In 2019, I was commissioned by the North Carolina Council of Churches to write a hymn in honor of their eighty-fifth anniversary in 2020. Though the lyrics were written months before the world’s focus turned to the twin pandemics of Covid-19 and racism, the hymn seems to resonate with these turbulent times, and calls […]
Reprise: Thoughts on Confederate Monuments
Note: I originally wrote this post in 2015, in the context of events spelled out below. In light of our current national re-examination of various monuments, I recently looked it up. I found that it still expresses my feelings, and a few folks have asked me for the link recently, so I’m sharing it again […]
Online shows and conversations
Hey friends, Blessings on you and yours in these strange and turbulent times. Like everyone, I’m navigating day by day, trying to figure out where I’m needed and what I can do from here. My friend Gareth Higgins gave me a mantra for these times (and others, for that matter): “Bring what you have. Ask […]
March 13 Concert at White Horse will be live-streamed
Hey friends — I’m playing at my hometown venue, the White Horse, on March 13, with special guest Brian Hilligoss. Come on by, if you can make it! I’ve got some new songs to share that I’m really excited about, and it promises to be a really beautiful evening. Tickets are available here. And if […]
A new song finished, a new book begun…
Greetings from Fancy Gap, Virginia. My friend David has a beautiful cabin here, and let me hide out for a few days to write. Sometimes it takes getting away, especially when there is a big project to work on, like a book, and I am so grateful to have a place to be that is […]
Turning
Each year on New Year’s Eve, folks gather arm in arm and sway and swill and sing an incomprehensible old Scottish song that Robert Burns is often credited with writing. It asks the rhetorical question of whether we should let our old friendships and memories go in favor of the new. The assumed answer is […]
Going to jail for the crime of seeking help
About six weeks ago, some neighbors of mine gathered at the White Horse Black Mountain for a two-hour conversation. Fifty-five people showed up to learn, and to offer their help. They did both. I’ve seldom been as inspired by my community as I was that night. We were meeting to talk about asylum seekers, large […]
An invitation to create something new with me
Dear friends, Sixteen days ago I launched a new project, and as of now, 59 folks have signed up to be a part of it. It’s an exciting adventure — a smaller group of folks who are taking a deeper dive with me into creating a digital community, and who are supporting the work I […]
Violence, transformation, and that banner on my house
Nearly three years after I hung the first one of these on my house, I am amazed at how far it has gone. The banner is hanging on houses and places of worship all over the U.S. Here are a few of the stories. I made this banner and nailed it to my house because […]
Where The Kindness Went
I’ve had more than a few conversations with folks recently who have said they feel like kindness is going out of the world. I get that, and I know better than to think that my experience is everyone’s. That said, I don’t believe there is any shortage of kindness. I just think it’s not getting […]
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