Mary Rocap: Journal

I want to pay tribute to a close friend, Greg Taylor, who died Sunday, September 2. Greg was a person whose counsel I sought and friendship I treasured.
We were in a songwriting circle and he always had positive and insightful suggestions. We also worked together at Whole Foods and Wellspring Distributors, shared performances, and served together on the board of the NC Songwriters Coop. I last saw him at the Eno Festival in July and last talked to him from the hospital. He had been admitted for treatment of recently diagnosed leukemia.
Condolences go out to his wife, Carol, and everyone who knew him. His presence in our lives will be greatly missed.
Go in peace Greg and may your soul rise in glory.

I've got a picture of Greg in my photo section. His website is www.gregtaylormusic.com -- his albumn All in My Hands is available for purchase from there. It would mean a lot to Carol if you bought one.

A myth-song about the mineral mica. I was inspired by Galadrielle's Song. from Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings - A part of that is quoted making up the last verse of my song.

Ever was but now I am
And chose I mortal form
To taste the apple and the pear
To feel the sun and storm
Crossed eternal starry sea
The ever ending night
To rest upon the sandy shore
And view the morning light

One hundred years passed as a day
And then I felt bereft
And looked above a starry hosts
And longed for what I’d left
Three messengers had I retained
Three messengers of flight
Falcon, moth, and turtle dove
“Fly high into the night”

One thousand years passed as a day
And one by one they came
Weary travelers from afar
All with a sad refrain
“Foolish Mica, ever bright
Why did you have to roam?
You stayed too long, and were forgot
So far away from home”

Then I turned my face from them
And toward the setting sun
Still and silent like a stone
And stone I did become
Ten thousand years of sun and storm
Crushed me to sparking dust
Three winged friends spread my remains
O’er all the earth’s hard crust

"And if of ships I now should sing
What ship would come to me?
What ship would bear me ever back
Across so wide a sea?"

copyright 2006

Here is my made-up myth-song for why the redbud flower is so obviously purple:

Where the meadow meets the wood
A dark limbed tree does grow
And in the springtime breezes
Redbud blossoms blow
I see them on the road sides
On the edges of the lane
Between the tended and the wild
The tangled and the tame
But why it’s called a redbud
I’m sure you’d like to know
There is no ruby in its blush
You can’t tell me that it’s so

When the redbud was first named
It bloomed a scarlet true
But March he brought a chilly wind
And tinged it icy blue
The loveliest of visions;
The colors did enchant
Indigo and crimson
Birthed a miscreant
And thus the wild bred blossom
Takes on a purple hue
In memory of when wind met flower
And flower said I love you
And flower said I love you

copyright 2006

Well, "Hallelujah! Amen." has officially begun. I was in Overdub Studio two days this week and got a lot of great singing done with my girls and Lise Uyanik. For those of you who know Lise and my repertoire I am happy to say that we recorded Travelin' Shoes and O, Freedom. We consider these two songs signature songs and have performed countless times over a span of three decades. It is a great feeling to have documented this material.
None of the songs on this CD will be originals and in fact most were written in the 18th century.

I'm now listed in the online resource "Southern Artistry" (go to the link section for a direct link to this site).
Isn't that neat?

Just came back from a great recording session at Overdub Studio with Bo Lozoff and his new project. The very talented John Plymale was at the controls. Lise Uyanik, Shannon Dancy, and I were the female vocalists. David Kramer, Shannon's boyfriend Rick, and Will McFarlane (sporting a Scotish kilt I must add) were the male vocalists. We all stood around a central mic and did these wonderful sing-a-long kind of choruses. I also did two songs just with Will. The CD will be coming out in the fall - November 4 (it's on my calendar for the release concert at The Carrboro ArtCenter). I think it is going to be a good CD when finished - check it out later.

We bought our own baby chicks and they arrived Easter Monday, April 17 - how appropriate for new life. 37 of the little guys and gals came in the mail peeping away.
Tom and I almost feel like proud parents!

How do you catch a unique rabbit?
Unique up on it.

How do you catch a tame rabbit?
Tame way, unique up on it.

I have been quilting since I was in college. I needed a bedspread; I had material so I decided to make a quilt. No one taught me. I just did it. I used the Grandmother’s Churn Dasher Pattern. Well, that was over 30 years ago.
I found I love making quilts. In general, I like to work small; 45x60 seems to be a good size. I like a rectangular shape. I like a vertical line. I like fabric that has some weight to it; color that has depth or sheen. I like to decorate a traditional pattern with buttons, sequins, or embroidery. Quilts, I have found, are a good use for earrings that have lost their mate. I like to make the plain fancy, the serviceable beautiful. My approach to quilt making is not the different from my approach to music. I draw from the past but I make it my own.
There is a certain joy in piecing together colors to make a pattern – a quilt top. But the act of quilting enhances every ordinary or exquisite top. The primary element in quilting is time. There is a commitment from me to devote the in and out movement of my fingers, countless stitches and knots to take a top and turn it into a quilt. I machine piece but I hand quilt and to me that is what makes the work come alive. My signature my breath is in every stitch.
Another element of my work is that I use what I have at hand. I do not plan a pattern and then go to the store and buy the needed fabrics. I start with what I have, what I’ve collected, what I’ve been given over the years. Then if necessary I’ll buy what is missing. In this sense I feel I stay true to the thrifty nature of the craft.
It is true that quilting is a craft. The product serves a purpose. But the product is also a piece of art drawing the eye back again and again to the beauty of the work. This is what I try to do: to make a thing of beauty to be used and enjoyed for years to come.

