What I’ve been listening to lately

"Music Tuesdays" are my favorite days to go on Youtube. I’m always discovering new music artists with incredible and diverse talents. One of my favorites is Zee Avi.

“Zee Avi is just 23 but she’s an old soul. A huge talent in a petite frame bringing a universal message from the unlikely birthplace of Borneo, an ancient island east of Malaysia which remains an untouched, natural paradise, an apt description of her songs.”

Kantoi (a song Avi sings in “Manglish”) conveys her unique use of self-expression linguistically. Her music is a combination of classic sounds like Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee and Doris Day. Instruments such as the ukelele, the trumpet and the guitar add a vintage flair to her songs style. She is great to listen to on a rainy day.

Zee Avi is unique in her pursuit of fame. Most of her original videos recorded on Youtube were angled so that her face remained hidden. “It’s because I would like viewers to focus more on the songs…” she says.

You can read more about her on her website:
http://www.zeeavi.com/

Check out her music on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/user/kokokaina?blend=1&ob=4

The Dream in the Drawer

The Dream in the Drawer
by Brianna Anderson

"They were allowed to dream once,
For a time reality was bliss.
But hardship came
And everything had gone amiss.

They traveled so far to get there;
Sacrificed much for the dream.
But God had another plan it seemed.

So father put away the dream;
Kept it safe in a drawer.
He opened it at times,
But everyday it grew harder to ignore.

If they never knew what it was like
For their dreams to come true,
Would they never miss them?
Now that they are through?

Even if this pain and regret lasts,
Till they are sorely shaken,
And hard times do not pass.
Perhaps it was worth it after all,
To experience the dream for a short time;
Than not at all.

The drawer is closed,
And now a new dream must begin.
God is still good; He is our hope and has always been.

Although we cannot see it anymore,
He has a better dream in mind,
Then the one we’ve put away in the drawer."

"Your father...has made many sacrifices for his family and put away many dreams...He put them in a drawer. And sometimes, late at night, he takes them out and admires them. But it gets harder and harder to close the drawer..." ~Peter Pan

Quote of the Month

The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry's cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.
The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I'll put a trinket on.
~Emily Dickinson