Torture is Wrong
June 28, 2007
Martin Luther King Jr.
All my life, compassion has been the foundation of my deeds. Starting with my grandmothers, who taught me about volunteering, and now with my own children, I try to express compassion for the smallest of creatures to the oldest of humans. I have always tried to speak out about issues that concern me, even when I knew it was not popular to do so.
With that said, I am posting a letter from an acquaintance here in Austin. I hope you will take the time to read and get involved. If not in this young woman’s struggle, then in some struggle that is affecting you and your community. Because I tell you, there is no way I am going to shut-up about this, and I hope you will raise your voice with me.
Please…read on.
Love,
Sara
From Anne:
To understand the letters I have attached, I need to give you a little background. Back in October, our firm hired a promising young engineer who goes by the name Danielle Wang (her given name is Xiaodan Wang). As is our custom with new employees, by boss and I took her to lunch as part of her orientation, to get to know her a little and to make her feel relaxed in our office. Until that day, I knew very little of the Falun Dafa other than that they were one of many targets of persecution by the Chinese government. Danielle told us of how her father was in a Chinese prison and had been for 8 years. Her parents had divorced when she was young, and she opted to stay with her father whom she was very close to rather than follow her mother first to Australia and then to the USA. Her mother has since re-married and is living in San Antonio. Her mother’s status allowed Danielle the opportunity to gain a green card and attend the University of Texas in Austin. After her father was arrested, she worked hard to bring attention to his plight in the media and got a job as a translator for a Chinese/American newspaper. She staged a hunger strike in front of the Chinese embassy in Houston. She visited the offices of every politician she could think of and had them write letters to President Bush asking him to put more pressure on the Chinese government. She even inadvertently was the cause of national attention when she managed to wiggle her way to the front of a crowd of reporters attending a speech by then Governor George Bush during his campaign for president and asked him about his stance on China’s human rights violations as he was making his way out of the building. An AP reporter with a sensitive microphone picked up his response showing lack of awareness of this issue and the story was splashed around the national news for several days. These activities caught the attention of the Chinese government and she now cannot return to her homeland and become a torture victim in a Chinese jail. The long hand of the Chinese government reached all the way to Austin where their agents would videotape her and her friends practicing their Falun Dafa in the park as an intimidation tactic. She’s sure they were behind several breakins to her apartment because of the threatening graffiti they left behind in Chinese. Interested in her plight, I read a book on Falun Dafa and learned about what I find to be a very interesting practice blending physical movements (such as the more widely-known Tai Chi or yoga) with mental meditation techniques. It is an evolution of several different techniques from various oriental schools designed to elevate the mind and spirit with the goal of self-enlightenment and self-improvement. After reading that book, I now understand why a meditation practice would be such a threat to the Chinese government. Any practice that aims to teach the masses self-elevation and self-enlightenment has historically been a threat to political and religious institutions that prefer to retain such control for themselves. The government of China saw 10,000 practitioners quickly grow to 10 million in the late 1990’s and to halt further growth, threw all its leaders, including Danielle’s father, in jail. They followed that up with a disinformation campaign designed to discredit the practitioners as members of a dangerous cult. I’m including some web sites that Danielle has given me at the bottom of this email if you are interested in reading more about her plight. Danielle is but one girl against a powerful tyrannical government. She feels the urge to tell her story to as many people as she can, so I decided to help her by passing this on to you. I feel that first hand accounts give a human element to the story. I share an office with Danielle and am reminded every day of what an asset she is to the community. She is currently working on a new web site and I helped her scan some photos of her father. She recently was rejuvenated when she received a rare letter from her father. Letters take months to reach her and all correspondence between them is intercepted and rejected if there is even a hint of subversive language. Her aunts visit their brother whenever the Chinese government permits which is not frequent. They are guarded and have to pretend to try and persuade him to recant. He can’t tell them truthfully what his life is like, but they can see the bruises and the missing teeth. Danielle was so excited when she received the letter, that she has asked us to forward them to friends and family to spread her tale. I found the letter very poetic and lyrical. She told me that when she translates to English, she tries to capture some of the beauty of the rhythm of the words of her native language. I am also including her response. She is going to post both these letters on her web site, but the actual letter she sends her father will have to be edited first, otherwise, the Chinese government will never let him see it. If you are interested in more of Danielle’s story, I’m including some web sites that she gave me at the end of this email as well as the little note that she sent me with the letter. She’ll be attending a protest in New York this summer. If you or anyone you know are there or if you see it on the news, maybe you might pause and think of her story. Thank you for letting me take a few minutes of your time in reading this account.
