VFSS - 2026 04 15

 

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When I Grow Too Old to Dream - 2023 11 12

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  Two years ago Mom moved in with me after forty years in mental health group housing due to the impact of her schizophrenia. She turned 91 on the day she moved in. She immediately suffered a serious health decline and we were put on the palliative care registry. This month Mom celebrated her 93rd birthday. She is a frail elder. Often when she has energy, she is singing in her room. This is a song she has been singing since she moved in. It was only recently I finally asked where the song came from. It turns out Aunti Ivy, Mom's oldest sister, used to play this song on the piano. The family used to gather around and sing together from her songbook. This was one of those songs.  Aunti Ivy is gone now. She was 11 years old when Mom was born. Mom must have been a little girl when this song was sung and she memorized the words. This week we have finally identified the song and it is going to be added to our songbook. We are now learning to play it. A new music project has been ins...
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Neighbourhood Folk - House Concert - Fall Equinox 2025 - Entry - Taking the Plunge - 2025 09 25 2/13

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Lynn Canyon - 2005 03 03 - the cool, late afternoon light of early spring glancing off cold stream tossed boulders  Entry - Taking the Plunge by Virginia Bowden Well into the afternoon, on the day of the concert, I was reviewing my lists and checking what was left to do. It occurred to me that I was going to need introductory words to set expectations and get us all on the same page. Where to start? Virginia brought this poem and shared it at our Neighbourhood Folk - First Sunday - September 2025. As soon as I thought of it, I knew it needed to be the cornerstone of my introductory words to set the stage for the house concert. Today it is the 30th of September. A full week since I started this writing. It has taken me days and many hours to prepare to write this short piece. I had an idea of bringing in interleaving stories, of swimming, over generations, of women. Of our creative works, both domestic and artistic, that mark the passing of our lifetimes into our collective history....
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Neighbourhood Folk - House Concert - Fall Equinox 2025 - Introduction - 2025 09 25 1/13

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Tom is practicing the calliope intro and outro to Ferris Wheel, our first song in the program this evening. It came out perfectly.  It is 6:30 pm and we are getting ready to open the doors at 7 pm for our first Neighbourhood Folk house concert. It is Monday, September 22, 2025. We are gathered to inspire our efforts for the season ahead, to build strength and confidence enough to get us through to Winter Solstice. We presented a program of a poem written by a friend and neighbour, and eleven songs written and performed by myself, my family, and neighbourhood musician friends. We decluttered the livingroom and set up seating for 15 friends and neighbours. An ipad is up high on a stand for the Zoom attendees. A stationary camera is on a tripod to capture the performance. Tucked in the back corner of the living room Adele is in her crate with a bone to chew. She does not like the sound of camera beeps.  Final preparation - Matt is taping down the sound cable, Michel and Tom are f...
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