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All Parts of Round
Oh, to be alive amid the Great Turning!
Oh, to be alive in this time of change.
Embrace the changes! Open new ways for life to sustain.
Notes
This simple round works well as a Gratitude or Going Forth song, alluding to the great gift it is to be alive now, during the Great Turning, with its constant challenges and changes. Each part comes in after one line, and it’s best to limit it to two or three parts going at once. This recording starts on G.
Words and music by Gretchen Sleicher. Used with permission.
Full Song (courtesy of performer)
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We shall be known by the company we keep By the ones who circle round to tend these fires We shall be known by the ones who sow and reap The seeds of change, alive from deep within the earth It is time now, it is time now that we thrive It is time we lead ourselves into the well It is time now, and what a time to be alive In this Great Turning we shall learn to lead in love In this Great Turning we shall learn to lead in love
Part 1
We shall be known by the company we keep By the ones who circle round to tend these fires We shall be known by the ones who sow and reap The seeds of change, alive from deep within the earth
Part 2
It is time now, it is time now that we thrive It is time we lead ourselves into the well It is time now, and what a time to be alive In this Great Turning we shall learn to lead in love In this Great Turning we shall learn to lead in love
Notes
This song calls us to learn to lead in love in these times of Great Turning. It inspires us to appreciate the good company we keep, and go deep into "the well", our source our creativity, connection and ability to thrive - now! Composer Karisha Longaker, of the duo MaMuse, first received this song through in a dream. She says: "I woke from a dream where two dear old musical friends (one of whom has already passed) were beckoning me to come to my 'creative place'. I followed them, their smiles and warm hearts asking me to come forward... I awoke from the dream with the first part of the song singing though me: 'We shall be known by the company we keep'. It haunted me (...) and later rest of the words found themselves in the pages in my journal." Used with permission. https://www.mamuse.org/
Song and Parts
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Part 1
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Part 2
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In the spiral of the Work That Reconnects this song perches at the transition from Seeing With New Eyes (seeing how we are interwoven in the web of life), and Going Forth (mending, healing, making our dreams real).
Teach both parts, have half the group sing each of the parts simultaneously, and then switch, so that both halves get to sing each part and learn the whole song.
Weaving by Karolina Daria.
Song and Parts
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Part 1
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Hold the line, hold the line, hold the line, preserve life!
Transform our consciousness, flex those imaginal cells!
Create new gaian ways and mix in the old ones, the best of the old ones!
Notes
Singing this simple layer song helps us imprint into our bodies and memories one of the most helpful of Joanna Macy’s teachings — the three dimensions of the Great Turning: holding actions, shift in consciousness, and new gaian structures. All are necessary, none alone is enough, and bless every action in any of these dimensions that anyone is taking!
Holding actions are those that slow the damage to the Earth and its beings, and include political, legislative, and legal work, as well as direct actions such as boycotts and civil disobedience.
The Great Turning requires a fundamental shift in worldviewand values that includes an understanding of our profound interconnectedness and widened circles of belonging.
Analysis of the structural causes of our current crisis leads to creation of new alternative structures that enhance life in Gaia — like ecovillages, local currencies and vibrant local economies.
The parts in this recording start on G (lowest), B (up an octave – highest) and D (middle), respectively. You can also switch the order and go G – D – B, ascending.
Words and music by Gretchen Sleicher. Used with permission.
Song with All Parts
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Part 1
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Part 2
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Part 3
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May you walk in your life as a warrior Clear and loving and strong May you walk in your life as a warrior Trusting the path you are on
May you walk in your life as a healer …
May you walk in your life as a lover …
May you walk in your life as a woman …
Notes
You can add your own variations to the last word of lines 1 and 3 of each verse, and use it as a Going Forth song to support each other’s commitment to our paths in the Great Turning.
Laurence Cole composed this round toward the end of his work with the Community Choir Leadership Training program in Victoria, B.C. Surrounded by singers who were stepping into their calling as songleaders and community choir directors, he felt the catalyzing effect of mutual encouragement and inspiration that happens when each one who finds his or her life purpose calls others to theirs. Angeles Arrien in her work The Fourfold Way speaks of the bell as the instrument that calls us to our calling. Once the round gets going, it sounds like bells, calling us into our own particular ways of contributing to the Great Turning. This recording by Laurence and friends starts on G. Words and music by Laurence Cole. Used with permission. www.laurencecole.com
Song
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Composed by Venice Manley, based on quote from Goethe -- Performed by Gretchen Sleicher
Lyrics
Whatever you can do or dream you can
Begin it, just begin it.
Boldness has genius,
Power and magic in it.
Boldness has genius,
Power and magic in it.
Notes
This three-part round calls us forth to commit to our dreams and just Begin It! Words by Goethe. Full quote: “Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back — concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth that ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.“
Sprout photo by Mike Epp — Creative Commons
Song
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Composed by Shlomo Carlbach -- Performed by Betsy Rose
Lyrics
Return again, return again
Return to the land of your soul
Return to who you are
Return to what you are
Return to where you are
Born and reborn again
Notes
This simple song can be hypnotic when sung in a group with harmonies. It serves as a good complement to deep ecology work and the Who Are You practice from Joanna Macy’s Coming Back to Life, which help us move beyond constricted notions of who we are, where we come from and what can happen through us.
Lyrics and music by Shlomo Carlbach. Recording by Betsy Rose. Used with permission. www.betsyrosemusic.org
Song (courtesy of Betsy Rose)
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