Anne.
Web sites about Danielle and her plight:
http://www.faluninfo.net/displayAnArticle.asp?ID=6012
http://www.falunaustin.org/danielle.htm
http://clearharmony.net/articles/200211/8346.html
http://www.faluninfo.net/rescuezhiwenwang/Falun%20Gong%20Imprisonments%20claim%20UT%20student.doc
http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2002/4/25/21317.html
http://www.theepochtimes.com/news/5-11-13/34526.html
http://clearharmony.net/articles/200210/7669.html
http://www.fofg.org/act/docs/us_rescuefamilies_12_11_02.pdf
http://www.globalrescue.net/gmr/public/rescue_family_toPrint2a.pdf
http://tspweb02.tsp.utexas.edu/webarchive/08-30-01/2001082901_s02_Joy.html
posted by Sara Hickman at 07:32 am
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How God Works…Through Us…
June 21, 2007
me today, and I wanted to share it with you. It is an unknown email she received and forwarded to me,
so we have no way of knowing the original author…but I am grateful for the amazing love this story shares…
THE LETTER
I have no way to know who sent it, but there is some very kind soul
working in the dead letter office of the US postal service. Some of you may
know that our 14 year old dog, Abbey, died last month. The day after she
died, my 4 year old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how
much she missed Abbey. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that
when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her.
She dictated and I wrote: “Dear God, Will you please take special
care of our dog, Abbey? She died yesterday and is in heaven. We miss her very
much. We are happy that you let us have her as our dog even though she got
sick. I hope that you will play with her. She liked to play with balls and swim
before she got sick. I am sending some pictures of her so that when you
see her in heaven you will know she is our special dog. But I really do
miss her.
Love, Meredith Claire
PS: Mommy wrote the words after Meredith told them to her. “
We put that in an envelope with 2 pictures of Abbey, and addressed it
to God in Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith stuck
some stamps on the front because, as she said, it may take lots of stamps to
get a letter all the way to heaven. That afternoon I let her drop it into
the letter box at the post office.
For a few days, she would ask if God had gotten the letter. I told her
that I thought He had. Yesterday, we took the kids to Austin to a natural
history museum. When we got back, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on
our front porch. Curious, I went to look at it. It had a gold star card on
the front and said “To: Meredith” in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith took it
in and opened it. Inside was a book by Mr. Rogers, “When a Pet Dies.” Taped to
the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God, in its opened
envelope (which was marked Return to Sender: Insufficient address). On
the opposite page, one of the pictures of Abbey was taped under the words
“For Meredith.”
We turned to the back cover, and there was the other picture of Abbey,
and this handwritten note on pink paper:
“Dear Meredith, I know that you will be happy to know that Abbey arrived
safely and soundly in Heaven! Having the pictures you sent to me was such a big help.
I recognized Abbey right away. You know, Meredith, she isn’t sick anymore. Her spirit is here with
me—just like she stays in your heart—young and running and playing. Abbey
loved being your dog. Since we don’t need our bodies in heaven, I don’t have
any pockets to keep your beautiful letter in. I am sending it to you with the
pictures so you will have this book to keep and remember Abbey. One of my
angels is taking care of this for me. I hope the little book helps. Thank
you for the beautiful letter. Thank your mother for sending it. What a
wonderful mother you have! I picked her especially for you. I send my
blessings every day and remember that I love you very much. By the way,
I am wherever there is love.
Love, God,
PS: A special angel wrote this after God told him the words.”
posted by Sara Hickman at 09:22 pm
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And So it Goes (A Saga Unfolding…and Unfolding…)
June 18, 2007
Got home Wednesday night from Kerrville. io was having a sleep over at a friend’s house, so Lily, Lance and I watched Monty Python’s Flying Circus until we were loopy tired. It was fun to introduce Lily to the dead parrot skit.
