking there’s no way I would be able to squeeze the enormousness of myself back inside this tiny little body...I found nirvana, and I was still alive..."<br />
<br />
Thanks Rebecca, for sending this.<br />
<br />
<object height="374" width="526"></p><p><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf"></param></p><p><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /></p><p><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"/></p><p><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param></p><p><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff"></param></p><p><param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talk/stream/2008/Blank/JillBolteTaylor_2008-320k.mp4&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/JillBolteTaylor-2008.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=512&vh=288&ap=0&ti=229&lang=&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight;year=2008;theme=medicine_without_borders;theme=master_storytellers;theme=how_the_mind_works;event=TED2008;tag=biology;tag=brain;tag=consciousness;tag=global+issues;tag=illness;tag=science;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;" /></p><p><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" pluginspace="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" bgColor="#ffffff" width="526" height="374" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talk/stream/2008/Blank/JillBolteTaylor_2008-320k.mp4&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/JillBolteTaylor-2008.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=512&vh=288&ap=0&ti=229&lang=&introDuration=15330&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=830&adKeys=talk=jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight;year=2008;theme=medicine_without_borders;theme=master_storytellers;theme=how_the_mind_works;event=TED2008;tag=biology;tag=brain;tag=consciousness;tag=global+issues;tag=illness;tag=science;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;"></embed></p><p></object><br />
<div><br />
</div></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-22602141377044499632012-01-28T23:30:00.001-08:002012-01-28T23:31:30.589-08:00The one who...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji-S4ywpDVQ8zj24p-LNLV90kUDBlZdbrDoPlYl9whGz9PBt2AHGct3-M6Ijnw9p3IVVK2PYA-bUnyk2H1psMAVq8qN9l7Yz6nytivS65CZaazlkhVjN8_9WBk8g04RshzZYI9tTdq_PU/s1600/he+who+walks+alone....jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji-S4ywpDVQ8zj24p-LNLV90kUDBlZdbrDoPlYl9whGz9PBt2AHGct3-M6Ijnw9p3IVVK2PYA-bUnyk2H1psMAVq8qN9l7Yz6nytivS65CZaazlkhVjN8_9WBk8g04RshzZYI9tTdq_PU/s400/he+who+walks+alone....jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
</div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-88371491921500950512012-01-02T15:22:00.000-08:002012-01-02T20:01:46.172-08:00Resolution: become what you might have been<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><link href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CTasleem%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml" rel="File-List"></link><smarttagtype name="country-region" namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"></smarttagtype><smarttagtype name="place" namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"></smarttagtype><style>
<!--
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{mso-style-parent:"";
margin:0cm;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";}
p
{margin:0cm;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";}
@page Section1
{size:612.0pt 792.0pt;
margin:72.0pt 90.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt;
mso-header-margin:35.4pt;
mso-footer-margin:35.4pt;
mso-paper-source:0;}
div.Section1
{page:Section1;}
-->
</style><br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;"><i>“It’s never too late to become what you might have been.”</i><br />
<i>- George Eliot</i><br />
<br />
<i></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjj88pDNnOx5Qq5M09M_eYHUj4Esy8ohE5WIUN80LyWvyjTxKQateRVl6N848LO1kde1-UpQO69On2jzMZBtgmVr7LJlz5BEUAvhFHrKpjf_DTR5QcVpHUuz2jsKUorOOFUioDNEJxo-8/s1600/personal+power.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjj88pDNnOx5Qq5M09M_eYHUj4Esy8ohE5WIUN80LyWvyjTxKQateRVl6N848LO1kde1-UpQO69On2jzMZBtgmVr7LJlz5BEUAvhFHrKpjf_DTR5QcVpHUuz2jsKUorOOFUioDNEJxo-8/s200/personal+power.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>It's been more than twenty four hours since the clock struck 2012. <i>What are your New Years resolutions?</i> I've been asked a few times in the past week. Growing up, I remember resolutions were more like wishes- dreams without boundaries. As I got a little older, I learned that resolutions should be measurable, so we can evaluate, at the end of that year, whether we actually succeeded in achieving them. And I probably taught this same concept to my students when I became a teacher. Actually, I know I did. As an adult, my resolutions became more practical, making sure that they helped move me towards a 'successful' life. <br />
<br />
But what does success really mean? And how did my resolutions become more closed in, stifling, as if backed up against a wall, rather than open to all the possibilities that exist out there? 'Success' means different things to different people. Yet, over the years, somehow, I got caught up in <i>other</i> people's idea of success- my family's, my peers', society's - which was leading me to lose that dreaminess I had as a child, the dreaminess that told me which resolutions were truly my own. And so, I'd start off with the best of intentions in the new year- to go to the gym four times a week, or experiment with a new recipe each month, or go on more dates with guys who were in the ‘right’ kind of careers. The enthusiasm would last for maybe a few months into the year. But slowly, my efforts would dwindle away until once again, that same resolution got added to the list for the <i>following</i> year, in the hopes that maybe, just maybe, <i>that </i>would be the year it would all become realized.<br />
<br />
I'm sure I've gotten down on myself for not achieving these goals. It's hard not to feel like a failure when it seems like you're incapable of sticking to one thing, of making it come to fruition. But then I thought, well, I know I'm not lazy, and I'm trying, I really am. So.. why can't I get it? If I want these things that badly, why can't I figure out how to achieve them? And then another thought occurred to me- <i>Do</i> I really want them that badly? I mean, yes, I want to be able to cook better, and find a supportive significant other. But what was the real purpose behind the choices I was making for my resolutions? Why was my goal to go to the gym four times a week? To get in shape. But why did I think it had to happen at the gym? <br />
<br />
I didn't end up making it to the gym even once a week over the past year, but instead, I took more seriously something that I was already doing, and really enjoyed- dancing. And through dancing, and wanting to improve my core and balance, I found something that probably got me into better shape than I’ve been in a long time- kickboxing. So I realized that maybe I needed to rethink what it is that I really wanted, or at least rethink <i>how</i> I wanted to get there.<br />
<br />
Why did I want to experiment with new recipes? Because many of my friends are great cooks and I thought that I should be one? Because I'm female and Indian, and who ever heard of an Indian female who wasn’t great in the kitchen? And was going out on dates with guys who weren’t really my type making me happy? No, but pressure from family and society was telling me that it was 'wrong' for me to be a single girl in my 30's, and I needed to find a more ‘suitable’ match, .Suitable for who, though? When I really looked at my choices, and the things I thought I was failing to achieve, I came to realize that I wasn't really giving myself a fair chance, because I was choosing things that weren't truly at the top of <i>my</i> own list. I had just pulled them off of other people's lists, or an imaginary list which I thought I needed to get through.<br />
<br />
And I came to see that when the resolutions are not truly our own, we have less of a drive to make them a reality, to make them last. And so, inevitably, we ‘fail’ at completing them.<br />
<br />
So how do we find out what <i>we</i> really want, especially when the words of others, from society and friends and family have become so engrained in us that we can't clearly separate our own desires from those of others? My suggestion is to imagine you are given a second chance, to live your life exactly the way you want it. Forget about your age, or that your sister once told you that you couldn't sing, or that you don't have the money to travel across the world, or you don't have the time to take those painting classes while taking care of kids and a family. Think big, think without worrying about what you believe you can or can't do. Think about what you truly desire. What would you like your life to look like if nothing was holding you back?<br />
<br />
"Hope is a dangerous thing," I recently heard in a movie. And yes, it can be scary to dream about what your life could look like, without any obstacles, because you fear that as soon as you wake up from the dream, reality will hit you and sadden you, reminding you that none of those dreams are a ‘possibility’. But would it be better to wake up towards the end of your life and regret all the things you wish you had at least tried? <br />
<br />
There is a poem called <i>If I Had My Life to Live Over</i> by Nadine Stair that reminds me of this very idea.<br />
<br />
<b><i>If I Had My Life To Live Over- by Nadine Stair</i></b><br />
<br />
<i>If I had my life to live over</i><br />
<i>I'd dare to make more mistakes next time.</i><br />
<i>I'd relax, I would limber up.</i><br />
<i>I would be sillier than I have been this trip.</i><br />
<i>I would take fewer things seriously.</i><br />
<i>I would take more chances.</i><br />
<br />
<i>I would climb more mountains and swim more rivers.</i><br />
<i>I would eat more ice cream and less beans.</i><br />
<i>I would perhaps have more actual troubles, </i><br />
<i>but I'd have fewer imaginary ones.</i><br />
<br />
<i>You see, I'm one of those people who live </i><br />
<i>sensibly and sanely hour after hour, </i><br />
<i>day after day.</i><br />
<br />
<i>Oh, I've had my moments,</i><br />
<i>And if I had it to do over again, </i><br />
<i>I'd have more of them.</i><br />
<i>In fact, I'd try to have nothing else.</i><br />
<i>Just moments, one after another,</i><br />
<i>instead of living so many years ahead of each day.</i><br />
<br />
<i>I've been one of those people who never goes anywhere </i><br />
<i>without a thermometer, a hot water bottle, a raincoat</i><br />
<i>and a parachute.</i><br />
<i>If I had to do it again, I would travel lighter than I have.</i><br />
<br />
<i>If I had my life to live over,</i><br />
<i>I would start barefoot earlier in the spring</i><br />
<i>and stay that way later in the fall.</i><br />
<i>I would go to more dances.</i><br />
<i>I would ride more merry-go-rounds.</i><br />
<i>I would pick more daisies.</i><br />
<br />
Apparently, the author was eighty five years old when she wrote it. The poem is a reflection on what could have been- a tone of sadness and regret runs throughout it. It's a reminder of that dreaded <i>what if? </i>that can haunt us many years or even a lifetime after the event that first started it.<br />
<br />
I decided I didn’t want to look back in my eighties or even now and suffer over regret. So, a few years ago, I took some time to write my own version of Stair’s poem- my own If I Had My Life to Live Over piece. <br />
<br />
<b><i>If I Had My Life To Live Over- by Tasleem</i></b><br />
<br />
<i>If I had my life to live over,</i><br />
<i>I would spend more time at coffee shops,</i><br />
<i>And less time worrying.</i><br />
<i>I would read more novels in bed,</i><br />
<i>And kiss deeper.</i><br />
<i>I would think less</i><br />
<i>and feel more.</i><br />
<br />
<i>I would prance around in my pyjamas in the morning</i><br />
<i>and lay under the stars at night.</i><br />
<i>I would look you straight in the eyes when we speak,</i><br />
<i>and I would shed more tears in front of friends.</i><br />
<i>I would touch more hearts,</i><br />
<i>give longer hugs,</i><br />
<i>and spend more time holding my mom’s hand.</i><br />
<br />
<i>If I had my life to live over,</i><br />
<i>I would get more massages,</i><br />
<i>give more passion,</i><br />
<i>and smile with an open heart.</i><br />
<br />
<i>I would take deeper breaths,</i><br />
<i>inhaling all the life and love around me.</i><br />
<i>I would play more with my niece,</i><br />
<i>twirl her around just to hear that laugh, so sweet.</i><br />
<i>I’d sit at the dinner table with family,</i><br />
<i>and share more secrets with my brother, just him and me.</i><br />
<br />
<i>If I had my life to live over,</i><br />
<i>I’d lean my head on my cousin’s shoulder,</i><br />
<i>play with her hair the way she used to do with mine,</i><br />
<i>and write about our adventures in Gastown and Kilimanjaro.</i><br />
<br />
<i>I would wake up to Corinne Bailey Rae</i><br />
<i>and sleep to Sade.</i><br />
<i>I’d spend the day feeling John Mayer’s</i><br />
<i>Heart of Life…” so good. I know it’s good”.</i><br />
<br />
<i>If I could live my life over,</i><br />
<i>I’d give <place w:st="on"><country-region w:st="on">India</country-region></place> Arie the poem I wrote about her,</i><br />
<i>And confess to that guy how crazy I am about him.</i><br />
<br />
<i>I would contemplate Rumi each day,</i><br />
<i>and learn about the Sufi ways.</i><br />
<br />
<i>I would use this voice,</i><br />
<i>and not just in the shower. </i><br />
<i>Got to sing my own song,</i><br />
<br />
<i>Ain’t that right, Joss Stone?</i><br />
<i>I love that one where you bluntly admit</i><br />
<i>that you’re just so damn tired of his shit.</i><br />
<i>Your laugh and the line “that’s a keeper,… b*&#h!”</i><br />
<i>have to be the most liberating bits.</i><br />
<br />
<i>Go, Jossy!</i><br />
<i>If I had my life to live over,</i><br />
<i>Ya, I would be that bold and saucy.</i><br />
<br />
<i>And I would dance, dance, dance</i><br />
<i>-tango, salsa and blues…</i><br />
<i>I’d dance every dance.. maybe country too,</i><br />
<i>as the rhythm of life in me grew.</i><br />
<br />
<i>And once it reached me deep in my soul,</i><br />
<i>I would touch everyone I know.</i><br />
<i>I would become Miss Midas</i><br />
<i>-turning hatred into hearts of gold.</i><br />
<br />
<i>If I had my life to live over,</i><br />
<i>I’d let my body surrender</i><br />
<i>to the blowing of the wind.</i><br />
<i>-with the trees I’d sway.</i><br />
<i>I’d let oceans guide me,</i><br />
<i>Carefree</i><br />
<i>-a fluid spirit among the waves.</i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Tasleem ©</span></i><br />
<br />
Without realizing it at the time, my version of the poem became my list of New Year and New Life Resolutions for that year and years to come. Now, looking back at it after a couple of years, I can genuinely smile at myself for I have made many of the parts of the poem a reality since then. For example, I make more of a conscious effort to look at people in the eyes – even if it’s the grocery guy at the check out at Save on Foods, or the teller at the bank- when I am speaking to them, just as I described in my poem. And two dreams I thought I would never have the guts to do or never get the opportunity to do came true in 2011: I gave India Arie the poem I wrote her, and I actually gave it to her personally, and I told, or at least showed, ‘that guy’ how crazy I am about him. Neither Arie’s nor the guy’s reactions were what I hoped for. But now, looking back, I am relieved I didn’t get stuck with that guy. And I realized that other people’s reactions was not what was important. After accomplishing two of the harder things on my list/poem, I felt like the rest was easier. And I gained the strength that made me feel like I could accomplish anything I wanted after that.<br />
<br />
So now it’s your turn. Write your own If I Had My Life To Live Over piece starting with that line. And whenever you get stuck, rewrite the line again and it will jog your subconscious to remember what lays deep inside you. Choose to express it however you like: write a poem, rhyming or without rhymes, a list, bullet points, sketches, mind mapping, a letter to yourself, tell a friend, speak it in a recorder, paint it, or sing it! <br />
<br />
For there is magic in seeing down on paper, or canvas or in a song, and showing you and the universe, what your real dreams are made of. Something shifts, something hears your wishes, and the world really does conspire to make dreams a reality when you let them. Even in just the process of getting your ideas down, you might just surprise yourself by what comes out of you, what gets put on your list. Sometimes, you don't even realize which dreams are hidden inside you until you make the time to allow them the freedom to emerge on that page or canvas or tune. You might learn something new about yourself you didn't know. And the most important part is that it’s all you. It’s your list, and no one else’s.<br />
<br />
And when something on the list strikes the right chord in your heart, it is hard to break that beat. Something starts singing inside of you, keeps you moving towards the goal. And then a new kind of perseverance and drive emerges, one that can't be stopped or shoved aside any longer. You don't have to try to get this thing done, and force yourself to practise it each day, or force yourself to make time for it. It will be such a driving force in you that you will look for it everywhere- opportunities to make it happen. And it will also come to you and find you, when it knows you want it that badly. When you feel something so deeply, something that makes you so happy, something that fulfills you in this way, you won't allow it to dwindle away after a few months. This firing up of new or old dreams, that probably was and is always there for you to snatch up, is a great way to start up a new year, and quite possibly, a "new" life. I know it was just that for me.<br />
<br />
And now, after being able to cross off much of the list on that old poem version of mine, I'm ready to create a new version of my If I Could Live My Life Over poem. <br />
<br />
While you record yours, I’ll rewrite mine. And together, we will find what truly moves us as individuals so that we can start the new year with resolutions that will last.<br />
<br />
Happy New Year to all of you! </div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-1184414530384776642011-11-19T18:25:00.000-08:002011-11-19T18:26:27.081-08:00This is your life! Do what you love...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj90jjefqMM3Z-BI9-ubKr8bTGuvf9tNMEawHfSmqlGUiXe1BQdZf64XE3cq1pGXCrxaF3wlfDAMxQcHlWqMF1lbicZsovTvIfGi2xUhfoPJeVKVwYvOWcWUkKyfAGv-QwY1PlPtDYby2s/s1600/this+is+your+life.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="400px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj90jjefqMM3Z-BI9-ubKr8bTGuvf9tNMEawHfSmqlGUiXe1BQdZf64XE3cq1pGXCrxaF3wlfDAMxQcHlWqMF1lbicZsovTvIfGi2xUhfoPJeVKVwYvOWcWUkKyfAGv-QwY1PlPtDYby2s/s400/this+is+your+life.jpg" width="298px" /></a></div></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-50196081572422456212011-11-16T14:39:00.000-08:002011-11-16T14:43:16.144-08:00Let Go...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOtiqLFTUGdqu2K01W7Q26HyDSQc6dZ9AZSsjFq5LqLRS-Hvb44KIUHFe-m7L9wyJVi4HZ-nQbHbCxeWdRplsNan3YP36X0L2rDPOpmMTVY8AEJtlGyFdO8_FLcLodXg8FtykluoCzgPg/s1600/let+go.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="170px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOtiqLFTUGdqu2K01W7Q26HyDSQc6dZ9AZSsjFq5LqLRS-Hvb44KIUHFe-m7L9wyJVi4HZ-nQbHbCxeWdRplsNan3YP36X0L2rDPOpmMTVY8AEJtlGyFdO8_FLcLodXg8FtykluoCzgPg/s200/let+go.jpg" width="200px" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em>"We must be willing </em></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em>to let go of the life we planned </em></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em>so as to have the life </em></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em>that is waiting for us.” </em></span><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>― Joseph Campbell</em></span></div></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-58895734138155611502011-11-05T14:06:00.000-07:002011-11-06T01:46:20.198-07:00Leon Williams - Model and More...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoYB-cF4w4_Sbj298xXlp-v5T0HCUxFUE4Hf6wAPxEvYpU9SpQj26q2-ltnGpAhQLljlxm7sRXVUM4pWxNeAUxnVu_3qez9tpJ439mU9XpUT38jXvk1XeaTf5tauwbkPuVPaYCkHcbnrw/s1600/leon27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoYB-cF4w4_Sbj298xXlp-v5T0HCUxFUE4Hf6wAPxEvYpU9SpQj26q2-ltnGpAhQLljlxm7sRXVUM4pWxNeAUxnVu_3qez9tpJ439mU9XpUT38jXvk1XeaTf5tauwbkPuVPaYCkHcbnrw/s320/leon27.jpg" width="212px" /></a><em>It was a pleasure meeting Leon just a couple of months ago, not only to find out more about him, but </em><em>also to remind me that we really can't judge a book by its cover, or... its ...head shot?</em></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
