Cover of The Waterboys classic song We Will Not Be Lovers

Best of Mind at Large

We Will Not Be Lovers (The Waterboys)

Imagine sitting on your south facing steps, the moon is rising to your left, a gorgeous sunset is happening to your right. It's a sunny fall day and the leaves in the valley below are in full color. You can smell change in the air, it is everywhere!

Dusk is Falling Down
By Eric Banford

There's a moon rise to my left
A sunset to my right
Dusk is falling down
On this gorgeous Autumn sight

-----------------------------------
Chorus:
Change is in the air
I can feel it in my bones
Change is everywhere
I can feel it in my soul

Everything's changing
As I'm moving toward whole
The time has come to change
I can feel it in my soul
-----------------------------------

So many colors
Red and orange and blue
Yellows and greens
Life's giving hues

Chorus

Leaves are spiraling down
Back to the Earth
Surely life will move
From birth to death to birth

(Birth, Earth, Rebirth)
(Birth, Earth, Rebirth)

Chorus

Dusk is Falling Down

Into The Day
By Eric Banford

Through the mist / a new day
a vague sun / lights up the east
Dew glistens / on spider webs
That are stitched / across the field

Chorus:
Can I see clearer when life looks nearer?
The mist dissipates as the sun breaks through
Do I see clearer? Life feels dearer
As I head into the day

Goldfinch songs echo / on the breeze
Bluebirds come and go / building their nest
Papa sits nearby / while Mama works inside
The rowdy swallows / zip on by

Chorus

Red squirrel chatters / about me sitting there
I can't understand / a word that he says
Last sip of coffee / savored and done
Porch swing sways / as I head into the day

Chorus

Into The Day

All That You Gave
(for Kirby, Becca, Joe, and John)
By Eric Banford

I met you once
I met you twice
I never met you at all

but I saw you
I see you
I see the world through you.

I don't know you well
but I love you.
Not for the time we spent,
that was precious few.
Not for the things you gave me,
for those are few too.

Yet there are things
that you gave
that have profoundly changed
my life.

I watched how you lived,
it inspired me.
I listened to your words
and they changed me.
The depth that you loved
all those around you,
the sacred path you walked
honoring your ancestors,
and loving your children,
loving your children.

I see this
I saw this
and I awe this
and it deepens the path
that I choose.

If I could I would have known you more.
I would have known you more.
If I could I would have known you more.
I would have known you more.
But you are gone,
you are gone
and I am left right here.

I watched the grace
with which you left us,
and now I will carry 
what you can no longer hold.
I am moving
into a future
I am moving
into a future

which will echo
with the love
that you left behind.

And all that you gave
All that you gave
All that you gave

That's why I love you.
That's why I love you.
That's why...

All That You Gave

#week3
The empty bedroom where I isolated for a week of Covid
5/4 time signature
Mandolin

The Empty Bedroom

Do not wait too long
By Eric Banford

Do not wait too long to pursue what's on your mind
For some days and tomorrows can quickly fade
Find your heart desire, what thrills you in your soul
Follow where it leads and soon

You may be whole
It may heal your soul

Do not wait too long to share what's in your heart
Expressing what you feel can set you free
Share your heart's desire, what connects within your soul
Find others who believe in you

It can make you whole
It can heal your soul

Do not wait too long to embrace who you are
To fully express your life will set you free
There's no one else quite like you
The world needs you to be who you will be

It will make you whole
It will heal your soul

Do not wait too long...

Do Not Wait Too Long

Who I am
By Eric Banford
(inspired by Pete Townshend)

I proceeded to freedom / fragile and uncertain
I'm finding it hard to breathe / throw myself on the fire
I wasn't quite real / I was grateful just to be alive
Face-to-face with heartbreak / I inhabit my truth

Chorus
To my eight year old self / remember what you feel today
It will make you strong and empathetic
To the pain that others feel
You have a good heart / you will be OK
You have a good heart / you will be OK

Deepening at this time / for once in my life
I knew when to draw the line / dancing lighthearted
I'm still trying to find out / what have I learned
My tears my only truth / who am I?

Chorus

A mystical layer to life / the beauty of music
Spiritually to transform / all of mankind
Creating lasting peace / throughout the world
The Lifehouse vision / becomes real

Chorus
Chorus

I will be OK

Who I am

Liberty Too
By Eric Banford

(verse 1 random words: laugh, vagabond, inform, preside, care)

You laughed when I called you a vagabond
You informed me that you didn't care
No one can preside over you, no one can decide for you
How you choose to live your days

I said I was proud
I said I am proud
How you live aloud
You are fully who you are

I said I am proud
So so very proud
Sometime a crowd
Of one can be enough 

(verse 2 random words: progress voyage upset wave cope)

How does one measure life progress
Every person's voyage is their own
Do you upset the cart
Do you follow your heart
Do you make and ride the waves

How is one to cope
How do you really cope
No one truly knows
The answers that we seek

How is one to cope
How can we really cope
We must find our hope
In the answers that we keep

Liberty Too V3

Thrive

(DGCGCD tuning)

V1
As the sun slides south / and the days get shorter
the angle of the morning light
reveals something different / hidden things are seen
know things disappear

My view of my surroundings / is an ever changing thing
Each morning I watch the sunrise / Paint the world with grace
I see the world around me / shift in subtle ways
Each time I stop and notice / I am amazed

Embracing Solstice energy / then everything in limbo
Contemplating who I am / time seems to slow
Embracing newness / how will I change?
Waiting/Longing to be born / anew

V2
As the sun set early / we're bathed in darkness
A deep calm settles in
Embraced by the night / and the warm fire light
We look within for insight

Ever Changing

That subtle something that visits you via a scent, a sound, a taste, a sight, or a touch. It transports you to another time, reminds you of someone or something dear from your past. It is there only for a moment, then is gone...

Fleeting

My daughter Carys turned me on to this amazing song and I had to learn it. Here's a rough recording, I hope to record it with Carys soon!

cover of Annabelle Dinda's "The Hand"

Wellspring

This music reflects my personal journey as a husband, dad, Earth healer, and human deeply passionate about connecting our past, present and hopeful future. These songs hopefully touch a vein from the collective unconscious, bringing to light words and emotions that each of us knows, yet many have forgotten.

eCoArise

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