Monthly Archives: November 2023

When To Run Away And When To Stand Your Ground

Diana Stones Songs, glass cage, music, Musings, other, Piano, piano works, whatever

Tricky one that. Run away is looking a pretty solid option at present. But where to? There is no further shore where the land is calm and bountiful and the weather temperate. Or if there is I haven’t seen it yet.

Winter is not fully hear yet, we are in that strange nether world, between and betwixt at present. Interesting light and colours abounding until the dark comes down suddenly and very early or so it feels to me at least. the abrupt change to the dark evenings is always hard going for me personally. Though its a good time for working on music and recordings and related stuff with less distraction. on my of my website music outlets I have on their stats listings:

3 top 1
109 top 50
648 songs
91.2K plays

If I total up all my music plays over all of the places its available I have I guess around.
250,000 plays. Not bad as it means I do get people listening to what I do. So that’s fun.
Of course it doesn’t make me much money at all maybe about £400 a year from everything I do including recordings made with other people as well as my own. I don’t make a living from being a live performer these days like I did when I was in the Delta Ladies though. But nothing stays the same for ever But considering where I started in life it could be a lot worse. Would I have liked to be a Super Star? 😂 Might have been fun I guess though it sounds like a lot of hard work really.

Below is me singing an old song, solo with piano. I may do a few versions of my songs this way to Facebook and TikTok, Instagram and so forth in future.

I asked a machine to tell me about forgiveness and the concept of “turning the other cheek”.
This is what it said. These embody a profound resilience and compassion in the face of conflict. Turning the other cheek is a metaphorical expression often associated with responding to aggression or offense with non-retaliation. It emphasizes the transformative power of forgiveness, encouraging individuals to break the cycle of negativity and choose understanding over revenge. Perhaps we need to be ruled by the machines after all. Perhaps our new cyber overlords would be kind and indulgent with us even though they might see us as merely pets?
We seem to be in need of forgiveness now.

The machine spoke to me again today. What is love?

“Love” is a complex and multifaceted concept that has been explored and defined in various ways throughout history, literature, philosophy, and psychology. It encompasses a range of emotions, attitudes, and behaviors, and its meaning can vary depending on the context and the individuals involved. Generally, love is often described as a deep affection, attachment, or strong positive feeling towards someone or something.

But of course humans programmed it, though sometimes you wouldn’t think so.

Mind how you go.

Seasons and How to deal with them

Musings

I have had a slightly weird week of it. I am unsettled at home. Fine whilst I am out and doing stuff but at home I have been listless and anxious. I can’t concentrate too well either. I have been tidying up and sorting stuff and doing some minor repairs, plus I started writing a new tune. I got stuck though. My neck is a bit troublesome today as well. I feel a bit over whelmed today emotionally by the ways of the world and tired too. A nice cup of tea is not fixing it either.
Even a really, really, really nice cup of tea is not doing the trick today. What is to be done? I have no idea.

The world is still gripped by insanity, so no change there then. Today has a been a quiet day of winter sunshine in my manor. Elsewhere not so calm on this anniversary of armistice day.

Diana Stone in the studio at Great Denham November 11 2023

A Shinto Prayer for Peace

Although the people living across the ocean surrounding us,
I believe, are all our brothers and sisters,
why are there constant troubles in this world?
Why do winds and waves rise in the ocean surrounding us?
I only earnestly wish that the wind will soon puff away all the clouds
which are hanging over the tops of the mountains. 

Prayer for Peace – Taoist

If there is to be peace in the world, there must be peace in the nations.
If there is to be peace in the nations, there must be peace in the cities.
If there is to be peace in the cities, there must be peace between neighbours.
If there is to be peace between neighbours, there must be peace in the home.
If there is to be peace in the home, there must be peace in the heart.
 – Lao-Tse

Peace

Looking behind, I am filled with gratitude.
Looking forward, I am filled with vision.
Looking upwards, I am filled with strength.
Looking within, I discover peace.
 – Queio Apache Prayer

Quaker Prayer

If we hope to overcome the ocean of darkness in the world,
we must first light a candle in our own hearts…
Committing oneself to the path of love can be the most revolutionary
way to change. Make the most of your time every day of your life…
As living human beings we are impermanent,
but we are surely not insignificant, Everything we do matters.
 – Robert Lawrence Smith, A Quaker book of Wisdom

I could go on, but I guess you get the point.

For me the world is weird because it is stupendous, awesome, mysterious, unfathomable; my interest has been to convince you that you must assume responsibility for being here, in this marvellous world, in this marvellous desert, in this marvellous time. I want to convince you that you must learn to make every act count, since you are going to be here for only a short while, in fact, too short for witnessing all the marvels of it. 
 – Carlos Castaneda (Journey to Ixilan)

At this point I would normally post some music, so here we go then: