Heatherlyn Portraits by the Little Hands of Young Artists

One of my favorite things is to have a sweet little gal come up to me after a family presentation with a smile, a gleam in her eyes and a gift in her hands that is so special...an original work of art! Man, this just tugs at my heart like nothing else. These are the priceless, unexpected rewards of our work! I hope these young, bright and gifted artists will never shy away from the drawing pencil or the colored crayon and even if their journey and passion leads them to a different form of vocation, I hope they will always know that they are co-creators, and any work they do, any hobby they pursue, they can be conduits of genuine beauty and life to all in their world. Thanks to fans of all ages for giving encouragement and support!

Prodigal's Home :: Sunrise on a Saturday, Valentine's Eve

This morning we saw the sunrise as we made our way on Highway 101 to Prodigal's Home where sausage and pancakes are served up on behalf of homeless and homed alike, sharing breakfast together around many round tables on the big green lawn. Loco played his electric flute as people gathered and a blue bus came and went in two shifts to gather men and women living on the streets to share in this meal and a time of genuine community.

After a "grace" was said and sausage was served, I began to play songs that I could have only hoped would connect with an audience I've never shared life with in any other capacity. They welcomed me warmly, though, and seemed excited, surprised and even valued to have an artist come 2,000 miles from Minneapolis to share a gift of song with them. They clapped, smiled, gave thumbs up in appreciation. I was told they don't always do this.

They sang along between bites of pancake and toothless gums to traditional tunes Down by the Riverside and Amazing Grace. A woman who suffers from mental illness stood on the periphery with a beaming smile, eyes closed, head slightly tilted to the side, swaying back and forth to the rhythms. She seemed soothed and thoroughly delighted.

A wooden box nearby was for their quarters, dimes, pennies. None of the collection goes back to paying for the Prodigal's Home maple syrup, coffee or eggs. Last year, this community of men and women with little or no jobs and possibly no safe or comfortable place to lay their heads at night, collectively gave $5,000 for a cause entirely beyond themselves in Belarus. When the announcement about this was being made, they were on the edge of their seats and they clapped and cheered. We saw the dignity, hope, a sense of purpose and a sense that ALL can make a difference in our world.

In this time where some of the most unlikely dining companions all had a place of honor at the table, where songs were sung, mutual service and love where shared, I felt like I saw the sunrise again in the tired, worn eyes that surrounded me and I felt it rise among us from deep within our hearts.

Heatherlyn Music: 2010 Winter Southwest Tour!! - Summary

Wednesday and Thursday ~ Set out from Minneapolis and drove for 2 days....

FRIDAY (Jan. 29th)~ Arrived in beautiful Boulder Friday afternoon. I was SO grateful that our host lived right by a jog/walk path along the creek under the Rocky Mountains! I immediately went for a brisk walk and jog to get the blood flowing in my body again.

Friday night "House Concert" on the Colorado University Campus with all kinds of unexpected folks who saw a post about the show on a local arts listing ~ "Anna's List". We streamed the concert LIVE over Ustream and I received a really cool note from a gal who was watching from MN. I was humbled by how so deeply moved she was across the miles.

SATURDAY night in Littleton, CO doing a benefit concert for Haiti with The EDGE Colorado Community. And SUNDAY morning worship that weekend as well. Heatherlyn presented a couple songs and also lead in singing together. It was beautiful to see this community care about the issues facing children and all people of world and respond with lives of compassion.

Our gracious hosts introduced us to a fantastic India restaurant called Yak and Yetti! Incredibly enjoyable!

SUNDAY NIGHT - back to the CU campus for the Wesley House evening of worship led by students.

MON - WED (Feb. 1-3) ~ networking, meetings with folks in area, ground work for the next trip to CO and resting to recover from a bad cold. Jason hung out with our very cool host and did some brainstorming/consulting with him on continuing to grow in making the Wesley House a place of wide welcome and community building as well as communicating effectively with students on campus.

THURS & FRI ~ Driving...driving...driving...through Colorado to New Mexico where we had the worst and most hilarious hotel experience of our lives! Then onto Phoenix where the sun shines bright!

We met our gracious host who offered us fresh oranges from his backyard and fresh grapefruit from his neighbor's trees. It was the most amazing citrus I've EVER had...so fresh and sweet! You would think it would've kicked my cold!

SATURDAY, FEB 6th - connected with Jose, the Pastor at Alleluia Lutheran community and tried to find a cheap clinic. I was getting pressure in my ear...

