The Safe Place In Me
Intuitive Song for Jennifer
words, music & arrangement by Michael Stillwater
Recorded in Song Sanctuary, Hildesheim, Germany on October 18, 2025

This is a spontaneous, intuitive song recorded during a song sanctuary honoring ceremony, in which the music is created and recorded by Michael in response to participant themes.  Original guitar and participant voices with additional instruments added in studio.

Lyrics:

I’ve always known here in my bones
A place of home, the safe place in me 

I’ve always known deep inside my bones
Calling like a song of home, it’s the safe place in me
The safe place in me, it’s the safe place in me
It’s the safe place in me

I’ve always known, closer than my bones
Calling like a song from home, it’s the safe place in me
O it’s the safe place in me, it’s the safe place in me
It’s the safe place in me, calling me home, calling me home
Calling me home, calling me home

And when I forget something always reminds me
When I forget I’m kind to myself
‘Cause I’ve got the way inside me
I’ve got a way
That leads me back from wherever I am
It leads me back today
To the safe place in me, the safe place in me
It’s where I want to be, in this safe place in me
In this safe place in me, in this safe place in me
In this safe place in me.

The Safe Place in Me

Michael Stillwater is an innovator with music, words, and images.
An award-winning songwriter, recording artist and filmmaker, he provides
artistic and transformative reflection upon core societal issues, catalyzing
creative expression in people of all ages.

musical artist / songwriter / filmmaker / intuitive musician / educator / producer


MUSICAL ARTIST/SONGWRITER: Stillwater’s interfaith chants and healing songs are enjoyed in singing circles, gatherings, churches and communities worldwide, with multiple recordings by other artists as well as himself. An interfaith minister through the Chaplaincy Institute, he ministered through Heavensong, a
non-denominational church based in California and Hawaii, from 1978 through 1990.

FILMMAKER: Through Song Without Borders, the nonprofit creative arts agency he co-founded, Stillwater produced films and other programs applying song to personal and societal transformation. He created his first film, Shining Night: A Portrait of Composer Morten Lauridsen (2012) together with his wife, Doris Laesser Stillwater. Acclaimed ‘a heartening rarity’ by the Wall Street Journal, the film received four Best Documentary awards at US film festivals and enthusiastic response from a global audience, including Europe and South Africa. The movie tells the story of the life and music of National Medal of Arts
recipient Morten Lauridsen, recognized as the most performed choral composer of recent times.

The Stillwater’s second film, In Search of the Great Song: Fifty voices. Twelve countries. One question. (2016), received two Best Documentary awards, including at its US Premiere, Moondance Int’l Film Festival in Boulder, CO. Providing an existential and metaphorical context, the film serves as a conversation starter for exploring our inherent creativity and essential spiritual unity. With interviews recorded worldwide, including at the 2009 Parliament of the World’s Religions in Melbourne, the film was screened at the Parliaments in both Salt Lake City (2015) and Toronto (2018).

Their third film, Beyond the Fear of Singing: Unlock Your Voice, Release Your Song (2019), winner of three film festival awards, focuses on the inhibition so many feel about their singing voice, together with healing pathways for overcoming limitations and the rewarding discovery of expressing one’s voice.

INTUITIVE MUSICIAN/EDUCATOR: Stillwater’s unique intuitive recording artistry provides a way for people to feel seen and supported at an essential level. His intuitive songportraits demonstrate empathic connection, while Song Sanctuary seminars and retreats combine a variety of interactive elements in a
one-day, two-day, or longer program. SongLife Training serminars, both local and online, provide anyone with a forum for unlocking their musical aspirations individually and with others.

PRODUCER/AUTHOR: With Emmy-award winning film composer Gary Malkin and Swiss contemplative psychotherapist Doris Laesser Stillwater, he co-authored Graceful Passages: A Companion for Living and Dying (over one million readers/ listeners) and Care for the Journey: Messages and Music for Sustaining the
Heart of Healthcare, created for reducing stress in healthcare and palliative care practitioners. 

Since 2020 he has published a monthly column in Meer, an international online magazine. Together with his wife Doris he leads Song Sanctuary Retreats in Europe and America, providing support through contemplative, creative and personal growth practice. A resident of Europe since 2005, he now lives in the Alps of Switzerland, travelling frequently, offering online and local musical events and creative educational programs.