JUNE 7, Thursday
After the girls finished with their art classes for the afternoon, I decided bowling sounded like a good family night out. iolana was not so sure. In fact, she was adamantly not sure and declared she was NOT going, so three of us were excited about bowling and one person was not happy in the least and cried while putting on shoes, cried while walking to the car, cried in the car, and stopped crying when we got to the bowling alley and said, “Can I play? I want to bowl! It’s FUN!” immediately after I had just typed all the names into the computer. So, it was four people bowling after all, and what a BLAST we had! Everyone was bowling well, although Lance seems to have a stiff right arm, and can only bowl very straight lines. Still, he has a lot of power, and power pays off! Color of our bowling balls: I was green, Lance was black, Lily was
turquoise and io was neon, swirly pink. We also got some quality air hockey and race car driving in, too.
JUNE 8, Friday
Our friend, Mollie (nanny/assistant/college graduate as of May/sunny faced surfing intellectual super friend) helped out with the girls this morning as Lance and I flew off to D.C. for my mini-gigs with John Gorka in Virginia. A day alone together….on a plane! With books!
And clouds! And we were going someplace…together! Woo-hoo! I told Lance, “You have to go with me on this one. We can have some time together…” Cuz we don’t get a lot of alone time, he and I. Well, I mean we get alone time, but not A-L-O-N-E time for more than, say, an hour, or when everyone, including us (ok, him, since I’m usually up all night) are sleeping….blah blah!
So we got to D.C., got our rental car, drove into pick up my brother, Carlton (real estate whiz manager of commercial buildings/suspender wearer/bright/political conversationalist/father of rescued dog and cat/very nice human being/excellent brother) and Celeste (Mohawk represenative/fashion icon/huge smile/excellent interior designer/bangle collector/super sister) for dinner. It was 8:30. Celeste did not want to go as she had been traveling all week, so Carlton, Lance and I go to The Diner, which, once again, did not fail in the food department.
My goodness. I had a grilled portabella salad, and the portabellas were stuffed with feta and grilled red peppers, all on top of a variety of cool, refreshing greens. Mmmm…..Everyone in the diner was either covered in tattoos and face piercings, or talking REALLY LOUDLY LIKE THIS RIGHT NEXT TO US SO I HAD TO KEEP SAYING WHAT WHAT DID YOU SAY TO ME but it was still a ton of fun.
JUNE 9, Saturday
Richmond, VA with John Gorka (http://www.johngorka.com)
Slept in until 9 (8 am Texas time…an entire hour past what we usually get at home)….ah, the bed was SO LUXURIOUS! I love staying at Carlton and Celeste’s house. All the rooms and ceilings are painted this buttercream, so the whole house is soooooooooooo incredibly relaxing. I could lick the walls. Except the living room, which is painted steak blood red. Hmm.
Ok, got up. Went to eat at ANOTHER diner, this one being an authentic one called Frankies or Phil’s or Danny & Rose’s All American Diner or something like that…can’t remember….and Celeste went and we all had some yuks and caught up on life and ate MORE delicious food. I wanted a milkshake. Did not get one.
Lance and I headed on to Virginia, and got to the Shady Grove Coffeehouse where I met Scott Hammer and Pete Defur, two of the nicest guys you could ever want to meet. Pete actually reminded me of Rich Upton, the KMFA DJ here in Austin whose song “Someone” I sang on “Toddler”, and Scott just made me smile. They made us feel very welcome…did my sound check after John, whom I hadn’t seen since 1996’s Folk Alliance, and then we had just said “hey!” in the hall with 56,000 other folkies all around buzz buzz laughter uh-huh etc going on…
John still wears that sleepy, happy smile. He is looking a little frazzled in the hair (which he still has all of it), just even more bed-headed than usual. And when I asked where his black shoes with red shoelaces had gone, he magically pulled them out of the bag, flipped them over and said, “Sears. Diehards. These are the best!” I never realized his shoes left the impression “DIEHARD” if he were to walk in soft dirt. Wow. That was a cool moment.