<em>Leon's modeling photos definitely grabbed my attention, but what struck me the most was learning how much more there was to this guy than just what is seen on camera. Leon proves to not only have a natural affinity for this new found interest, but he is also a compassionate individual who dedicates a lot of his time to others: he helps adults in need of special assistance and also has a background in childhood education. </em><br />
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9gLMwESXygORbWoxUBGg4LXlAVVKmIW-B3c_GDTxsiBjAu1-nyVSvtwboKVUFXXqhhqFeq6EsifDr7m480YOmIx0pdqVJjBi6c4ARMJlZfo02DHHQwT2q_EHdLLxx101_nW9wiVe7ewg/s1600/leon2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9gLMwESXygORbWoxUBGg4LXlAVVKmIW-B3c_GDTxsiBjAu1-nyVSvtwboKVUFXXqhhqFeq6EsifDr7m480YOmIx0pdqVJjBi6c4ARMJlZfo02DHHQwT2q_EHdLLxx101_nW9wiVe7ewg/s320/leon2.jpg" width="212px" /></a><em>His many interests and depth of personality provided more depth to the many 'faces' (and more!) we see in his photos. Most of all, it was great to see that Leon is a 'real' person, who fears and dreams just like anyone else, and is open to sharing his hardships and successes with others. He doesn't let the glamor and attention of being in front of the camera allow him to forget to be himself. Yet, he still allows himself to enjoy the fun and challenge of this new career path.</em></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Tasleem: I think a lot of people would love to model, but they either don't have the look, or don't know who to go to or where to start. How did you get your first experience/job modeling? Were you looking for that kind of work, or did you just kind of fall into it?</strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><br />
</strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Leon: My first experience/modeling job was with a free lance photographer. He helped create a start up portfolio for me which generated interest from other photographers who offered me more quality work. I fell into modeling by way of responding to ads and submitting photos I took myself, such as the always popular bathroom shoot! (laughs). I was actually studying to become an early education teacher and I loved teaching. But unfortunately, I went through some experiences during my teaching practice in which I was treated unfairly, and this made it difficult for me to feel enthusiastic about continuing with that path. So I was looking to do something new, fun, interesting, and exciting. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqaNzJ1cVlTxcSn33_yPv4_Au39o99c29d5B7mMJi885c2IBxqg2hygQxbe9-2QYlo1c3JsyqxyUQHhc-gH5gM_6UBcfbHM27pxLN8cWjuW_QX930PR_QUpADObGT-FYUvccXFo5W1000/s1600/leon25.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqaNzJ1cVlTxcSn33_yPv4_Au39o99c29d5B7mMJi885c2IBxqg2hygQxbe9-2QYlo1c3JsyqxyUQHhc-gH5gM_6UBcfbHM27pxLN8cWjuW_QX930PR_QUpADObGT-FYUvccXFo5W1000/s200/leon25.jpg" width="133px" /></a><strong>Because modeling has so much to do with outer appearance, you have to obviously keep fit. What do you do to make sure you're in shape for yourself but also for the camera? And have you had to do anything additional to your workout or health routine for modeling in particular?</strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I honestly don't do much; my family is Jamaican so I eat! (laughs). All I have to do is play basketball or run; I sweat off the pounds. When I'm able to get to a gym, I do the normal workouts, but I guess my secret is that when I find myself being idle, but I am on a surface that is not strenuous on the body, I do some reps. Even if I’m sitting at home or in front of a TV, I will do crunches or work on my arms and that kind of thing whenever I get a chance. I guess the credit also goes to being blessed and having good genes!</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Besides having an attractive outer appearance, I think people who model, and are successful at it, need to feel comfortable in front of the camera. I mean, there’s a certain presence, connection and comfortableness with the camera that you need to have, I think. How do you feel around a camera? Did you have to get used to posing in front of one, or do you feel like it came naturally?</strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><br />
</strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-sOg0J1RDNSmJ99JHzNjq6jBu6TDoWqalW6g-fu03St07CE6DHxTfLM-x1VI88hpju1Bjg7o5HkAg7zr66tDCZ1wokLSSg4P3G6LScEKLwn4d4KQc3lSaJJysrx9vpU2rbf-dVz706OM/s1600/leon14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-sOg0J1RDNSmJ99JHzNjq6jBu6TDoWqalW6g-fu03St07CE6DHxTfLM-x1VI88hpju1Bjg7o5HkAg7zr66tDCZ1wokLSSg4P3G6LScEKLwn4d4KQc3lSaJJysrx9vpU2rbf-dVz706OM/s320/leon14.jpg" width="212px" /></a>I have a love/hate relationship with the camera. Some of the pictures I’m in come out great, others just good or okay, while others are not so good. I dislike the camera because it catches everything; you see the flaws which remind you of what you need to work on. This could be insightful as well, though. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">But I also love the camera because it allows me to be free. I don’t need to worry about anything else going on in my life when I’m doing a shoot. But you can also bring those emotions from your everyday activities and life into the shoot, to capture the essence of you! It really depends on the mood or vibe of the photo shoot. I feel it was somewhat natural for me to be in front of the camera because I just enjoy myself when I'm there. And after, when I view some of the pictures, I can look back and see what is working for me and what is not. Once you know the idea of what the photographer wants captured, you just try to portray the look. It's a fun challenge!</div></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaiO-WpZzeJGMG2yM_rf0zv0e1A0HgvuGM4mb98ZabOTzNgYwwJAdGI8jl-YfeWtT5BWnL9NxuJEdR84NywH_-_5CgRJdfGRsz0KweJWdzr1M9KFKOXsmgxhT5zgzefYMDkGL1xWmNk7c/s1600/leon26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaiO-WpZzeJGMG2yM_rf0zv0e1A0HgvuGM4mb98ZabOTzNgYwwJAdGI8jl-YfeWtT5BWnL9NxuJEdR84NywH_-_5CgRJdfGRsz0KweJWdzr1M9KFKOXsmgxhT5zgzefYMDkGL1xWmNk7c/s320/leon26.jpg" width="213px" /></a></div><strong>After I met you, and talked to you, I later saw your photos on facebook. And honestly, I almost thought they </strong><strong>were two different people. I mean, there is a certain attitude or arrogance and ‘cockiness’ that comes across in the photos (an assumption on my part) that I don't feel at all with you in person. In person, you are so down to earth and polite and gentle in your nature. Even your regular job working with adults with special needs involves so much patience and caring and compassion. Do you feel different than your everyday self in front of the camera? When you look at your own photos, do you see YOU, or does it feel like you're looking at someone else? </strong></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0FkbV_l6AeZvdzTAtVNQZLPWQn8mstrpbx6OrXmJS5smcil4FAYT8-TNDYLkC2RadhB1okb61IGtsBS2hYBn3lrQZ01wSC8IGor9Gdt2PmAZRaKjWxP2cujB_PPnC7_v7bQDECzmtS4Y/s1600/leon1.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0FkbV_l6AeZvdzTAtVNQZLPWQn8mstrpbx6OrXmJS5smcil4FAYT8-TNDYLkC2RadhB1okb61IGtsBS2hYBn3lrQZ01wSC8IGor9Gdt2PmAZRaKjWxP2cujB_PPnC7_v7bQDECzmtS4Y/s1600/leon1.bmp" /></a>I believe that the photos reveal parts of me that don't come out as freely, or parts that wouldn't be seen on a regular basis, due to my being a quiet individual. At photo shoots, you sometimes get direction so you try to display that emotion or expression that they want on cue. But you also can add your own flare or personality. I, myself, am even impressed sometimes at the final product, but I feel I can always do better. There's always room for improvement. I'm normally shy, but once the whole concept comes together, I just feel the vibe and want to capture something hot or memorable, depending on what is being asked, to show my kids one day. Truthfully I know it's me, but even I marvel at the outcome sometimes. <br />