SUNDAY, FEB 7th ~ All morning with the good people of Alleluia Lutheran in Avondale, AZ. I shared some original songs and led singing with my guitar - some traditional liturgical pieces that were new to me. I actually had to work pretty hard to keep up with the very energetic pace of this vibrant, welcoming community!

Sunday afternoon and Monday ~ I totally tanked. Once the servives were over, my voice began to go as I talked with people at the CD table...cold was turning into sinus infection...so I watched old episodes of WKRP Cincinnati on hulu.com, slept, took copious amounts of ibuprophen and "neti-potted" the heck out of my sinues.

TUESDAY ~ finally went to a decent clinic for a diagnosis because I was afraid I might be getting an ear infection...got meds, slept more.

WEDNESDAY, FEB 10th ~ We spent time with the Jr. and Sr. high students and their parents at New Covenant Lutheran in Scottsdale, AZ (completely the other side of Phoenix). These young people were so cool. I enjoyed getting to know them just a bit, sharing that time with them and feeling the love in return. They were great and I could tell they had fun and their brains were working too!

THURSDAY ~ for me...practice, practice, practice, writing, emailing...Jason worked with the Youth and Family Director of New Covenant to reset the Sanctuary space to facilitate an even more communal experience. It was really cool and well received by all who came that weekend. Jason's really good at this stuff and making it happen!

FRIDAY, FEB 12th ~

...coffee with another new friend and partner in the work of hopeacequity...

...THEN buzzed over to Avondale to sing unplugged, playing guitar in the center aisle between two sides of the room at Alleluia's Valentine Dinner... so fun! Home with You, choose-you-own-adventure style and Dreams, which we sang all together and then each to a spouse, friend, child...During Home with You a little boy walked up beside me and I bent down and sang "I'd be at home with you, Baby, yeah..." to him...it was one of the most adorable moments I've ever had in the middle of a song!

...THEN we went back to Glendale for a house concert in the beautiful home of our host at the foothills of the Arrowhead Mountain Range.

SATURDAY, FEB 13th ~ This day deserves a post all it's own. Check out: Prodigal's Home ~ The Sunrise on Saturday, Valentine's Eve.

SUN, FEB 14th (Valentine's Day) ~ New Covenant Lutheran in Scottsdale, AZ...led some old hymns with a rockin' rhythm guitar, presented Invitation to the Unlikely through tears after Todd talked about how and why he and his wife, Andria, are moving to work in an orphanage in Rwanda.

That evening, Jason and I went for a little hike up a small mountain and watched the sunset...cost us nothing and was one of our sweetest Valentine's Days. We were together, away from home, but at home with each other doing what we love.

Monday ~ One more day in Phoenix. Recovering from the wonderful but exhausting weekend...visiting more with new friends...packing up.

Tuesday ~ Driving...through Arizona to New Mexico...this time we didn't have to stay in a crummy hotel...the cousin of a friend of ours in Phoenix wasn't even home and she didn't even know us but she had two of her friends meet us and welcome us into her Albuquerque home where we simply stayed for the night...comfortable in a home with a sweet kitty named, Kia. We are so grateful for the hospitality and support of our hosts!

Wednesday ~ we arrived in Evergreen, CO (about 9,000 feet altitude) where we got to reconnect with a family we knew years ago in Minneapolis. Their son is now a young man, 15 in high school and their little girl, who we met as a baby when they brought her home from Russia, is bright-eyed and an aspiring young author! She thought my dreads were "REALLY, SO cool" and she even read to me a bit of her latest story. ;o)

We were going to head out Thursday morning, but decided to stay one more day in the beautiful snowy mountains covered in tall evergreens and I decided to contribute to the local mic night at the Ice House in down town Evergreen. We streamed it live for fun and got to meet some more people who lived there. They were excited about the possibility of a return visit someday and gave us some great ideas for future venues to book a show!

We drove ALL day Friday and into the early morning Saturday to get home where the story continues....

JAN 2010 ~ MLK Celebration and Call to Action

Here's the invitation extended by the community of Redeemer Lutheran Church, where we got to celebrate Dr. King this past weekend: "Celebration and Call to Action: Join us as we celebrate the life, work and vision of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with music, song and spoken word. Together we will vow to not keep silent, to not rest until the dream of justice and freedom becomes each one of our personal dreams."