So, I performed for 120 people, and everyone was attentive, very nice, and could they clap! I told them they made me feel extra special, like I was at Carnagie Hall…! Then, after I was done, I went out in the hall to wait by the cd table, but I guess they decided to bring John right on, so it was just me, Lance and some volunteers meandering around, getting odds and ends tied up around the coffee and cookies….when a single woman in yellow made a beeline right up to me and gave me what for concerning the song I had just sang in my set (about the mother of the young man who murdered the 32 people at Virginia Tech). I didn’t know what to say. She laid in to me, telling me something about how I wouldn’t write a song about one of the terrorists, would I? I was looking her in the eyes, she was so angry and upset, and I didn’t know what to say, I was so upset that I had hurt her somehow, and off she went, back into the theater, and it all happened so FAST, and I turned to Lance and I felt all shakey and wrong and I burst into these slow tears…I just….wow. I have never had this happen before…and the song….I had only sung the song to talk of this mother’s grief, of the grief of ALL of it…and I wish I could have said to this woman, no no…I hear your anguish, but I think you were not clear on what I was singing…please forgive me….but she was gone, gone inside to hear John, and there was no where to look when another woman appeared (was she standing there the whole time? I think so…yes, she saw the whole thing) and before I knew it she had folded me into her arms and whispered, “I went to Virginia Tech. That song is beautiful. Some people are just raw right now…” And she was an angel, and then Lance was talking quietly to me, but I felt all disoriented and sad…We said our goodbyes and thank yous to Peter, who happened to come out, and he said they want me to come back, and I was appreciative and then I apologized if I was inappropriate to sing the song because I had not even thought “I’m in Virginia….take extra thought and love into your words…” I had just been myself and the song was calling in my heart to sing out….And Peter was kind and said no no no the song was fine, beautiful, there will always be one person in a crowd who disagrees with an artist…remember that…He said…remember….
“The One”
by Sara Hickman
No flowers for this funeral
No one here on the phone
Invisible here
I am living in fear
I am broken and alone
The anguish of my broken heart
Can never be compared
To the loss and anguish others feel
And the other mothers share
I’m not sure what went wrong
Was it something I said?
These words keep spinning through my soul
And I’m not sure what I could have done
Cannot find the words
His eyes were dark, he seldom cried
But we told him he was good
And he never played with a single soul
In our neighborhood
My mind goes back so long ago
When he first came into this world
I gave birth to hands, and a sweet small mouth
Nine months of mystery revealed
And I fear that I will go insane
From this evil ghost I bear
He will always be remembered as
The one who held the gun
But to me he was
My son
My feet have grown so heavy
They are sodden with my tears
Mixed with the loss of reason
That was lost within his years
And I fear that I will go insane
From this evil ghost I bear
He will always be remembered as
The one who held the gun
But to me he was my son
He will always be
My son
He will always be
The One
JUNE 10, Sunday
with John Gorka http://www.johngorka.com
Harris Creek Acoustic
Hampton, VA
After we left the gig the night before, Lance and I needed some down time. I was feeling raw and tired, and he was starting to get an upset tummy, so we went down the street and saw “Knocked Up” after I had droned on and on about how PERFECT it is, so we had a quiet evening laughing ourselves silly in the theatre, and then getting to the hotel and crashing….
We woke up, drove on to Hampton, and what a lovely town! Kelly Murphy owns the home that hosts this lovely gig, and I thought I was supposed to arrive at noon, but we found the home at the end of a long, winding road nestled in marshes and forest land, and knocked on her door at 11….to which we were informed that not only were we the EARLIEST musicians to ever arrive, but we were actually TWO hours early, cuz we didn’t need to be there until 1 pm. But that was cool, cuz Lance needed to lay down, he was feeling very unwell by then, and I caught up on some email, met Kelly’s terrific mom, her boyfriend, her cat and dog and prepped for a BOB FM radio recording by warming up and practicing my guitar upstairs. Jim, the sound man, arrived eventually and set up the sound equipment, and it sounded A+++!
Hunter arrived, had a great interview with him….sang three songs and chatted about growing up in Houston, art school, making music, my influences, etc. We were laughing, and I just really enjoyed myself.
Kelly made the yummiest food….man. It was coos coos and pasta with chicken (or tuna? Am I turning into Jessica Simpson? Or one of the Simpsons, in general?) so had some food, and around then, went up for a little nap with Lance. Before I knew it, Kelly was downstairs, calling my name, and I opened the bedroom door, and their were people seated in the balcony section, right next to the door, smiling at me, and I looked over the railing and the house was packed with seated people…Kelly was introducing me! Ha ha! I ran down the stairs and the fun began. From sleep to live performance in 3.2 seconds flat! Zoom!
This show was so lively, and the audience was so receptive and present, I just had a blast. All the worries from the night before evaporated, and Jim was such an excellent sound man, whoo! I was flying around like Mariah Carey on steriods….there was nuthin’ I couldn’t sing, the way he made me feel on that mic. How is it some sound people make you soar, and others fall asleep at the wheel? Or don’t know where the wheel is? Or haven’t invented it yet? I dunno, but Jim had the wheel under his control, I tell you what.