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMLiZbHKolkjMiFddnE5Yz6G-JS3l_eWZS7TpU2-fDjr1Qx-SXWBoifT7f5dFfB39KLPlKNq5CKTM8Y_9UJVMjOxsNikjrK-tQZDeH1TRKOva5wJhNhzShuNSMTevG3rmNFIxS2M0d1-E/s1600/leon18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMLiZbHKolkjMiFddnE5Yz6G-JS3l_eWZS7TpU2-fDjr1Qx-SXWBoifT7f5dFfB39KLPlKNq5CKTM8Y_9UJVMjOxsNikjrK-tQZDeH1TRKOva5wJhNhzShuNSMTevG3rmNFIxS2M0d1-E/s200/leon18.jpg" width="122px" /></a>I laugh at the feedback I get from others who see my photos. “No need to make a fuss over me,” I tell them, “I'm just a regular guy!” And actually, I question when and how I got to looking like I do, especially because I used to be fat. My heading on twitter is ‘Who Knew?’ because even I didn't know that I could have sex appeal. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">But yes, I'm just a regular guy working in the mental health field, helping adults with special needs, or adults who struggle with substance abuse, or mental illness, and who require services that I help provide. I also love kids and still hope to teach in an elementary school classroom one day, since I went to college and acquired a degree in that field, and really enjoy teaching. I also promote events at clubs around the Atlanta, Georgia area. </div></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">As far as the modeling goes, the sexy might be what brings people out or grabs their attention. But get to know me and I'll show you there's so much more to me than just a fit body and smile! I guess that's why people find me interesting, because I come off different than what they may first assume from viewing my pictures. But as you know, once you sit down and get to know me, it’s totally different.</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt6QtvroXiGAEhyphenhyphenOWo21toH26Zm-Y-9S-fTjor1nOIZPANAUVIcNxOeoThTn8Y7wPbRa96Lvh4ruhoxpYqNiAAmhjAJMaPxnluFb6Cir-OSlZdH7iHrIc8c023-2C0TaY2bDGaWTT8hJg/s1600/leon22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt6QtvroXiGAEhyphenhyphenOWo21toH26Zm-Y-9S-fTjor1nOIZPANAUVIcNxOeoThTn8Y7wPbRa96Lvh4ruhoxpYqNiAAmhjAJMaPxnluFb6Cir-OSlZdH7iHrIc8c023-2C0TaY2bDGaWTT8hJg/s320/leon22.jpg" width="212px" /></a><strong>It seems like you have fun playing around with a variety of looks when modeling and you pull them all off really well. Do you have a favorite look, or favorite photo of yours?</strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I really don't have a favorite look or photo, but I'm starting to lean towards pictures of me with more clothes on, simply because it wards off unwanted attention. Also, I try to avoid photographers who just want to capture my body on camera just for their own personal gain. I like all my pictures because just modeling itself is completely out of my comfort zone. And I still question the pictures I take, or that are taken of me, due to other people’s criticism of them, but I think, “Oh well, you only live once, so live your life for you.” <br />
<br />
People have told me my eyes are the draw in the photos, <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbwRGI5RhaFyB4FoBOwUv9BexZFZUFO9VbNp636Um-5_6XePdfxR6zj7Acj4Z75zXiYtSd9oh5Gw82E8EgjK269XWJBwgTP36zhKQ7E3-hY1q1agg6KxT7lHC0IYmACsom3sLu9EbXLQY/s1600/leon19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbwRGI5RhaFyB4FoBOwUv9BexZFZUFO9VbNp636Um-5_6XePdfxR6zj7Acj4Z75zXiYtSd9oh5Gw82E8EgjK269XWJBwgTP36zhKQ7E3-hY1q1agg6KxT7lHC0IYmACsom3sLu9EbXLQY/s320/leon19.jpg" width="211px" /></a>and here I thought it was my naked body (laughs). Photographers always want to capture some shot with my shirt off and I have to admit that sometimes I do too, simply because I don't walk around like that on a regular basis. When people see my pictures, they actually believe I go walking around with my shirt off. And one of the funniest comments I heard was from a friend on facebook who said, "So you’ve been hiding all that under those clothes? I would have never known." Hilarious! I like the ab shots because people think they are ‘photo-shopped’ and question if I'm a real person. (laughs). Silly huh? </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Paulo Coelho, in his book <em>The Alchemist</em>, emphasizes the idea that if you tell the universe exactly what it is you want, and you just believe it, without worrying about HOW it will happen, the universe will conspire to make it happen for you. With that being said, if you were to take this modeling thing to where you really want it to go, what would you want to see come out of it? Maybe this is your chance to put it out there- to tell the universe what you want from it.</strong><br />
</div></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggieb5aTHd0pyJV45X-fEvrdbpn7E91vCXZr6-zXzUAbv1f6U5R0hdJ2xx4QJEAq-iTu3f6tvj_1fn_ru1vvHm8mNSpTfBHctlQFs9YONyfIEGtvrMisc_0pzoYD_U3HSdRJgQpmbyS_o/s1600/leon13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggieb5aTHd0pyJV45X-fEvrdbpn7E91vCXZr6-zXzUAbv1f6U5R0hdJ2xx4QJEAq-iTu3f6tvj_1fn_ru1vvHm8mNSpTfBHctlQFs9YONyfIEGtvrMisc_0pzoYD_U3HSdRJgQpmbyS_o/s200/leon13.jpg" width="132px" /></a><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I would love to be a part of the international runway shows as well as different commercials and movies! Hopefully, my time will come and someone will take interest in me to help me get there. Patience is a virtue, so I don't let the fact that people I know are getting shots and having their careers take off, while I haven’t gotten to where I want to yet with this. But I’m enjoying what I’m doing right now, and I'll remain positive and stay ready!</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPfK4JarSIHcQXZXhnPlSMV0NPAacs6AehtB6ZX8-yww0oW0b17a92zAf1CmVXzvDdfDFpRrXTSsc3wS_0un5Z1TRzQJrmSAfx5cW6S3NuTJ7gCDJdqGqCC3F_XEQzQBTGVvwrP0J0IqM/s1600/leon8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPfK4JarSIHcQXZXhnPlSMV0NPAacs6AehtB6ZX8-yww0oW0b17a92zAf1CmVXzvDdfDFpRrXTSsc3wS_0un5Z1TRzQJrmSAfx5cW6S3NuTJ7gCDJdqGqCC3F_XEQzQBTGVvwrP0J0IqM/s200/leon8.jpg" width="133px" /></a><strong>Is there something else, either connected to modeling or even separate from it, that you are hoping to achieve? I mean, I know that modeling wasn't the career that you first trained in or what you originally expected you'd be doing, so what are your other aspirations now?</strong></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I would love to explore acting as it coincides with modeling, but my main goal was to play basketball. I'm 6'3 and was referred to as ‘a basketball player in a football player’s body,’ but I'm too delicate for that right now. I have a cist in my leg which hinders me from playing sports other than for fun, so modeling fits with what I want and can do right now. I'm still in search of what makes me happy, so I'm just living life and enjoying my loved ones.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGpaHgayHZLTmoGje5CNSnIwS1L8xZlpUehdZuKqiUhRpyGLQ032H2bQrzn-P76Agtlg8nP0LNPq1S2RcHuowNYhDsTHHEvCH38eLXn15YIjS3Hx2TkOUWS8taXXh4haxdxq92lDiQ8RQ/s1600/leon16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320px" ida="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGpaHgayHZLTmoGje5CNSnIwS1L8xZlpUehdZuKqiUhRpyGLQ032H2bQrzn-P76Agtlg8nP0LNPq1S2RcHuowNYhDsTHHEvCH38eLXn15YIjS3Hx2TkOUWS8taXXh4haxdxq92lDiQ8RQ/s320/leon16.jpg" width="212px" /></a><strong>What advice would you give to someone else who is interested in modeling but doesn't know much about what it entails besides what they see in magazines and on TV? Are there any pros and cons that stand out to you?</strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div>Modeling has allowed me to visit places I didn't have the means to before. I've been invited to events that are considered those 'only for the elite or upscale’. Being able to attend these event, in turn, allowed me to network with all kinds of individuals I would never have met before. I've experienced and seen the good, bad, and ugly of the modeling world. Anyone who is interested in modeling should always do their research and protect themselves. I would say don’t be so trusting with people in the industry. <br />
<br />
I'm just exploring a new found self and the hand that was dealt to me. There have been a lot of ups and downs throughout the journey, but even when I'm down, I will continue to get back up and strive for a better tomorrow. <br />
<br />
Watch this video clip of Leon Williams <br />
from James C. Lewis on Vimeo.<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="225" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/26967101?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="400"></iframe><br />
<br />
You can find Leon Williams on Twitter: <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/mystiquejudah">@mystiquejudah</a><br />
<br />
Photographs Courtesy of <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Noire3000-N3k-Photo-Studios/131448093598761">Noire3000 N3K Photo Studios</a><br />
<br />
</div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-51698390402631701252011-10-19T19:52:00.000-07:002011-10-19T19:54:52.481-07:00The Art of Love and Heavenly Magic<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Our 14-year-old dog Abbey died last month. The day after she passed away my 4-ye...ar-old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how much she missed Abbey. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her. I told her that I thought we could so, and she dictated these words:<br />
<br />
<em>Dear God,</em><br />
<em>Will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in heaven. I miss her very much. I am happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick.</em><br />
<em>I hope you will play with her. She likes to swim and play with balls. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her you will know that she is my dog. I really miss her.</em><br />
<em>Love, Meredith</em><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA4PHOorUjMRfNMkQRcsT7XfRPsWsVXDRAVVIkZZP7PPxC-66maF-9ToZNG7__rpd5alFGdN_ZNYMiSft9wux9soT6Wq5QDramzLqaW7vI_lmhQWXrJvvknr_vVbf_GmeiJk5bqVHna34/s1600/child+and+dog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" rda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA4PHOorUjMRfNMkQRcsT7XfRPsWsVXDRAVVIkZZP7PPxC-66maF-9ToZNG7__rpd5alFGdN_ZNYMiSft9wux9soT6Wq5QDramzLqaW7vI_lmhQWXrJvvknr_vVbf_GmeiJk5bqVHna34/s1600/child+and+dog.jpg" /></a></div><br />
We put the letter in an envelope with a picture of Abbey and Meredith and addressed it to God/Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith pasted several stamps on the front of the envelope because she said it would take lots of stamps to get the letter all the way to heaven. That afternoon she dropped it into the letter box at the post office. A few days later, she asked if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had.<br />
<br />
Yesterday, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch addressed, 'To Meredith' in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith opened it. Inside was a book by Mr. Rogers called, 'When a Pet Dies.' Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God in its opened envelope. On the opposite page was the picture of Abbey & Meredith and this note:<br />
<br />
<em>Dear Meredith,</em><br />
<em>Abbey arrived safely in heaven. Having the picture was a big help and I recognized her right away.</em><br />
<em>Abbey isn't sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don't need our bodies in heaven, I don't have any pockets to keep your picture in so I am sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by.</em><br />