We gathered Sunday afternoon in a beautiful dark wood and stain-glassed sanctuary as a truly diverse, integrated and united community. In some ways, our modest gathering epitomized the vision of Dr. King: Black and White presenting together in rhythm and spoken word, singing as one chorus together, break-dancing together, rhyming together. All voices were honored. All belonged.

The deep soulful expression; the rich, rhythmic exuberance and passionate calls for justice that have long characterized the Black American church culture was in full resonance that afternoon. And I, a small, pasty white woman, experienced swells of emotion as song after song and rhyme after poetic rhyme, beat after beat, electronic rhythm and African drum, gospel piano and tambourine, seemed to press and call and draw upon the depth of humanity within us all to never give up until all God's children have joined the dance of justice, freedom, peace and equity.



Only a couple people in this community knew me and I'm honored to have had the opportunity to contribute to this celebration and be so warmly received, welcomed and embraced! When I Dream, Dreams (MLK verse) and Put on Your Climbing Shoes were the song-gifts I had to share with a group of people that gifted me over and over. They were an incredibly responsive crowd, and I'm sure this is the only rendition of Put on Your Climbing Shoes thus far that includes full on singing from the audience, clapping, tambourine and axatse (ah-hatch-ee: a gourd shaker from Ghana)!!

We are excited to have gotten some really great video of the songs Heatherlyn presented and are happy to share them with you! www.youtube.com/heatherlynmusic (or click on the song titles above!)

We are loving house concerts!

In some parts of the country, a home concert experience is a common thing. It's a natural part of the culture to be invited to enjoy a quality musical experience along with an up-close and personal encounter, with an independent artist in someone's living room. On the artistic corners of Minneapolis, neighbors gather together, appetizers to share and donations to support the artist in hand for these enjoyable community-building evenings. Throughout New England and in sectors of Colorado house concerts circuits are commonplace. Some hosts even have websites and regular concerts series with nationally touring independent artists. L.A. and Austin are other cities with lively house concert scenes.

Here are a couple great experiences we've had with house concerts within the past few months:

DEC 2009 :: Endicottage Christmas Wine & Cheese House Concert

Guests brought wine and treats to share and we celebrated the season through the music by the warm, glowing and real wood fire. We "mad-libbed" a couple Christmas carols together and had a jolly old time. more photos here.

JAN 9th, 2010 :: Prior Lake House Concert

The house concert closed out an afternoon of serving and being community together. The hosts invited guests to one or all of three segments in the day - an hour of packing meals for 1,000's of children in Haiti through the organization Feed My Starving Children followed by a Social Hour and then a concert with Heatherlyn! We served with the audience earlier in the day and got to celebrate through the music! more photos here.

JAN 16th 2010 :: Victory Muse House Concert Series

We enjoyed chocolate covered strawberries made by the gracious hosts of the Victory Muse House Concert Series. The evening honored Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. and dreams. Heatherlyn sang Mindy Smith's "Come to Jesus" for the children of Haiti, recognizing and grieving dreams shattered. Then she dedicated a song celebrating a dream-come-true for a recently published author who was in the audience! Folks sang along in harmony in this comfy and inviting home. more photos here.

Heatherlyn Music would like to bring this really cool experience to more neighborhoods and circles of friends, family and colleagues to the outskirts of the Twin Cities and across the country.

We need YOU to do this!

Here's more about how we can partner together to make this happen!

Thanks for considering!

Staying "Balanced" on the Road

This post is part of a follow up to the blog Bliss and Sweat ~ a day in the life of heatherlyn music and it's some of what we've prepared to communicate with our road hosts about our nourishment needs. We thought you might be interested in how we seek to balance the bliss and sweat of our traveling work and manage the stresses of being far from home.

You may be even more interested in our HOME RECIPES here, favorites in our family menu. Heatherlyn has been a vegetarian for 10 years and in the past couple years, has gotten pretty good at putting whole, nourishing and delicious foods together. Feel free to use the recipes, ask questions and share them too!

STAYING HEALTHY ON THE ROAD

Living on the road can take it's toll - sleepless nights, working long hours, odd hours, etc. In addition, we pay for all our own health care and really believe it's important for us to be good stewards of our health - the best we can.

Since we are often staying with gracious hosts and invited to partake in meals together, we feel it would relieve a little awkwardness to share these needs sooner than later. ;-) We simply want to communicate as best as we can so you don't feel like we are being big old snobs when we need to catch some shut-eye or if we say "no thank you" to something.

