Another Moment of Zen

i'm savouring these days. it's manic. getting drunk on air. 3 robins in the field yesterday. i nearly cried. my grandma would call me to tell of her first sightings of spring. when thaw brings smells and all manner of deliciousness. starlings have begun building nests in my shed. right now, they stay close to home. they roll around like lovers in the muck. and oh the muck. last night before I slept i thought of a certain, beautiful immunity. about the luck and fortune of my rubber boots. about the instant, childlike joy of standing square in the middle of spring puddles. about being dry in the wet. warm in the cold. i walked through the bush sloshing through sleepy water. water just waking to the wonder of life again. water that had rested dormant as snow. water that was now finding it's responsibility. it's rhythm. some to evaporate as ghosts. some to bleed into ground. to nourish root endings and inspire buds. well what else to say?? i must say thanks for the last number of shows i've played, in europe, and in western canada most recently... and really the last long while. in a time when popular culture seems sick and useless, the warmth and honesty shared in playing concerts is most inspiring. really, truly. it reminds me of what is real and important. while the world chases its tail. the need for connection and poems and songs lives. the need for laughter and questions lives. the need for ideas and love and openness... lives! i have just finished building a new studio. it's funny, but I like building new places to make records... it creates and anticipation. it feels as if i'm putting energy into something from the ground up creating the need for an important recording to take place. i will start to roll tape in about 2 weeks. till then, i got the roto tiller out last night, to make sure it's ready to turn soil. the old guy next door is boiling syrup. the lady down the way is teaching her horse to walk backwards. "be yourself whatever happens, in a time of the assassins". also... a very late thank you to the soupies for the collection of pictures, poems and thoughts you sent for christmas. peace and wisdom... h.