<em>Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her especially for you. I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much. By the way, I'm easy to find. I am wherever there is love.</em><br />
<em>Love, God</em><br />
<br />
Don't say you're too busy to forward this. Just go ahead and do it<br />
By: Mark Castellano<br />
By: Randy Cox</div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-12438386112774104222011-09-22T19:08:00.000-07:002011-09-22T20:07:03.772-07:00If You Can Speak, You Can Sing- by Spencer Welch<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">If You Can Speak, You Can Sing <br />
<br />
“If you can walk, you can dance. If you can speak, you sing.”- African proverb<br />
<br />
I am often at parties or dinners where my profession comes up:<br />
<br />
“And what do you do, Spencer?”<br />
<br />
“I’m a vocal coach.” <br />
<br />
(Well, let’s be truthful here...I’m not actually at a swanky party at all. I’m standing at US Customs and Immigration at Vancouver Airport begging them to let me into their country.)<br />
<br />
Anyways, my response usually provokes a perplexed smile. “A vocal coach? Is that like teaching Scottish accents to actors? I saw this thing on Entertainment Tonight...”<br />
<br />
“No, that’s a dialect coach. I teach people how to sing.”<br />
<br />
This usually elicits a laugh from the border guard (not a good sign) at which point he dives into Story #1: he saw this guy on American Idol...and the guy thought he could sing...but he was terrible...and everybody laughed at him....and do people like that ever come in my studio and can I teach them to sing?<br />
<br />
Or...Story #2: he sang in a choir when he was young...and someone said he was tone-deaf...and everyone moved to the other side of the room when he sang...and was he tone-deaf and could I teach him to sing? (Story #2, especially if accompanied by tears, is always a sign that things are looking up.)<br />
<br />
My answer to both stories is always the same: <br />
If you can speak, you can sing.<br />
<br />
There is no one who is tone-deaf. (“Well, you haven’t heard my Aunt Clarice.”) Learning to sing is like learning to ride a bike...they are both learned coordinations. One just involves training smaller muscles.<br />
<br />
If you have trouble singing, you just are untrained...that’s it. Many of us have bought the myth that singers are born. You can either sing or you can't, and that's it! As though God hands out voices like celestial “Duck, duck, goose.” “Here you go Stevie.. a-a-and Luther...and skip Spencer. There you go, Luciano.” <br />
<br />
Great singers are born with an extraordinary sounding instrument, but they still have to train it. Some are able to self-teach to a point, but did you check the “Endorsements” page? Celebrities need coaches too, just like the rest of us!<br />
<br />
A world-class voice is a combination of a great-sounding instrument, natural facility, quality vocal training, and a lot of perspiration. These are rare combinations which is why we celebrate them when they come along. But even if you aren’t destined to be the next Mariah Carey or Steve Perry, you can still improve what you have. You will love singing a lot more when it isn’t so darn frustrating.<br />
<br />
At this point, I usually hand the border guard my business card, collect my passport, and make a mad dash to my plane. The guard calls out after me, “Thanks for the tip, mate!” in the worst Scottish accent I’ve ever heard.<br />
<br />
- Spencer Welch, May 2007<br />
<a href="http://spencerwelch.com/joomla/">Spencer Welch Vocal Studios </a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
</div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-50380074486980306272011-09-22T18:17:00.001-07:002011-09-22T18:17:57.330-07:00YouTube Presents An Interview With Taylor Swift<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><object style="height: 390px; width: 640px;"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/OOPFMrF7v4Q?version=3"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/OOPFMrF7v4Q?version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="640" height="360"></object><br />
<br />
Thanks for sending this Renee!</div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-56667626748928115122011-09-20T15:19:00.001-07:002011-09-20T15:19:52.988-07:00Words of Wisdom by Rumi...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxyvpI0VI6j9mWnfnvNYn9eFenA0NGR_9ZjMagLliPETCiuAF_XnPZzr8t1TjYMLAdwjzB0DW-P87UBv86nFwVh35BzFqrB03pm5naSogkcula7x_L37Zz_tCAeUzTi7qwusC0GOEiYlo/s1600/rumi+quote.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxyvpI0VI6j9mWnfnvNYn9eFenA0NGR_9ZjMagLliPETCiuAF_XnPZzr8t1TjYMLAdwjzB0DW-P87UBv86nFwVh35BzFqrB03pm5naSogkcula7x_L37Zz_tCAeUzTi7qwusC0GOEiYlo/s1600/rumi+quote.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Thanks for posting this Shenpenn!</div></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-60500144430558569882011-08-15T09:30:00.000-07:002011-08-15T09:44:46.631-07:00Love, Art and the Divine...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div closure_uid_52g4o7="144" closure_uid_g11b3z="147"><div closure_uid_6duuj6="125">India Arie is always expressing her gratitude and love towards God and the universe through her music and lyrics. I love what she says in "GRAINS" in particular (the Intro, Interlude, and Outro of her Love and Politics album) Check this out:</div></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="147"><br />
</div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="155"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/m-yhOKWymhM" width="480"></iframe></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="155"><br />
</div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="155" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">"I'm grateful that you never cease to amaze me, </span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="144" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">the way you love me.</span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="155" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">From the flicker of an eyelash, to the furthest star, </span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="155" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">From the pyramids, to the beat of my heart.</span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="155" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">From a woman in Somalia, to a child in Harlem,</span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="145" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">we're created from the same thing.</span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="132" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">I'm grateful that </span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="132" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">you created me from the same grains, </span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="132" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">from the same thing.</span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="155" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">I'm grateful that </span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="155" closure_uid_g11b3z="182" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">you never cease to amaze me,</span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="146" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">the way you love me.</span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="146" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">I'm grateful that</span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="155" closure_uid_g11b3z="146" style="text-align: center;"><em><span closure_uid_lzvk8f="126" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">now I can see </span></em><br />
<em><span closure_uid_lzvk8f="126" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">that I am a part of everything</span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="155" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">and everything is a part of me.</span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="147" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">You're amazing." </span></em></div><div closure_uid_52g4o7="147" style="text-align: center;"><em><span closure_uid_g11b3z="183" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"> <span style="font-size: x-small;">-India Arie</span></span></em></div></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-6189179158324219842011-08-10T21:28:00.000-07:002011-08-10T21:30:20.782-07:00Dance in Your Blood<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij2Od4noitPfOABMp-cgjvgylbQXUSC6w89lxX0guGla5dSgipWY0GqJsVGpwG-flFkA2MyrSDSs9dYPZK9YI51wDAyXe-qMZ4UhWYOGC8sOvzesV3aZOazmYxp-1OJ2-91zskkybYiSY/s1600/belly_dance.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" naa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij2Od4noitPfOABMp-cgjvgylbQXUSC6w89lxX0guGla5dSgipWY0GqJsVGpwG-flFkA2MyrSDSs9dYPZK9YI51wDAyXe-qMZ4UhWYOGC8sOvzesV3aZOazmYxp-1OJ2-91zskkybYiSY/s1600/belly_dance.jpg" /></a></div><div closure_uid_6puodk="160" closure_uid_kcwsjk="284" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><br />
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em>"Dance, when you're broken open.</em></span></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em></em></span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span></span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em closure_uid_6puodk="177">Dance, if you've torn the bandage off.</em></span></div></div><div closure_uid_6puodk="141" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em>Dance in the middle of the fighting.</em></span></div></div><div closure_uid_6puodk="182" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em>Dance in your blood.</em></span></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em closure_uid_6puodk="178">Dance, when you're perfectly free."</em></span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div closure_uid_6puodk="179" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: x-small;"><em closure_uid_6puodk="178">- Jelaluddin Rumi</em></span></div><div closure_uid_6puodk="142" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><br />
