Peace for all on September 11th

Survivor Tree flourishing at Ground Zero  
photo by Jin Lee 

My song 'Survivor Tree' was written for a ceremony honoring both Jane Goodall and the Survivor Tree on International Day of Peace:
Jane Goodall Honors the Survivor Tree

~~> Survivor Tree song with Andrea Feldman artwork

   

Survivor Tree

  (Water your Roots) 

You stood in the darkest day

Covered in fire and ash
Even your roots were blown away

How could you be so torn

 Come back and be reborn

 Come back and hold the sky

today?

We watered your roots

Nurtured your shoots

 Sheltering you 

Take all our tears
And water your roots with love

Chorus:

Water your roots with love
Water your roots with peace
Water your roots with love and peace

(Repeat Chorus)

Where we have fallen
We will rise
Where we are ignorant
 Let us be wise
When we are sure we’re right
 Before we fight
Let us water our  roots with love

Chorus:

Water our roots with love
Water our roots with peace
Water our roots with love and peace
(Repeat Chorus)

Where we are blinded

Let us see
When we lose courage

Help us stand like a tree

When we’re divided

We know our roots go deep and united

We’ll water our roots

We’ll water our roots with love
Water our roots with peace
We’ll water our roots with love and peace
We’ll water our roots with love
Water our roots with peace
We’ll water our roots with love and peace

© 2012 Words and music by JoAnne Spies

contact:  spiesarts@gmail.com

trees

in Stockbridge cemetery

     

berkshire tree photo by Elizabeth Petty

         

Music of tree rings

wampus wishes

                       Photo by Elizabeth Anne Petty

Thanks to all who came up through the rain and the fog to magical Mount Greylock, the highest peak in Massachusetts.
We crawled, flew and climbed as we became many creatures, made their unique sounds and explored what their wishes might be.
New names and words were invented.
Our wishes went out into the world.

Thank you to the Cultural Council of Northern Berkshire and the MCC for supporting the arts.
   

creature magic

Ella Tawes

Thank you to Derek Gentile and Gillian Jones from the Eagle for visiting our workshop.

Berkshire Eagle article

Rodelinde Albrecht and Matilda Asch

Magic Words

"Spirit Down to Matter" totem by J. Spies

Just completed totem for my Incantation and Song Magic workshop to represent: Wampus (Body), Pukwudgie (Heart), Horned Serpent (Mind), and Thunderbird (Soul)

MAGIC WORDS

BY NALUNGIAQ

In the very earliest time

when both people and animals lived on earth,

a person could become an animal if he wanted to

and an animal could become a human being.

Sometimes they were people

and sometimes they were animals

and there was no difference.

All spoke the same language.

That was the time when words were like magic

The human mind had mysterious powers.

A word spoken by chance

might have strange consequences.

It would suddenly come alive

and what people wanted to happen could happen ~

all you had to do was say it.

Nobody can explain this:

That’s the way it was.

Thanks to The Sun Magazine for publishing this Inuit poet in their July issue.

sheds light on incantation..          

To register for workshop e-mail spiesarts@gmail.com by July 28th
More info at Berkshire Edge ~> calendar listing.

"incantation totem house" - j. spies

Building an incantation house for upcoming workshop makes me think that function follows form. Adding birch mask creates new dimensions to explore with group.

This old print from my Art Cart work is perfect for the roof. How does the Ilvormorny school take into account Native American culture? 

"Shar-I-Tar-ish, A Pawnee Chief"
from Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute

Incantation House

It was exciting to create a three-sided 'house' in a workshop with artist Robert Hite and others at the Berkshire Museum and Hancock Shaker Village.

Hite's wonderful sculptures and paintings can be seen at both venues over the next few months.

  "Incantation House" in Round Barn
at Hancock Shaker Village  ~ J. Spies

"Incantation House" will come up to Mt. Greylock with me for the incantation workshop I'm leading at 2:00, July 31st.  To register, e-mail spiesarts@gmail.com

Melville, Hawthorne, Thoreau and Wharton..... Ilvermorny School?

ancient horned serpent

Melville

Melville and Hawthorne at Marconi Beach

Do you think traces of the Ilvermorny School influenced Moby Dick?

Getting ready for my July 31st performance on Mt. Greylock, I'm pondering what Melville, Hawthorne, Thoreau and Wharton might have encountered when they visited this lofty peak.

Would all these writers fall into the Horned Serpent category at the Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardy? 
It's fascinating to study the mythology of Thunderbirds and Horned Serpents. Pukwudgies and Wampuses will require more imagination. We'll look into this at the Incantation Workshop before the performance.

The horned serpent symbol is one of many snake-like deities with horns associated with Native American tribes, often symbolizing rain, thunder and waterways.

Moby Dick, indeed!