I awoke this morning to a text message that was worded so beautifully that I just had to share....
"Hey song bird, I bet it was nice to feel the wind blowing through your wings last night!"
Boy was it ever.
Lindsay singing in the garden at Mokka in Thun
Like everyone else, we have been through some drastic changes, haven’t we? I am not sure they have come to a screeching halt and that life is anywhere near to returning to what it was, not that it should… but I digress… It has been almost a year since I had a set, a stage and audience to myself and I pretty much convinced myself that I was okay with that. I dove into new things; I studied Ayurveda, I bonded with Mules, I learned about healing herbs and flowers and plants (it is a never ending path of wisdom and greatness, let me tell you! I have jars and jars filled with Mother Nature’s gift, waiting to be steeped into tea, or tinctured or oils, salves and creams… but I digress!
Red Clover is a plant ally! She is great for osteoarthritis, arthritis, hair health and is even great for hot flashes! Pick some, dry it, jar it and then figure out how Red Clover can work with you!
Last evening was a highlight of my singing career. It gave me an insight that I truly could not have known before The Great Pause. I am aware that it feels good to share music, and to be appreciated for it. That, I have learned over the years. That “certain something” you can’t quite put your finger on, the energy which dances unseen (though certainly felt!) between us… I have and always will enjoy that, and to be sure, I appreciate you, too. But last night, it was like those already great feelings were exaggerated. The insight was the realization that I had really missed playing more than I thought I had. It was like a kind of reunion with an old friend, an old friend that I didn’t know I hadn’t seen? It’s hard to explain what I mean, but I felt high and nervous, almost like it was the first time I walked onto the stage at the Black Sheep Inn (the Black Sheep Inn is a very famous venue in Canada.) Imagine, after years of doing this, I got to fall in Love all over again. I felt like a kid in a candy shop., and there was even CANDY too!!
Imagine my surprise when I arrived into the green room to a plate of candy with a donkey in the middle? I took it as a great sign of what was to come, considering I am, after all, a Mother Of Mules (follow me and my mules on Instagram /motherofmules
I arrived in Thun on a swelteringly hot day. When I get hot I turn red, red, RED!! I was a hot mess! The only thing that can tame Hot Messy Sweaty Lindsay is cold water and I wasn’t prepared to jump into the Aare which runs through Thun and is currently very very cold. All this to say, upon entering the garden at Mokka Bar I forgot about the heat, and was quickly enchanted by the fairytale-like and whimsical space I would be spending the next few hours in. I had to remind myself to breathe, to try to stay calm and to NOT SPEED UP THE MOMENTS!! Coffee in the morning would come soon enough. They even had the biggest vase of fresh flowers that I have ever seen, to accompany me on stage. I was back home.
My first stage in a LONG time at Mokka Bar in Thun
As I mentioned before about the Black Sheep Inn, the Mokka Bar in Thun is just as sought after for performances and just as professional. It is not easy to get a gig there, mostly you just have to know someone because the emails are too many to really keep up with and the level of talent requiring gigs is also top notch. By luck, perseverance, hard work and never giving up, I worked with someone in the past who happened to whisper into the ear of the booker about this Canadian musician now living in Switzerland. Needless to say, when I got the invitation, I didn’t even check my schedule before I said yes. I was THAT sure. To be welcomed back into the Singing Game, in a place like this has reignited the fire in me, that had definitely, over the past year, dwindled into a spark. I am so grateful and feel more alive now!!! How in the world could I have ever forgotten, but I kind of did. I filled up my days with other things, beside travel, touring and booking. To be sure, the music never faded and I was fortunate enough to write quite a few new songs! I worked really hard to get those new songs ready for my Mokka Show (without having to read the lyrics) and what a delight, that I had such an amazing green room to practice them in!!
Behind the scenes where the magic lives, in the green room. If only these walls could talk!
I was going to post a few photos to my social media, with a shoutout of thanks to all who came to listen last night, but I thought, nope, this post needs a bit more thoughtful, with a little more poetic care. After all, we are talking about the best thing human beings ever invented, MUSIC! I didn’t realize how big that gaping hole was (life with NO LIVE MUSIC) until I stepped up onto that magical stage last and the wind stirred, and really did blow through my wings. I won’t ever forget that fresh feeling, like finding new love again, and I won’t ever forget how truly profound music is to us all. Sometimes when you study music and work at it, you lose sight of the true gift that it is.