</div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-6811630283333100062011-08-08T10:47:00.000-07:002011-08-08T10:50:50.568-07:00How Many Times Will I Stand In The Way Of Myself? - by Christina Perri<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div closure_uid_v4yki2="124">How Many Times Will I Stand In The Way Of Myself?</div>Posted By Christina Perri On July 25, 2011 (1:28 am) In Uncategorized<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl2CDjLaJ4iuylh2IurOZiv_yB5VjVS7aVmyH5TK_tu-606IPoU-MZlWPDAk8nkHz9cj87F7f0MGEKCQS-D_79Ns-Ow7OJ8b1DcOqampJ5xoc8-dJLyA1uAn8ZqFSAfqshZmP8AhM7Yi0/s1600/christinaperri-290x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" naa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl2CDjLaJ4iuylh2IurOZiv_yB5VjVS7aVmyH5TK_tu-606IPoU-MZlWPDAk8nkHz9cj87F7f0MGEKCQS-D_79Ns-Ow7OJ8b1DcOqampJ5xoc8-dJLyA1uAn8ZqFSAfqshZmP8AhM7Yi0/s1600/christinaperri-290x300.jpg" /></a></div>My job is to perform, write music, sing songs, love you, share, express, create, connect + shine. It’s a pretty rad job if I think about it that way… but most days I don’t. Do you ever think about the amazing parts of your job first? Sometimes all I want to think about is the bad stuff: the pressure, my voice, my stamina, traveling, missing my family, not having days off, not talking before + after shows, living out of a suitcase, flying southwest, eating bad rest stop food, losing a chapstick everyday, getting nervous, messing up notes, disconnecting…etc… etc… The problem is, the longer I make the list and the more I affirm all these parts of my life, the more prominent they become… and the more I manifest them into happening, ruling, winning and ultimately hurting my spirit. I’m just a little human filled with spirit that wants to share with you what’s been so freely given to me… light. Light is free. My light comes in the form of melody + music, and at the end of the day… I get to do this.<br />
<br />
Tonight I had my 4th show of my 1st headlining tour… and something shifted tonight. I did all the same rituals that I’ve done every day so far…. I wake up + pray + meditate + drink a green raw food smoothie + I steam my throat + I warm my vocals up for 1 hour + I do yoga + I stretch + I close my mouth and stay silent until 2 hours before the show where I warm up again + I drink a special Chinese syrup + steam my throat + I pray again alone + with my band + then I walk on stage. Tonight was no different… except one minuscule moment – one extra exhale – one more thought. Tonight I was walking from the dressing room to the stage + I said to myself: “you’re enough, Christina, just the way you are.” Something happened – in that blip of a second… I moved out of my way. I was so caught up in doing so much + preparing everything I could possibly prepare, that I didn’t even notice the past 3 shows I had still been standing direc tly in front of myself, my freedom + my spirit. I finally moved over + let the magic happen– I let the light shine through me to you + back to me again + back to you + back to me + back to you. It was unforgettable. It was my most favorite show so far.<br />
<br />
Tonight I grew into who I want to be. 100% me. Not good, not bad, just me. I had perfect notes + some flat notes. I had perfect hair + I had a big pimple. See, I’m a tough Italian girl from Philadelphia + couldn’t be more hard-headed sometimes… you can smack me in the face + I still won’t get it until I get it. Tonight I got it. Tonight I finally saw the only thing hurting me is me. The only roadblock to the dreams I’m dreaming are created by me. The fear that keeps me from connecting to you is birthed in the little parts of my mind made all by myself. So, how many of us are missing out on the magic, by thinking too hard about making the magic? Or how many of us are giving up on the right path because we run out of gas and turn back around when it’s hard? What if “hard” is only imaginary? And what if you’re just standing right in front of smooth sailing?<br />
<br />
I think I realized tonight that in order to enjoy the present moment, the life I’ve been given, the job I’ve been granted + the opportunity I’ve been awarded highly depends on the little act of moving… the f*ck… out of… my. own. way.<br />
<br />
Won’t you, please, join me?<br />
<br />
Love,<br />
Christina<br />
# # #<br />
<div closure_uid_v4yki2="128">Christina Perri is an awesome singer/songwriter and TDL really loves her. Check out her website here.</div>Article taken from The Daily Love - http://thedailylove.com<br />
<br />
URL to article: <a href="http://thedailylove.com/how-many-times-will-i-stand-in-the-way-of-myself/">http://thedailylove.com/how-many-times-will-i-stand-in-the-way-of-myself/</a></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-12338711596661869962011-07-20T22:45:00.000-07:002011-08-15T10:00:09.500-07:00Stevie Wonderful<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">"Heartache is inevitable in relationships." That's what a friend of mine wrote to me a few days ago, after feeling broken hearted over a girl who did not return the same feelings of love he offered her.<br />
<br />
<div closure_uid_3mlh4y="125">I could empathize, I could understand, and I could definitely relate to my friend's sentiments, but I refused to agree. Yes, some of my past relationships involved some sort of heartache: either because of mistrust, of jealousy, of simply growing apart, or it was just plain bad timing in general. And quite simply, this.... well, HURT- ...either both, or one of us.</div><br />
And when relationships pile up like this, it can be exhausting, and discouraging and difficult to see anything but a connection between love and hurt. It can be difficult to keep believing in the dream relationships we once did. But I think these painful relationships are lessons that need to be learned in order to appreciate the ones that are pleasurable and "painfree", so to speak, the relationships that are still to come. Past relationships help us to learn about people, to learn about ourselves, to gain experience and insight into the workings of relationships, and to figure out what we want for ourselves and with another person... to teach us how strong we can be. And also when to admit to our weaknesses and vulnerabilities.<br />
<br />
But there is a reason they are in the past.<br />
<br />
If those relationships hurt, but were in the past and did not last, instead of concluding that ALL relationships involve pain and heartache, I believe that the ones that are the RIGHT ones that we can look forward to in the future.... well, simply.... don't. I mean, they don't hurt. How did we get to the point where we think that pain and love go hand in hand?<br />
<br />
Don't get me wrong, I do think that relationships require effort, and are not easy in the sense that everything doesn't just come out perfectly every day, throughout the partnership. But associating heartache with loving, meaningful, relationships, as if all are destined to end in tragedy, is to me completely forgetting what is so beautiful about relationships in the first place.<br />
<br />
How many more positive relationships would exist if we changed our thinking and learned from, and then let go of, those relationships that involved pain and heartache, and instead, believed in and looked for the kind that help us grow and heal and make us feel good about ourselves and the world around us?<br />
-----------------------<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"></div>"<em>Stevie beautiful, </em><em>Stevie powerful, </em><em>Stevie spiritual, </em><em>Stevie Wonderful. </em><em>Stevie Wonderful." </em><em>-India Arie in Wonderful- her tribue to Stevie Wonder</em><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>In my last entry, I wrote about one of my favorite singer/songwriters India Arie. One of her heroes and good friends is the legendary Stevie Wonder. In one of her concerts, Arie let the audience in on some of Stevie's insights into love. One day, when India Arie must have been going through a rough time over a guy, she confided in Stevie Wonder. "Even though the man is blind," explained India, "Stevie has this way of looking you right in the eyes when he wants to say something to you and ensure you're listening." So on this day, Stevie Wonder squared himself right in front of India, leaned his head towards her face so that he was looking straight at her, put one hand on each of her shoulders and said, "India, remember one thing: LOVE SHOULD NOT HURT."<br />
<br />
<div closure_uid_3mlh4y="127">They were just four simple words, but there was a silence that fell in that room for a few seconds, as the words of Stevie Wonder, words that rung truth, were shared by Arie. I thought, why is this concept such a novelty? Somewhere along the line, maybe because of tragic love stories, or sad romantic movies, or negative relationship experiences, people have brought all of the stories together to come to the conclusion that love hurts. Yes, it does, if it's the wrong kind of love. But I believe the right kind, just clicks. It's "easy", or easier in the sense that people communicate in it, they understand each other, and even when they don't agree, they resolve to listen, to express what their feeling, and simply be honest. </div><br />
<div closure_uid_3mlh4y="128">This kind of love, no matter how it ends, can only be healing, supportive, and freeing, not hurtful.</div><div closure_uid_3mlh4y="129">Stevie Wonder's insights on this, his influence on India Arie's life, as well as Arie's deep faith in God's love, rolls over into much of her lyrics. She sums up this healthy type of love, the kind that builds and nurtures and protects, in two of her songs on her Love and Politics album: <em>He Heals Me</em>, and <em>Therapy</em>. The lyrics are a reminder for us to get back to the dream that love, real love, is enjoyable, fun, freeing and involves happiness, that we don't have to hide from love because of the pain it causes, but be open to it, for the therapy and growth it provides.</div><br />
