Van Morrison & The Eternal Now.

I was listening to Van Morrison last night. I have not listened to much Van in the last few months because of being annoyed with his attitude over this COVID-19 pandemic. When thousands of people are dying from it every day and him complaining about not being able to play live. When he wrote, ‘Just like Greta Garbo, I want to be alone’, I do not think he meant it. It seems that Van cannot handle isolation very well. Anyway, I do not want to bang on about that. The reason I started listening to him again last night is because of the book I have been reading called The Power Of Now by Eckhart Tolle. As I said the other day, I first became aware of the name Eckhart Tolle at a Van concert a few years ago when Van’s daughter Shana mentioned his name. The book is all about the importance of living in the presence of the Now, because NOW is the only time that exists.

I put the book down for a few minutes to mull over what was being said, because some concepts are quite hard to grasp and I remembered the concerts on Cyprus Avenue five years ago and in particular the very last song On Hyndford Street. In that song Van was saying the very same things as Eckhart Tolle was saying in the book. I had to go on Youtube and find the video. The song starts slowly with Van reciting the words and even making a couple of jokes, but as the song develops, it is almost as if he is drawing the audience into a guided group meditation. He was singing about ‘bringing in the eternal presence of the NOW, bring it on in’, the eternal now, in the eternal moment, And it's always being now, and it's always being now, It's always now, Can you feel the silence?

Viaducts Of Your Dreams.

I have shared the video to this blog page in case you have not seen it before. Anyone who was fortunate to be there on that magical day will never forget it, that is for sure. Everyone left that concert feeling wondrous and all lit up inside. There are other Van songs which are on the same theme such as Take Me Back where he sings about being close to the One. At this very moment I am listening to The Philosophers Stone album that I haven’t played for at least a year. There is a song on it called Song Of Being A Child which is on the same subject of being in the eternal moment of now. ‘When the child was a child, It didn't know it was a child. Everything for it was filled with life and all life was one’. I’m sure you yourself might be able to think of other songs. Incidentally, when reading the words of that song I remembered that Van only wrote the last verse. The rest of it was a poem by the Nobel prize laureate Peter Handke. An interesting fact is that a photo on the inside cover of Van’s Back On Top album is also on the cover of a novel by Peter Handke called My Year in The No-Man's-Bay. Coincidence? Probably, but I wonder how Van stumbled across the poem by Handke.

Anyway, that will do for today. Whatever we think about Van’s antics over lockdown, there is no doubt that he has produced a fabulous body of work, and that is perhaps what we should concentrate on.

 

Van Morrison - On Hyndford Street (Live from Cyprus Avenue, Belfast)

Lakeside Mindfulness.

There was a brief break in the weather this morning, the sun showed its face for a while, so after I got the wheelie bin in, I thought I ought to get some exercise. I headed up the road towards the countryside. When I got as far as Lidl I realised I should have put my boots on. I was wearing light shoes which meant I could not go anywhere muddy. I decided to go up Coach Road towards the golf course. Just before you get to the club house there is a nice little fishing lake. I hoped there might be some wildlife or birds to photograph, but there was not, just a couple of black-headed geese who honked at me as I approached. It was nice and peaceful though, looking at the lake and being in the moment. People should go for a walk every day if they can. It is good for your mental health to get outdoors.

There is a memorial bench by the lake and a plinth remembering the late friends and organisers of the Village Pump Folk Festival which was held here for a few years before its demise. I knew some of them personally, and recognised the names of others, such as Jackie Leven, Vin Garbutt, Fred Wedlock and a few others. I sat there for about 30 minutes enjoying the view and remembering a few things from the old days. Then a few spots of rain interrupted my reverie and I thought I better make a move. It rained quite steadily as I marched briskly home, but It didn't do me any harm.

I don’t know when I’ll get out again, but my mind is turning to Spring. I might start potting a few seeds in the next few days which will give me something to do. I cannot think of anything else to say now. If something exciting happens this evening I’ll tell you about it tomorrow.

 

Always Being Now.

Sunday afternoon, gazing out of the kitchen window as big fat snowflakes fall on the wet garden. It will not settle because it also appears to be raining. I suppose the correct term is sleet. We are saying farewell to January. What a month it has been. Britain has finally been cut adrift from Europe and the death toll passes 100,000 from COVID-19. When the Titanic sank in 1912 it was a national disaster when 1,500 people perished, but now that figure has been reached nearly every day. In the USA there is a new President trying to repair the damage of the last four years. Let us hope he succeeds. On a personal level I am pleased with some things. Firstly, I have kept my promise to write something on my blog page every day. Sorry if it has been unimportant trivial nonsense on many occasions, but it is the best I can do in the present circumstances. Hopefully, as the weather gets better, and the restrictions of lock-down are lifted I will be able to get out and about and find something interesting to write about. Secondly, I have done some exercise every day, either Tai Chi or Qigong or going for a walk. I can feel the benefit of it. Thirdly, I have got through January without any alcohol, which I am also incredibly pleased about. I have not felt at all depressed during the isolation. I bet I would have if I had been drinking every night. I might treat myself to a glass of wine tomorrow evening though.

Shana Morrison.

So, what have I done since yesterday? Last night when I was looking for something else on YouTube I stumbled across videos by Eckhart Tolle and ended up watching for an hour or so. I think I first became aware of his name at a Van Morrison concert in Bristol about seven years ago. Van’s daughter Shana Morrison sang a few songs to start the show. She asked the audience to please not film or record on their phones and as Eckhart Tolle says, 'just be in the presence of the moment'. She asked so sweetly that I did not try and do any filming at all that evening. Anyway, I did not take much interest in Tolle until now because I thought he was just popularising things that others had said previously, mainly Krishnamurti. However, after listening to him last night I was so impressed that I ordered one of his books called The Power Of Now. I will tell you about it when I have read it.

Apart from that, last night I watched a documentary about The Mamas & The Papas who I had several records of in the 60s. Also, a documentary/concert of The Beach Boys from 1976. I really enjoyed that, apart from Mike Love who seems to be an ego maniac. The Wilson brothers and Al Jardine were great, especially when the surfing police turned up and made Brian get out of bed and go surfing.

That will do for today. As it is February 1^st tomorrow, I will try and think of something special to tell you about.