Bless this Land

Bless this land to which we’re boundBy gravity of joyful soundFeed the hearth and feed the herdHope must stand on every word -Emily Scott Robinson “Men and Moons” This song lyric spoke to me as it closed out the concert I attended last Friday. Emily Scott Robinson wrote the song “Men and Moons” as an […]

Linoleum Tables – Chapter Finished

I’m in a hotel room about to head down to a conference on rural life and resilience in North Carolina. I haven’t written in 11 days. I worked through that in journaling and contemplation. I think it was imposter syndrome and anxiety of completing something and sending it into the world (the anxiety of releasing […]

Summertime Update

Does anyone else have seasonal playlists? I have a summertime sooth playlist filled with chill country music. I built it last year while I was tearing out walls in the basement before the basement waterproofing team sealed the cinderblock walls. It includes, of course, the song “Summertime” by Orville Peck. I discovered Orville Peck through […]

Joshua – Reviewing a 50-Year-Old Album

Dolly Parton recently reminded her social media followers that the critically acclaimed Joshua album turned fifty this week (April 12th, 1971 was it’s release date). A review in the magazine Cash Box called the title track one of the all-time best country records ever recorded. The song became Dolly Parton’s first #1 Hit on the […]

This is my song, this is my story…

I’m in the process of relocating to a new office on a different floor of the church where I serve as the scholar in residence. At first, I was hesitant to agree to move. I wanted to be closer to the rest of the staff, and, let’s be honest, the microwave. But, I’ve warmed up […]