Sue Klausmeyer, the conductor of the UNC Women's Glee Club bestowed upon me a a great honor: an invitation to tour with the UNC Combined Glee Clubs on their Winter Tour this year. We went Charlotte, Charleston, Gastonia, and Asheboro Thursday January 5 through Monday January 9.
It was a great experience. I really enjoyed being a part of the program and also hearing their wonderful music. And, I got a song out of the experience. Driving through the countryside I was struck by all the fields of cotton. So I wrote a song about cotton. Did you know that the cotton blossom is white the first day of its bloom but by the second day it has turned red; the third day it falls off the plant. Such is life . . .

After working for so many years in the food industry, having my own restaurant and then working with Whole Foods I pretty much have lost any interest in cooking. I do still enjoy baking and making breakfasts for those special mornings. Here's a great recipe I have adapted which originally came from The Vegetarian Epicure (feeds 4-6):
German Apple Pancake
1. peel and slice up 4 apples and saute in 1 T butter with 1/4 cup brown sugar and cinnamon til soft and somewhat carmelized--set aside
2. whisk together 3 eggs with 3/4 cup of unbleached flour then add 3/4 cup milk and 1/4 t salt. It should be a very smooth batter
3. melt 2 T butter in a large fry pan -- add batter
4. put fry pan (and batter) in 450 degree oven for 10 minutes. Be prepared to prick it with a fork when it rises in a bubble formation
5. turn down oven to 350 degrees and continue baking til done (around 15 minutes)
6. turn out on a serving plate and spread with softened cream cheese; add the cooked apples
7. fold it in half like you would an omlette and sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve immediately with maple syrup

So, we've got this lost flock of beautiful chickens that have been visiting our yard on a daily basis for the last two months. I love watching them. There are now ten remaining (two roosters and 8 hens); down from 18. Unfortunately our dog Zoe killed two of them while penned up! Apparently those two just flew into her pen - why they would do that I can't imagine. But there are other predators about as well - hawks, loose dogs, and fox. Anyway I have become increasingly attached to them and count them every morning hoping they all made it through the night. I am also concerned that they will have a harder time at it now that colder weather is coming on. So yesterday I bought them cracked corn and a water device. I guess I am claiming them as mine. And who knows maybe these chickens will come out in song lyrics - as I seem to be accumulating birds in my songs: flamingoes, doves, bluebirds, cardinals, owls, songbirds, and wood thrush. So time will tell. . .

I have been given this opportunity to work with the UNC Women's Glee Club by their conductor Sue Klausmeyer. Marielle is in this chorus. We are working on Halleujah and Sand of the Sea. Today I had a wonderful time introducing the songs and singing them through with the women - all 40 of them - at their retreat! I look forward to the performance scheduled for 11/16 at Carol Woods Retirement Community.

This small outdoor festival began 27 years ago by Robin and Linda Williams in Verona, VA in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley. It is held the first weekend of August, this year August 5-7. It was about a four hour trip from our home and about 20 minutes from Harrisonburg where my sister and her family have been living the past three years. We've come up for visits so it felt like familiar territory.

I was thrilled to get the invitaion to play - to share the stage with Robin and Linda Williams and Their Fine Group, James Keelaghan, and No Strings Attached.

I was asked to do a workshop on Saturday morning, as well as three concerts, two on Saturday and one on Sunday. I wasn't sure what the expectations were for the workshop but ended up talking about my songwriting muses and singing example songs.

The most eventful of the concerts was on Saturday night when it began to rain early in my set. One of the hosts came up behind me with a large umbrella and so I proceeded for several songs and then it was decided that everyone would regroup to a covered pavillion a short distance away. So regroup we did. I was horrified to find myself in front of the crowd with no amplification. I wanted to vaporize on the spot. But all turned out well and even wonderful as I tossed out my set list and started to remember songs that everyone could sing along with ending up with "Down to the River to Pray." The audience did indeed join in happily and harmonioulsy. So it ended up on a real sweet note as we were all together sheltered from the rain and making music together.

On Sunday I did a gospel set and as Marielle and Christiana and two of my nieces, Bethany and Dawn were there we were able to get rehearsed and they sang with me closing the set.

It was a wonderful time. I loved hearing James Keelaghan's rich voice and his wonderful songs. No Strings Attached were highly entertaining and are wonderfully accomplished musicians. And of course, the blend, sound, and humor of Robin and Linda Williams and Their Fine Group was a delight to my ears.

Thanks to Mel Lee, host of "Song Bag" at WEMC, Harrisonburg VA for playing my CDs and sugesting me as a performer and to Oakley Pearson for the actual invite.

I now have some pictures in the photo session of this festival. And, there are more if you go to their website. I have it a link for it under links to others. Thanks to Roz Collins, one of the organizers for taking the pictures and making them available.

The photos of Silver from at The Eno Festival were taken by David Mutter, the brother of Bob, the percussionist for Silver and GraceNote. You can find his web page linked under the "Links to Others" tab.

My niece, Bethany Tobin, is not only one of the angel singers on Indian Summer and Hallelujah! Amen., she is also an artist. Her work is on the cover and booklet of Indian Summer as well as this website. This particular painting is called Veni (for Veni Sancte Spiritus) - that's the music behind the colors. It's actually a close-up section of a larger painting - maybe about 3x2 feet or bigger.