Friends are Coming Back

It feels so good to be out in the land these days!  The air is filled with the sweet sounds of many feathered friends coming back, singing us into warmer days.  After such a long winter, their calls feel like extra special medicine for the soul.

“Friends are Coming Back” is a sweet little song I wrote to sing at this time of year.  The song celebrates the winged ones returning.  The song also offers a two-fold provocation: to listen closely and explore their calls, and to explore using your voice to make them yourself.  

The first aspect of the provocation is that is can be a launching point for inquiring into local birds and how they adapt to the changing seasons.  As we listen closely to the calls, we can look more closely in the land to try and figure out who is making them.  We can start to wonder about where they have been, why and when they left, and why they came back?  There is so much to observe and investigate further!  As the inquiry continues, this song can be a joyful touchstone to return to, supporting the inquiry continuing.  The more we listen and share our observations with others, the more attuned we become to the differences in the sounds that we hear, and the more we can wonder about what the birds are saying. This song can keep the inquiry cooking!

The second aspect of using this song as a provocation is that it gently and joyfully allows participants to explore sharing their voice in different ways.  As we try to emulate the different calls we hear, our voice gets pulled in many different ways: higher and lower, louder and softer, faster and slower.  Our voice can also get pulled to be sillier!  And as we sing the song, we can take turns being the one to lead the call and being the one to follow others.  In this way, “Friends are Coming Back” supports us in developing a sense of belonging for all of the voices that we share the land with- the humans we sing with and the non-humans we are learning to sing like.

There are two very special guests on the recording of “Friends are Coming Back”: my son and my daughter.  Recently, my son suggested the songs I create might be called “Nature Pop”.  This was a very heartwarming moment for me (you can read about it here).  I would like to build on his suggestion and put out there that the music I aim to create is “Nature Folk”.  By this, I mean that the music I create is intended for you to sing, for you to feel empowered to take the songs with you and share them, in your own voice, with others, as you explore the beautiful land you live in.  So please, take in the tune, and please feel my encouragement and support for you to find ways to take the song out into your wandering in the land with you and those you share the land with.

Lots of fun awaits, in the land and in song.  I would love to hear how this song makes it into your wandering!  Please feel welcome to share a comment here, connect with me over social media or send an email to let me know!