There was a standing ovation at the end, and I was floored with joy. I felt like I had been adopted by a large family of intellectual funsters.
Lance and I hung out in the kitchen while John played, and he is such a master of timing, whether he is being self-deprecating, funny or touching. He can capture a moment and wrap his honey dark voice around it and take you there. Which is funny, cuz he talked about meeting Mavis Staples at a festival they both performed at, and THAT would be a combo, the two of them singing a duet. That should happen. That would rock. Anyway, Lance had never seen John, and really enjoyed his show. I’m glad we got to experience that together. It was nice to be able to rest my arm around his shoulders and just sit together while someone was sharing their music with us. Ah, romance is always a full glass when music is present….
Then, the house was cleared, and another round of shows, and I was blessed to sell out all of my remaining MOTHERLODE cds second show
(sold 31 second show…yes!!!) and then it was a madhouse… people were milling around, laughing, talking, asking questions, telling me stories about what the songs had brought up for them, and that was really gracious of John to give me time to sell cds….and then him casually walked back out on the stage, started to sing to get everyone back in their seats….
Lance and I had said our goodbyes to John and Kelly and Steve and Jim earlier, cuz we knew we’d have to start driving the 3 1/2 hours back to
D.C for the next mornings flight, so we got out to the car, where Lance had just seen deer……the drive went faster than I thought….we listened to the iPod and Little Stevie’s Garage Band radio show….Lance and I were laughing and enjoying the music…it was really dark on that drive!
Could not find a hotel anywhere near the airport when we finally got within distance. They were all $295 or $229….!!! We tried telling the clerks that we would only need the room to sleep in for about six hours, but the lowest we could get anyone down to was $179…so we drove farther out, and found a hotel for $129…I asked Lance to take some of the cd money and offer the guy $100 in cash…and, bless him, the guy behind the desk made it work, and finally, Lance and I got into our hotel room…as I was brushing my teeth, I heard, “OH NO!”
Lance had found a TICK on his shoulder. Ucky!
I pulled on that thing and it was like Lance’s shoulder was the rope…tug tug tug tug TUG…I could not believe how strong the tick was, holding on with his teeny-tiny teeth…Lance said it wasn’t hurting, but, man…it had to have! Off popped the tick, and his little legs were wiggly; I dropped him in the sink (the tick, not Lance.) We watched it wander around, a blood-sucking creature, looking for flesh in a giant white
ceramic land. I apologized to the tick and told him I had to wash him away, now, and then WHOOSH! on came the cold water and SWOOSH! down the drain he went.
Ticks….shudder…they are just…..ick! Fascinating, but icky-ola!
posted by Sara Hickman at 09:02 pm
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Reality, Humor and the woes of Music Management? THIS WILL MAKE YOU LAUGH as you wince!
June 17, 2007
Here’s a 3 minute 40 second explanation by Flo and Eddie of how the group went through 6 managers in the course of about 4 years.
This should be required viewing by any musician thinking about signing a management contract.
Cut and paste if you gotta…it’s pretty funny…and there are visual aids to help tell the story.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JHN5HaUg28
posted by Sara Hickman at 02:06 pm
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And So It Goes (Continued…)
June 16, 2007
Kristin and I stayed Friday, Saturday and Sunday with Lisa and Don. Lisa is an old friend from Dallas whom I met when she was an anchorwoman at Channel 8 and I was an up and coming musician. We hit it off immediately, and have been friends ever since. When she was the overnite anchor on “World News Now”, Gregori Paul (designer/painter/big smile/mischievous/dear friend) and I went to visit her in New York and stayed at her wonderful flat. She brought us over to see the ABC set, where Peter Jennings sat, and we got to witness the robotics of television cameras. Since Gregori is a stellar designer, we, of course, had gone down to the fashion district during our stay, and that was a lot of fun, too. Anyhoo, then Lisa moved on to “Good Morning America” which she hosted with Charles Gibson for a year (or two?). I’ll never forget one morning when I was sipping hot tea, fuzzy slippers on my feet, watching Shawn Colvin be interviewed by Lisa, when all of a sudden Lisa said, “So, you live in Austin?” and Shawn said, “Yes…” and Lisa said, “Oh, do you know my good friend, musician Sara Hickman?” to which I spit my tea out all over my robe in disbelief that she had mentioned my NAME on television…! Friends ROCK!