He Heals Me<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/y78Q6eTrOIY" width="480"></iframe><br />
<br />
Therapy<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/la8qmkMd7L8" width="480"></iframe><br />
<br />
<div closure_uid_3mlh4y="130">(There is one kind of "pain" that I might be okay in accepting in love these days. John Mayer says it perfectly when he sings, "You look so good it hurts sometimes" in Your Body Is a Wonderland. Yah, I could gladly let that kind slide or sneak in to love sometimes :p) </div></div>Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5707511822701373488.post-34812536932048925892011-07-12T15:24:00.000-07:002011-07-13T11:09:13.228-07:00Back to India<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCUEe7V6_t3M5E5r65k6KkwzNw2Vr0XLn9NowdojipwFLnQhkwQ9EaDq_aT1n9D0p6oYozzH2UJv87hPVbpE_SLCfKdT4tIIGT5TBM1Iem6m-BVVaAlJkIdhylZnuYOw2myrjxDUQGSnw/s1600/india+arie1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><em><img border="0" height="200px" m$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCUEe7V6_t3M5E5r65k6KkwzNw2Vr0XLn9NowdojipwFLnQhkwQ9EaDq_aT1n9D0p6oYozzH2UJv87hPVbpE_SLCfKdT4tIIGT5TBM1Iem6m-BVVaAlJkIdhylZnuYOw2myrjxDUQGSnw/s200/india+arie1.jpg" width="160px" /></em></a><em>"How could I live one day without music, how could I live one day without you? How could I live one day without music? You're always in my head..." <span style="font-size: x-small;">- India Arie's <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOsIBvR-81A">"You're Always in My Head."</a></span></em></div><br />
Some days, this emptiness, or 'something-is-kind-of-missing' feeling overcomes me. It's like a 'constant craving' for something, a thirst that no matter where I go or what I do, I just don't know how to quench.<br />
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">At these times, I feel helpless, restless and a little lost, because I don't even know what it is I'm looking for. And then, something happens, sometimes it's just the smallest thing, that brings me back to myself, makes me feel more grounded, more like I belong, at least for a little while, anyway. And lately, this saving grace has been MUSIC. Actually, music has probably always been there for me, but more recently, I feel it, and hear it MORE- deeper, stronger, louder- inside me. </div></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Maybe I just need it more now. And somehow, it has shown up for me in a way I never knew it could. In the last few days, especially, I have surrounded myself all over again with an amazing singer-songwriter who had a huge effect on me a couple of years back. I used to listen to her words, her voice, her messages every day, many times in a day, and each song, each line, even her breaths between the words spoke to me, as if she understood exactly what I was feeling or thinking. And nothing has changed in that respect.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.indiaarie.com/">India Arie</a>, since I first discovered her, has filled my mind with new ways of thinking, new ideas- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsfKpnHEk1A">"strength, courage, and wisdom"</a>, as is the title of one of her tracks. And each time I connect with her in this way, I feel a little more found again, even now.</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi370VdjtlRL5QgkJZeQIiWPw70dRJXMgHXgVUkkVMcNQLxelnllqtriJvODkXMk5_OTqAZq0kYBto6slAqEF-90XPcY_7tPvZSwWQUOcaL5z-gmYeUsVGsS6ZECJm2FXco1sOqePAxFgk/s1600/india+arie5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200px" m$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi370VdjtlRL5QgkJZeQIiWPw70dRJXMgHXgVUkkVMcNQLxelnllqtriJvODkXMk5_OTqAZq0kYBto6slAqEF-90XPcY_7tPvZSwWQUOcaL5z-gmYeUsVGsS6ZECJm2FXco1sOqePAxFgk/s200/india+arie5.jpg" width="173px" /></a>Every single one of India Arie's songs individually, touches a different part of me, a different emotion, memory, or thought. But her albums and concerts are also a work of art as a whole, in totality, because they are designed to take us through a kind of journey within. Arie begins and ends each CD and each concert in what she calls a prayer. These prayers, discretely woven into the fabric of the music, are in the form of a beautiful song, sometimes about love (she used <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxkMlS2nuU8">"Ready For Love",</a> in one), other times about history, some about racism, forgiveness (her cover of Don Henley's "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLwYK0-nm6M">Heart of the Matter</a>"), and hope, and some simply about God and divine guidance. It's as if Arie is always reminding us that prayer, and God, are everywhere, all around us, and that they reach us in all kinds of forms. We just need to be open to them, to allow them in, and to take the time to see them.</div></div></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">This must be why, no matter where I am, or how lost I might feel, Arie's music grabs a hold of me in a way that assures me that things will be okay. I can feel it in her voice as she sings "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=humI4UELsXY">This too shall pass</a>". She means it, and believes it, and she makes me believe it too. Even though I may not know exactly where I am headed, I can be rest assured that there is someone or something looking after me; that I am "headed in the right direction".</div><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Blue Miller, India's guitarist and co-lyricist, had an Aunt Pearl who had a dream that Blue was going to write a hit song called "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lh1Lb-S-LlQ">Headed in the Right Direction</a>." And when he told India this, she sat and worked on a song with that title, and turned it into one of the tracks on her album <i>Voyage to India</i>. Arie cleverly references the aunt in the line, "Now I've found my Pearl of wisdom, there's no need for me to be afraid."</div><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Arie's music is never just about herself. She sings about family, friends, all races, places, and humanity in general. One of her songs celebrates the musical greats of the past. "<a href="http://www.vbox7.com/show:missjavascript?back_to=%2Fplay%3Ad568f908%3Fr%3Dgoogle">This is in remembrance of our ancestors</a>- Sam Cook and Marvin Gay and Donny Hathaway, and all that came before, you've opened up a door, 'cos of you, change gone come." She has praised Stevie Wonder for his "honesty of artistry", for being her "hero", for "touching her soul", in "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7repPBX4BQ&feature=related">Wonderful</a>," her tribute to him. And many of her songs praise God -"<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-FYNY72ylI">God is Real</a>," and the magical forms of expression He has created, especially the power of MUSIC. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"> </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg8ZN_EJJONfx3dKfPmvI2WCIl8hY9T9asTrz3C7uSVVfU47MooLtuaOFLwFhb8MXF_evfR1uW-OUJToX3Ok3LKo_iTYTpHS58QxOPIkLEYmJ9jXsR_1ezd-w4eOgoOB9ub-EyxGkdgpA/s1600/india+arie7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200px" m$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg8ZN_EJJONfx3dKfPmvI2WCIl8hY9T9asTrz3C7uSVVfU47MooLtuaOFLwFhb8MXF_evfR1uW-OUJToX3Ok3LKo_iTYTpHS58QxOPIkLEYmJ9jXsR_1ezd-w4eOgoOB9ub-EyxGkdgpA/s200/india+arie7.jpg" width="200px" /></a>In fact, Arie has a song that is simply about her love of Music, how she could not imagine living without it. She describes it as her "cool breeze on a summer's day, her river running through a desert plain, her shelter from the pouring rain, her comfort even before the pain." In this song, "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOsIBvR-81A">Always in My Head</a>," Arie describes how music is not just in a concert or symphony or band, but everywhere- "a tin can rolls across the gravel like a tambourine" It's all around us and she acknowledges how grateful she is for having a part in it: "If you were a shoulder, you're where I would rest, but I am your vessel, so I hear you in my head."</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I was always fascinated by India's music, but it wasn't until I saw her in concert live a few years back that I really got hooked. India is not just a performer, she is truly an artist, an artist that shares herself so fully with her fans and audience. My friend Michelle and I attended that concert at the Commodore together, and it was so incredible that we had to go back a second time a year later when she was playing at the Orpheum. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">From Arie's first note, I felt overwhelmed with such a rush of emotions. I wasn't feeling great that night, but her energy just brought me back to a sense of pure gratitude for the moment. I just knew I was exactly where I was meant to be at that time.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Not only was India so real and so open with her audience, just as she was in the previous concert, but she also brought her mom out onto the stage, to finish off the last piece of the night. Both of their voices resonated throughout that theater well after they walked off stage. And maybe that was part of the reason Michelle and I decided not to leave. I just wanted to hold on to all of it, and not let it go. </div><br />
When everyone else was heading out of the aisles, up the stairs and out the doors, Michelle and I stood staring at the stage and just walking towards it. The security guards and ushers were trying to get people to leave, but somehow, they didn't push too hard for us to go.<br />
<br />
It just seemed as if we were meant to stick around. And within a few minutes, India Arie's mom came back out on stage to pick up some of the flowing scarves that Arie had used throughout the concert. Michelle and I reached out our hands to her thanking her for the inspiring night. <br />