EXERCISE

Heatherlyn seeks to regularly exercise - whether that's pulling out one of her aerobic workout DVDs and finding a space to dance around, finding a walking path or jogging trail or using a hosts stationary bike - she seeks to do this regularly to keep up energy, health and creative brain flow.

REST

We really appreciate the opportunity to enjoy the company of those within the communities we serve as we travel. We love to hear stories but sometimes we really need to excuse ourselves to have some time to ourselves, unwind and get a good night of sleep.

NOURISHMENT & MEALS

Heatherlyn is a vegetarian and also has some heart health related dietary restrictions. She is also careful to keep sugar intake low to keep energy up and the immune system uncompromised. For, Heatherlyn, being a vegetarian means more than eliminating meat. It means being mindful to make choices that are wholesome and nourishing ~ to the earth and to the body. Heatherlyn and Jason regular meal habits consist primarily of whole grains (important for proteins and heart health), legumes (bean & lentils), fresh fruits & vegetables and almond milk. We avoid any and all processed or refined foods, leached of their nutrients.

Heatherlyn needs to keep fats moderate (Doctor says "low fat") and usually gets them from ground flax seed, raw nuts (such as almonds) and canola or olive oils, again, in moderation. So, Egg whites are awesome. The yolks are out.

Dairy if often not the best choice for digestion on the road or for keeping the voice clear, so her preferred source of Calcium is almond milk or soymilk (again, low fat). When HL has dairy products, it's usually fermented dairy products with live active cultures such as kefir in a fruit smoothie or nonfat plain yogurt used in cooking or dips.

Being a vegetarian (for HL) also means beef, chicken or other meat stocks are out. Vegetable stocks are great, but Heatherlyn often cooks with miso paste mixed in water as a nourishing and flavorful soup stock or vegetable stir fry base. Miso is known for it's health-giving properties and is also SO delicious!

We don't expect people to buy special things for us when they host us. But, if you'd did, we'd love to prepare dinner for you, time permitting! We hope that those who hire us to present will also be paying us enough for groceries so, we hope to be visiting your local co-op and cooking for ourselves as much as possible.

THESE FOODS ARE IN! (Examples)

natural whole grains: oats, brown rice, quinoa, kashi. whole wheat flour, whole grain corn meal, etc...

lentils and beans (dry from a co-op bulk section or organic canned)

fresh fruits and veggies (raw, steamed, "saladified", stir-fried, roasted...)

egg whites

plain low fat or non-fat yogurt

omega 3 fats in moderation: flax seed, olive & canola oils, raw nuts and all-natural nut butters

natural hummus

THESE FOODS ARE OUT!

Fast Food - (That's right, even when we're driving, we'd rather stop at a grocery store and pick up pita, hummus, baby carrots and organic apples!)

refined breads and pasta

refined sugar, especially high fructose corn syrup

processed anything

artery-clogging fats, especially hydrogenated oils

meat or meat stocks

egg yolks

butter or anything fried in trans fats

sugar

This is obviously not a comprehensive list, but we're not sure we need to make one.

If you're curious,

here are some of our favorite recipes

and staples in our family menu.

STEEL CUT OATS

1 cup of steel cut oats

4 cups water

dashed of sea salt

Cook for about a 1/2 hour

served with cinnamon, dash of nutmeg, dash of allspice, maybe raisins or fruit and a bit of almond milk

no butter please

(or just plain old oatmeal)

SPICY TOMATO LENTILS

This one's so easy!

1 cup of dry brown or green lentils

1 can of Organic Muir Glen Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies

Rinse the lentils and combine in pot with can of tomatoes. Add water as needed. Simmer for about 30 min. Taste test and add water as needed.

Spicy Tomato Lentils are great served with whole grain pasta, corn bread (below), baked potato or spaghetti squash!

The "I'll-Never-Eat-Another-Kind-of-Cornbread-Again" Cornbread

SERVES 8-16

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup cornmeal (Course Grind Whole Grain such as Bob's Red Mill)
• 1/4 cup sugar (more or less to taste)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 Tblspns of Ground flax seed and 6 Tblspns water (or 4 egg whites)
• 1 cup plain nonfat yogurt (1 cup of canned pumpkin can also be used!)
• 1/2 cup whole kernel corn, drained (optional) – I used this. It was nice touch.
• dash of nutmeg
• sprinkle of cayenne

Directions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
• Combine in a separate bowl: 2 Tblspns of Ground flax seed and 6 Tblspns water, let it “gell” for 6 minutes before adding to mixture.
• In a medium mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients.
• Stir in yogurt and ground flax mixture. If using, stir in corn.
• Pour into 8 inch square pan sprayed with non-stick canola oil cooking spray
• Lightly sprinkle top with cayenne
• Bake for approximately 20 minutes.
• Best served warm.