So, now Lisa has two terrific kids and is married to Don, (President of United Artists/kind heart/dad/interesting family history/new friend), and staying at their home was exquisite. Kristin and I had our own chateau (that is what we were calling it!), stocked full of food in the fridge, the pantry, assorted teas and a French press, which made Kristin very happy! We each had our own bedrooms….really, it felt like we were Snow White and had stumbled on a very happy land that supplied our every whim….so, Saturday morning, I got up and made fresh scrambled eggs with feta and tomatoes and
biscuits and coffee and our friend, Robert Peters (actor/director/great guy) came over and we sat around the table and laughed and enjoyed ourselves very much. Later, Kristin and I went inside and had a tour of the home, and it was full of such amazing history….the original house was built in 1900, and the “barn”, now the “chateau”, was built in 1910. Lisa told us about the rooms and the servants quarters and then we saw the tennis court and the additional, smaller house out next to that. We met a wonderful woman named Consuela, who had the best ,genuine smile, and we talked about God and church and the kids. She is graduating from college and plays basketball….I would guess she was AT LEAST six feet tall. She helps with the kids during the day, and wow! I wish I could have spent more time talking with her. She just radiated love….Later, Don, Lisa and I went and saw “Knocked Up”, and I laughed so hard, cried a lot, loved the movie to pieces. It completely captures the essence of men, women, relationships, unexpected surprises, life, dialogue and the joy of babies! I would venture to say this is a pro-baby movie, too, because of all the positive reinforcement and wonder that is the creation of a child. I have already seen it since with Lance, and loved it all over again. I give this movie 4 stars, and I asked Don why it couldn’t win an Academy award….but, he said, comedies don’t usually win for best picture, and especially ones this honest (lots of graphic language and shows a vagina, although I say you want people to be pro-vagina and supportive of women as complex creatures instead of just bumbling, giggling sexual objects, give this movie an Academy Award. There’s my two cents worth.)
Later in the day, I went over to check in with my friends, Jim Dunlap (angel/film accountant/tall dude/dear friend) and Shawn Hlookoff (musician/great hair/new pal), and to catch up with my friend, Stevo, whom I have not seen in person in 13 years, although he and I communicate by email regularly. Stevo has been homeless for six years, living out of his van with his little dog, Amelia. I was waiting in the lobby and saw Stevo and Amelia walking back out, and I chased after him, out into the parking lot, and cried, “Stevo! Is that you?” and he turned, and I said, “It’s me….Sara…” And we walked very quickly into each other’s arms and just stood there, holding one another, trying not to cry, but tears of happiness welling up. What can stop happiness?
We went inside to room #106. Jim, the great angel that he is, had bought me a room for the night, not knowing my friend, Lisa, had offered her home for the weekend, and so I had asked Jim if I could let Stevo have the room to shower, to rest, and Jim said “of course!” without any hesitation….So, Stevo and I went in and spoke quietly for an hour or more, catching up on each other’s lives, laughing, reaching out (“Is this REAL?” we asked), smiling, staring at each other without words, just happy to see one another again. He told me of his journey from editor for Dan Rather to his life now, and how he has chosen to stay where he is, living out of his van, making music at the farmer’s market, music for kids at skateparks, doing gardening for others…He feels America has become evil, and distracted by it’s own wealth…It is shallow…and he told me how he had gone to cover the Columbine shootings, called the CBS office in New York to tell them about what he had seen, what he had witnessed, and everyone over the phone was laughing, having a party, too distracted to hear the anguish of this horrible day, and he felt like that was it for him.
His van is chock full of an array of necessities (clothing, food, shoes, soap) and oddities (driftwood, papers, photos, musical instruments made out of recycled boxes….) and he sleeps behind the steering wheel, sitting up I suppose. His joy was apparent, and his heart is full of much love.
But seeing the immense wealth of one friend, and seeing the immense “poverty” of another was very emotional for me. I’m not sure if I can express it. It was all good, it was all weird.
Saturday night, we hooked up with Debbie (she used to sing back-ups with me, co-wrote “I Couldn’t Help Myself”/piano teacher/sweetheart/dear friend), and she is still so bright and sweet. We all met at Genghis Cohen, the club: me, Debbie, Kristin, Robert, Jim, his brother, Ron, Shawn, and two more friends of Jim’s that I can’t recall at the moment (but who were hilarious and fun….one worked for Creative Artists Agency (CAA) and one was an actor from Canada…David, was his name, I think!) We were there to eat dinner and hear Shawn perform. He sounded great, but the keyboard was distorting. We had fun; I had a Cosmopolitan. Ay yi yi! Tasty. And, I must say, the food at Genghis is really, really good, too!
