What Music Means To Me

photo by Craig Smith


As a little girl, my first experiences with music were sharing ones: My Dad with his brothers....and Dad, me and "my" brothers....singing and playing music together. People were smiling, people were happy and having fun. These were truly some of the most caring, nurturing, and loving times throughout my dysfunctional childhood. Everyone contributing in their own way and everyone feeling a part of it. Everyone belonged to the music and everyone was happy....coming together and sharing the great joy of music.

I grew up believing that music had "healing power", and I had good reason to believe that because of how much it helped me. And, because of that, I've always wanted to share it with as many people as possible. It's a wonderful thing to see people smiling and happy together sharing music....whether singing, dancing or playing. I knew from my own early experiences in life that when people were doing any one of those three things....noone was ever fighting or hurting anybody, and all of our troubles melted away....even if it was....just for a little while. ~ Patty Ann Smith

Hope to Relieve Suffering

 

Inner and Outer Peace

"Once we have the condition of peace and joy in us....
We will be able to contribute our peace and serenity.
The most important thing is for each of us to have
some freedom in our heart,
some stability in our heart,
some peace in our heart.
Only then will we be able to relieve the suffering around us."

~ Thich Nhat Hanh
Vietnamese Buddhist Monk

Good Food ~ Good Business

Beauty Food

Forgiveness

photo by Craig Smith

The Divine Image

"To Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love
All pray in their distress;
And to these virtues of delight
Return their thankfulness....

For Mercy has a human heart,
Pity a human face,
And Love, the human form divine,
And Peace the human dress.

Then every man, of every clime
That prays in his distress,
Prays to the human form divine,
Love, Mercy, Pity, Peace.

....Where Mercy, Love & Pity dwell
There God is dwelling too."

from William Blakes poem The Divine Image

Lift Up Your Hearts

photo by Patty Ann Smith


"....Lift up your hearts
Each new hour holds new chances
For a new beginning.
Do not be wedded forever
To fear, yoked eternally
To brutishness..."

Maya Angelou
On The Pulse of Morning

It Belongs To Us

"...They try and tear it all away
O but turning heads can't hear what heavy hearts must say
It belongs to us, it belongs to us
It's our sacred rock you hold
And it's our destiny that you have thrown away
It's our sacred rock you hold..."

the chorus from Dougie MacLean's song "It Belongs To Us"