Great served the following options: 1) agave nectar and almond butter; 2) spicy tomato lentils; 3) homemade guacamole; 4) salsa....

FRESH FRUIT DIP

We usually just enjoy plain fresh fruit, but sometimes it's fun to do a dip like this.

I've especially liked this combo with red grapes and pear slices. Kiwi, berries and lots of other fruits would be great with it I'm sure. MMMmmmm good.

• plain non fat yogurt
• agave nectar to sweeten
• nutmeg to taste

HOMEMADE GUACAMOLE

Avocados

Diced Roma Tomatoes

Chopped Red Onion

Chopped Red Pepper

Juice of Lime or Lemon

Crushed Garlic

Finely chopped cucumber (optional)

Spices: Sea Salt, Pepper, Cumin, Cayenne, Chili Powder (any combo)

Pay attention to the amounts you're adding. Start with a couple avocados and go from there! Taste test!

QUINOA

Qunioa is a power grain, a whole protein by itself.

Brown 1 cup of quinoa in 1 T. of canola oil in a medium pot until it begins to smell like popcorn.

Add 2 cups of water, 1 t. miso paste (optional), spices (optional) and cook for about 20 minutes!

GOOD SALAD STUFF

Spinach or Dark Green Romaine Lettuce

Any Vegetable, like...

Carrots

Cucumber

Tomato

Red or Yellow Pepper

Zucchini

Beets

Peas

Red Onion

Hummus

red wine or balsamic vinegar and olive oil

ANYTIME POTATO WOK

Miso Paste (or veggie broth)

Cubed Red Potato

Any combo of veggies that we have in the fridge, such as...

Cabbage

Carrot

Celery

Turnip

Parsnips

Beets

Brussel Spouts

Summer Squash

Spinach

Zuchini

Crushed Garlic Cove

Chopped Onion

Spices: Curry, Ginger, Sea Salt, Pepper

Stir a spoonful of miso paste in with about a 1/2 cup of hot water, then add to wok full of veggies.

While cooking, check tenderness of veggies and add more water bit by bit if needed.

If using spinach, add it near the end of the cooking time just stir it in until it is just wilted. Then serve it up!

OTHER EXAMPLES OF EASY FOODS

Whole Wheat Pita Bread and/or fresh veggies with Natural Hummus

Natural Salsa (no high fructose corn syrup) and natural corn chips (baked or made with healthy oils)

Brown rice and Black Beans

Tomato and Cucumber slices with mustard, sea salt and pepper

Apple slices and almond butter

Wrap or Pita with veggies and hummus

ENJOY!

2009 Heatherlyn Music Highlights

JAN :: Presented music alongside speaker, explorer, prominent MN activist, and very cool individual, Will Steger

FEB 24th :: KARE 11 TV Appearance >> CLICK FOR VIDEO.

FEB 24th :: Performance at The Fineline, a prominent music venue in Minneapolis, MN

APR 27 - MAY 1 :: Songwriting Workshop with Middle School Students; Savage, MN

MAY 22 :: KUMD Radio Interview and Studio Performance; Duluth, MN - CLICK TO LISTEN!

JUL 9,10 :: Heatherlyn's First Music Festival at LIFEST! (Photo with friend and artist Jonathan Rundman)

Summer 2009 :: Began partnership with Youthrive LIVE! and because of it, we had the opportunities to contribute to the following State-Wide Summits:

• High School Completion and Graduation/Drop Out Prevention Summit
• Minnesota Summit to Prevent Sexual Violence
  

NOV 4th :: Heatherlyn presented at the Legendary Roy Wilkins Auditorium with 2,500 young people present to be voices for clean water in Africa.

APR & SEPT :: Heatherlyn and husband, Jason, each took turns leaving their day jobs and moved from moonlighting in music to living into their dreams full-time! It's been scary and very challenging, like a roller coaster ride at times, but here we head on into 2010 hoping for many more good things to come as we share music for HoPeacEquity to and through all!