JUNE 3, Sunday
Meanwhile, I had been playing phone tag with another of my dearest friends, Brian (camp creator/artist/sound designer/Tiki God/heartfriend forever), whom I have known since 1995…He is one of the smartest people I know, and his eyes are like liquid, burning chocolate goo. We finally connected at met up with his wife, Stacey, at a diner over in Santa Monica for breakfast. AND….I got our journal back! Brian and I keep a journal together, so I was thrilled it is back in my hands and now I can add some drawings/thoughts/stupid, silly, funny stuff….The food was EXCELLENT…Oh, what is the name of that diner…hmm….This was a great morning…we talked of what we’ve been up to, had waaaaaaaaaaaay too much cream in our tea/coffee (mmm), and discussed Idaho, where Brian and Stacey will most likely move, to start a family and be close to family and to enjoy a less stressful environment. Ok, if we ever leave Austin, Idaho sounds A-OK!
Later that afternoon, Lisa and Don had luncheon, in which they invited their friend, Ralph (music supervisor/record label magnate/lots of curly hair/mysterious, enigmatic smile/big heart) and his wife and children (all super lovely and smart, more in a second!) and Lisa’s writing partner, whose name escapes me but I WILL put it in here cuz she was a plethora of facts, wow!, and her child and another charming woman whose name I will ALSO remember…who ALSO had a lovely child!…and after lunch of paninis and coos-coos and veggies and fruit and salad and mozzarella with tomatoes/basil, we all went to the third floor where I performed a children’s show in the playroom. That was a HOOT!
The room is magical…so childcentric and colorful and I could live there easily! Toys and bright windows of cheery sunlight, filtered through the trees, so not too hot, just right…Everyone on the upper level of the room, hanging out on the carpeted floor, snuggling, while I was below looking up, and around, singing and encouraging everyone to interact.
Later still, Kristin and I headed off for the hills, where we were performing at an event for music/television supervisors to hear talent, and we were on the bill. Oh, everyone was tall and leggy and hip and beautiful and Kristin and I felt very “Austin”, but we had some food (what?! MORE food? yes, ok, we did. We had MORE food…IT was there! It was tasty and delicious, made by the seven chefs in the walk through kitchen, so what could we do?) and a drink (um….mine was pink, fruity and had something like vodka, maybe?) and then we sang out by the pool, under the sunset, overlooking the valley below, palm trees our waving backups behind….The house was one of those all glass, long and rectangular and the pool looked like glass. I started with Amy Rigby’s “Are We Ever Gonna Have Sex Again” to get everyone’s attention. We went from there!
Robert went with us to this event, too, and then afterwards:
Kristin, Robert and myself ska-doodled back to Lisa’s, where Kevin Howard (actor/florist/casting director/bon vivant/best friend/fairy godfather of Lily) met up with all of us, Lisa included, and we sat up into the wee hours (1 am), reliving moments from long ago, laughing, talking about our happiest moments in life to date, so we shared stories about Warren Beatty (Lisa knows him, Robert had worked for him, I love “Reds”: one of my all time favorite films), Patricia Neal, Gregory Peck, Hollywood, “Good Morning America”, each other,
our parents, our lives, our hopes and dreams. Kristin and I drifted off into happiness and soft sheets after goodbyes….
JUNE 4, Monday
Groggy, got up early, had to take the rental back early, Kristin and I checked our bags, flew home. All day affair.
Got home to hugs and kisses, and caught up on artwork, tales of the weekend, whose party who had gone to, kisses with Lance, unpacking, still listening, trying to catch up on email after everyone was asleep…Walk around the house, kiss people on their sleeping foreheads….
The darkness is calm and settles my soul….
JUNE 5, Tuesday
Spent the morning taking the girls to their art classes, caught up with office stuff, repacked, got in the car and headed to Kerrville.