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The woman was humble, and sweet, just like any other mom. And then she did something that, well,... my own mother would do: as she bent down to pick up the last of the scarves, she said, "Why don't you come back stage and meet India?" </div><br />
Her hand gestured for us to follow her, as if she was just casually inviting us over for tea or something. Michelle and I looked at each other with a combination of excitement and disbelief.<br />
<br />
Of course, we were ready to follow. But, the next moment we looked up, Arie's mom was gone. She had left the stage before we could find out how we could get behind it. The security guards said we had to have passes, and we watched as girls were trying to sweet talk the guards, flirt with them, do anything they could do to get past them. But each one was turned down. <br />
<br />
Michelle and I knew that wasn't even our style, anyway. So we just waited, near the backstage door, not really knowing what we were going to do. <br />
<br />
Within minutes, the side door opened and someone slipped out of it. My back was towards him, but when I turned around, I recognized him to be none other than the amazing guitarist- <a href="http://www.bluemiller.com/">Blue Miller</a>. He was right behind me. <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3inVr_lLWtXoT-ngD3PkXQR4rJd1n4oOAQfR0rUBLMb5DB60eSPSkuAqJ8lCxxXLE0nn8T_HN_xn8rqIPc_Tx9hVXGI0BC92L7dqQxXYFFWz6eUgrsYWpXFUui21vkhVCUInOS1IZDv4/s1600/Picture+with+Blue+Miller.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150px" m$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3inVr_lLWtXoT-ngD3PkXQR4rJd1n4oOAQfR0rUBLMb5DB60eSPSkuAqJ8lCxxXLE0nn8T_HN_xn8rqIPc_Tx9hVXGI0BC92L7dqQxXYFFWz6eUgrsYWpXFUui21vkhVCUInOS1IZDv4/s200/Picture+with+Blue+Miller.jpg" width="200px" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Us with Blue Miller- mean guitarist<br />
and amazing lyricist</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">He smiled and said hi, and I told him how much I admired his songwriting. I knew Blue was responsible for many of the very poetic and profound lyrics throughout Arie's songs. And I felt so honored when he took the time to share some writing tips and inspiring words with me. He also seemed genuinely interested in Michelle's piano background and encouraged her to pursue her dreams with her music. He then told us about his Aunt Pearl's dream, and how Arie was so willing to just go with the idea for the song. And we got so caught up in the conversation with Blue that we kind of forgot about wanting to get back stage. He was so fascinating to listen to, and so down to earth. And he even ended up giving Michelle and I one of his autographed guitar picks each, which I still have, and will treasure forever. </div><br />
Blue neeeded to get back stage, so we said bye, but just before he disappeared through the doors, I mentioned how the reason we ended up sticking around for so long was because Arie's mom had invited us backstage to meet India. "Well, if India's mom said you could come back here, then you should listen to the woman. Come on in! You can be my guests," said Blue with a hardy grin. And just like that, he held the door open to us, and Michelle and I followed him backstage.<br />
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">We talked with Blue a little more, and met some of the members of the opening artist's group- the <a href="http://www.raphaelsaadiq.com/us/home">Raphael Saadiq</a> band. And then, I saw her. India Arie was within a few steps of us, and was heading our way. </div><br />
I think Michelle was calm and smiling, and told her what a pleasure it was to meet her, whereas, I couldn't get a word out for the first few seconds. I didn't want to say something stupid. And then out came the words, "I play your music in my car, when I get up, throughout the day and I even sleep to it. You're amazing. Who needs self-help books when you've got India Arie." <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV49BhBpnuAMeidAREThrYtmMHR0tq2zAajw8GUN3BVent9SE_Mjt_HAFQcVQbGo_8knr0oOToSAJWjizW92yD4mGEw4U5PpQD8HYcFFY2Z1IQ-MmxED3RA-ZOHzlLy2DvcmPkfKrMLSM/s1600/india+arie%252C+mishee+and+me.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150px" m$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV49BhBpnuAMeidAREThrYtmMHR0tq2zAajw8GUN3BVent9SE_Mjt_HAFQcVQbGo_8knr0oOToSAJWjizW92yD4mGEw4U5PpQD8HYcFFY2Z1IQ-MmxED3RA-ZOHzlLy2DvcmPkfKrMLSM/s200/india+arie%252C+mishee+and+me.jpg" width="200px" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">India Arie, Mishee and I</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Arie laughed and smiled, and said thank you. And let me tell you, she is just as beautiful and glowing and soothing in person as her words and voice are up on stage. <br />
<br />
Michelle and I got a picture with her, and one with Blue. And after talking to some of Raphael Saadiq's crew, Michelle and I ended up going out to dancing with one of the musicians and his friend later that night. <br />
<br />
The memories of that incredible experience have come flooding back to me in the last few days, because I decided to turn back to India and Blue's words for lessons, learning, inspiration and guidance once again. Listening to their music after so long, I appreciate it even more, the way it helps me grow and dream again. <br />
<br />
And I have come to think that maybe the emptiness I thought I was feeling at times is more like a space...not a lack, but an opening, or room to grow. And this space means that I can always allow something new to come into it, just as Arie's music opens me up to new ways of feeling and seeing. After all, you have to make space if you are wanting something to come into your life. "I want to live with an open heart," sings Arie in one of her interludes.<br />
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq94Hpa8_OgRATe8GXWpklRNiK6R2VvmuMGGcCwCA91emuE4TaOCJfnEywM80DetRKXxOvlWMTNYitkb_fogPJDyv6FAIqueUc1w7lnC1YSrJPJPIl_d24darYwMfOjhzm08pnHipzX0c/s1600/india+arie4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133px" m$="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq94Hpa8_OgRATe8GXWpklRNiK6R2VvmuMGGcCwCA91emuE4TaOCJfnEywM80DetRKXxOvlWMTNYitkb_fogPJDyv6FAIqueUc1w7lnC1YSrJPJPIl_d24darYwMfOjhzm08pnHipzX0c/s200/india+arie4.jpg" width="200px" /></a>And she does just that, with thousands of people around the world. She shares not only her joy and love, but also her pain and heartache.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">And so, I've resolved to accept this feeling of being lost sometimes, not as a negative, but as a blessing... something mysterious, and unknown, but something necessary and beautiful at the same time. An opening of the heart.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Because, as India Arie sings, "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6P4jI8t-0I">...now that I've opened up my heart I know that anything I want can be. So let it be."</a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div>Just let it be. <br />
-------------------------------------------------------------------------<br />
<em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Some of my favorite India Arie tracks:</span></em><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y78Q6eTrOIY&feature=fvwrel"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">He Heals Me</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">; </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IE-5ytbuvLc"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Therapy</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">; </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7repPBX4BQ"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Wonderful- A tribute to Stevie Wonder</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">; </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOsIBvR-81A"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Always in My Head</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">; </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrenUxs_kN4"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Beautiful Surprise</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">; </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZwJqaeK9js"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">The Truth (he is</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">); </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6P4jI8t-0I"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Strength, Courage and Wisdom</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">; </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xZPMlCkDY8"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Little Things</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;"> (I love this video); </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxkMlS2nuU8"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Ready for Love</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;"> (beautiful video); </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjurvxuoLkg"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">India's Song</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">; </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_5jIt0f5Z4"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">I Am Not My Hair- feat. Akon</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">; </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7rSv5NvAK8"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">I Am Not My Hair- feat. Pink</span></em></a><em><span style="font-size: x-small;"> (just found this one!); </span></em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-pDaWYNer4"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">Slow Down</span></em></a><br />
<br />
</div><img height="96px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg8ZN_EJJONfx3dKfPmvI2WCIl8hY9T9asTrz3C7uSVVfU47MooLtuaOFLwFhb8MXF_evfR1uW-OUJToX3Ok3LKo_iTYTpHS58QxOPIkLEYmJ9jXsR_1ezd-w4eOgoOB9ub-EyxGkdgpA/s200/india+arie7.jpg" style="filter: alpha(opacity=30); left: 161px; mozopacity: 0.3; opacity: 0.3; position: absolute; top: 1177px; visibility: hidden;" width="96px" />Tasleemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03598156979275320257noreply@blogger.com