It’s hard to believe we are here – November 2021. It was two years ago that I moved to Boston and began teaching full time while also continuing to perform and record music.
With the pandemic, much of my performing stopped and deep transformation began to unfold within. During that time I also turned 50 and ran my first 10K.
Now, here I am feeling a return to the very essence of who I am and why I am here. This essence also feels new and expanded – older and wiser, capable of holding more and worrying less. What a gift!
As I begin to record my 6th album, I wanted to invite you to two upcoming opporutinties to be with me, my vibration and some new songs.
First on 11/11, I will be doing a chanting event on ZOOM. It’s a pay what you can situation, though you will need to register to get the passcode. Check out the FB event here.
On 12/21/21 – Winter Solstice – I will be chanting live at Power Yoga of CapeCod with a limited number of guests at 15. If you don’t register in time or would rather not be in person you can also sign-up to livestream it.
This will be a true coming home for me – to my beloved Cape Cod and on the winter solstice, a time when I love doing events. The energy will be healing, uplifting and sacred. I would love to be with all that feel called – whether in person or online.
Enjoy this new moon in Scorpio. We have all been evolving at a rapid rate.
This time of year I usually share my song Be The Light. I love this song and this recording and the video I made in 2019. During this time of the shortest day here in North America, the idea of Being the Light really resonates for me. Many cultures have rituals this time of year that remind us of Light even in dark times – whether literal or figurative.
This year, however, I am hearing a new message: Be You.
And in Being You, we become a better Us.
How is this different from Be the Light? For me, it is the practice of holding the paradox. What if the amount of so-called darkness and light is exactly as it should be. What if no one or even the world needs me to “be the light?” What if what we all need and what the world needs is for each of us to take time to really KNOW ourselves and then practice being That with courage, clarity, love and joy.
What if we all spent less time trying to convince others of how they should be and really got to know ourselves on a deeper level. Through this we become more open to receiving new people in our lives that also know themselves more deeply and we open to co-creating NEW experiences, NEW systems, NEW villages and NEW moments that feel authentic, life-giving, inclusive and harmonious.
These are some of the things I have been thinking about as 2020 comes to a close. I will be chanting on Sunday (tomorrow) Dec 20, 2020 at 5pm on Zoom. I would love for you to join me.
EMAIL me here if you would like the Zoom information. You can also make a donation of $10-20 through PayPal or Venmo and I will send you the link.
My prayer for myself and for all of us is that we take the time and have the courage to go deep deep inside right now allowing ourselves to know (yet again) who we truly are and how we may best share that vibration with others.
If you, like me, are feeling something new coming but not quite sure what it is, while also grieving for a sense of things lost – whether named or not, know that YOU ARE NOT ALONE.
All is Well.
I have lots of music that can support you, wherever you are on your journey. Walk your Way on Through from 12 Rebirth is always a favorite for times of transition.
To celebrate my favorite time of year on Cape Cod, I have decided to create Sweet September: 12 Days of 12 Rebirth.
In this series I will be sharing a track from my recent Album 12 Rebirth, talking about its creation and also linking it to an earlier song of mine.
Why am I doing this?
8 years ago it was August on Cape Cod and I was approaching my 40th birthday. I had arrived at a moment in life where I wanted to do something different or more specifically, I didn’t want to do anything anymore that didn’t feel in complete alignment with why I was here.
Over the last 8 years of living and making music on Cape Cod I have grown so much – as a person and as a musician. I have taught many many children and served many families. This was an incredible gift and one I carry with me always.
Now, I am ready to expand.
After releasing my 5th album 12 Rebirth, I am shifting gears again. I am allowing my passion for creating music, awakening, healing and education to expand and I am re-committing to developing my career as a recording artist/producer and sound healer.
This is leading to two new projects Sounds of Alicia and Queen City Records. Both of these are in the beginning stages of fully manifesting and yet I could not be more excited to be on the journey towards their full realization.
In the meantime, I am first and foremost a songwriter and singer and I could not be more proud of the creation of 12 Rebirth. And so, as a way of encouraging folks to tune into it, I am creating this series.
And now off to Day 1………
Day 1 A New Earth and Better Me
I first read Eckart Tolle’s book, A New Earth in December of 2008. That experience and the new year of 2009 inspired my song Better Me which was then recorded on my album 2012: Isn’t It Amazing?
The thing I love about this song is that no matter how many years I live, it always resonates. Often in my journey I have periods where all I want to do is lay on the couch and “check out” or rest. I have learned that this is a part of my process and I have developed great compassion towards myself and my need to do this. And, when I feel like I have been resting enough, a good song is all I need to get back up and create anew.
A New Earth on 12 Rebirth was born out of one of those “laying on the couch” times. I was still struggling with why I have these periods where I feel so inert and the more I thought about it and experienced it, the angrier I got. This anger fueled this song and yet it was my expressing of that anger that helped release it from my body in a productive way.
Some say depression is anger turned inward. In my experience, that resonates as true and I have come to realize that if depression or anger is present, it has a message for me and when I choose not to listen and act with wisdom, the anger or grief or depression becomes more overwhelming and destructive.
I wrote this song very quickly when I wasn’t feeling so good and then revisited it almost 6 months later and realized It was a great song and might speak to a lot of us right now as we are going through so much collective change as Americans and as human beings.
It was Better Me at a whole new level and with a lot more wisdom and humor. Not to mention a kick-ass band in the recording studio.
Many have told me, they have found this track healing and inspiring as they have moved through their own anger. Anger, like love is an energy. It does not need to be judged or shamed or denied. We only need bring our awareness to its presence and ask what it is here to show us.
Through our awareness, we can be with any energy and bring our love and compassion to it.
It was such a gift to record this record with a group of amazing musicians and Allison Leyton-Brown as pianist and producer. If you listen to both tracks, you can hear how much my sound has developed over the years.
Here’s to a whole new expansion in 2020!
Want to be on the inside and support me as I write towards a new record in 2020, join me over at my new Patreon page, created in collaboration with my good friend Viv. This record in 2020 is all about JOY and I can’t wait to share it – both the process and the final product.
Alicia Mathewson 