At the start of the summer it looked like this:
This morning it looks like this:
The garden as metaphor for life is well worn territory, and I apologize to anyone who might be rolling their eyes right now. But the metaphor is an apt one. When I started planting in February/March I was a mixture of hope and irrational fear. Dreaming of the beautiful things that would soon fill my backyard (and my plate), kept up at night worrying “but what if nothing grows?” But I pushed forward anyway, trusting that it would come. Shortly thereafter little bits of green started poking through the soil and I felt relief. So what did I do this summer? I tended my garden.
Some things grow well, some things whither and die. All that I can do is try my best to nurture it all, accept what comes and when something ain’t working out then try something new. But I never stop planting. The space is there, the ground is fertile because all those months ago I put in the work preparing everything (with the help of my lovely wife Vivian, of course). So now all there is to do is keep trying new things and see what grows best.
After a successful run of shows last spring some exciting things have been happening in the background with regard to release plans, a new label and in many ways a new beginning. I’m not entirely at liberty to discuss it at the moment (but of course I will let you know as SOON as I can). In the meantime I decided to take a break from performing for a bit and write as many songs as I can this summer (to supplement the work I’ve already done, of course) in an attempt to have as many options as possible when I head into the studio this fall. So on the daily, my view is this:
Of course where the garden metaphor ends is that in the fall most things die or go dormant for the winter whereas that will really be when my “garden” is starting to come alive. It has been a very long journey getting here with a lot of help from a lot of wonderful people and the funny thing is that it’s really only the beginning! But the seeds are all planted, and I’m looking forward to watching my garden grow. I know that you’re going to enjoy the fruits of my labor… Thank you for your continued love and support.
P.S. As a slightly less metaphorical point of reference… Back in 2009, the garden looked like this:
Like I said, it’s been a long journey!