JUNE 6, Wed
Taught songwriting all day with Connie Mims (singer/songwriter/mom/fellow Governor on the Recording Academy Board/new friend), where we worked, primarily, with teachers who teach music. I’d guess there were about 30-40 people. It was an excellent day of people breaking though, utilizing the exercises I brought to create new songs, new ways of thinking, creative play for their students, and Connie’s fine
ability to break down the crucial, and most widely used, aspects of the song. Saw and chatted with: Bradley Kopp (guitarist/producer/brother in song and comittment, friend and loyal human being), Glenn Kawamoto (bassist/smiley man/sings the Hawaiian song on “Toddler”/friend), Richard Bowden (fiddle player/humanitarian/social activitst/friend), Paul Pearcy (drummer/magic man/Nina’s boyfriend/lifelong pal), and Eric Schwarz (I am a huge fan of this songwriter so I will not gush here)…..then got in the van and headed home….
posted by Sara Hickman at 08:56 am
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This Hurts The Heart
SALON.COM Article
http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2007/05/30/embassy/
Imperial life in a brand-new city:
What plans for a gigantic new U.S. Embassy in Iraq say about the Bush administration, the occupation of Iraq, and Americans themselves.
It is worth remembering that, when the American commanders whose troops had just taken Baghdad wanted
their victory photo snapped, they memorably seated themselves, grinning happily, behind a marble table in
one of those captured palaces; that American soldiers and newly arrived officials marveled at the former
tyrant’s exotic symbols of power; that they swam in Saddam’s pools, fed rare antelopes from his son Uday’s
private zoo to its lions (and elsewhere shot his herd of gazelles and ate them themselves); and, when in
need of someplace to set up an American embassy, the newly arrived occupation officials chose — are you
surprised? — one of his former dream palaces. They found nothing strange in the symbolism of this (though
it was carefully noted by Baghdadis), even as they swore they were bringing liberation and democracy to
Saddam’s benighted land.
And this is more confirmation of the behaviour:
According to Harper’s Magazine, April 22, 2003:
Marines stationed outside Tikrit were eating fresh gazelle from Saddam Hussein’s personal hunting preserve. For fear
that gunshots in the woods might be mistaken for enemy fire,
“We hunted them with rocks, as Stone Age as that sounds,” said one soldier. “We gutted them and skinned them and pretty much carried them over our shoulders barbarian-style.”
posted by Sara Hickman at 08:52 am
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And So it Goes…And So it Goes
June 14, 2007
And, so here goes, catching you up on my musical adventures, mommyhood, and all the rest….Rest? What’s rest? Ha ha ha. Just kidding. Doncha worry. I get some resting in there, you know it!
MAY 29th, TUESDAY
Had our first kids board meeting to talk with a select group of kids about SUPER PAL UNIVERSE, the television program we are creating. That’s all I”m allowed to say, but know that, of course, the kids were informative, funny, touching (not each other, silly…I mean in word!), shy (at first) and insightful. This is going to be a great thing. We met at the Gibson showroom, where we have also held auditions with the kids a few weeks back. Thanks to Gibson for providing the space and lots and lots of snacks and Izzie!
MAY 30, WEDNESDAY
Met with Bob Van Steenburg to talk more about the “Music For Life” series we are putting together for the Texas Coalition Against the Death Penalty. (You can read more if you scroll down here in my blog….)
Met with Pat Forgione, Superintendent of Austin Independent School District (AISD). He was very kind and served lunch! As we munched in his office, we talked about the Recording Academy and our Grammy Career Day. I was meeting with Mr. Forgione, who is very amicable and helpful, to discuss the event and also to talk about Super Pal Universe. I give Mr. Forgione an A+!
Went on a private dinner cruise with Lance on Town Lake. And I mean PRIVATE! Just the two of us, a languid trip down the river in a boat built for eight with luxurious leather seating in the oval, Lance steering the way (Captain Lance, I dubbed him) and a full spread of fajitas and champagne on the tiny dining table between us. The sun was setting, the birds were chirping, hardly anyone but the occassional skuller passing us by. The reflection of the orange and purple sky on the dark waters was gorgeous, and being in the midst of all the green, full trees, bending over as if to kiss us with encouragement, was stunning and very, very relaxing.
This was part of a package I won for Lance in the Valentine’s Day Poetry concert sponsored by Chez Zee and the Austin American Statesman.
I submitted an incredibly goofy poem about Lance, and also a heartfelt story of why he is such a fine husband/partner/dad, in 100 words or less, and won 2nd place!!! Woo-hoo! We received gift certificates for Chez Zee, the private dinner boat cruise, flowers from Austin Flowers, and a one hour massage….I put all the gift certificates in hand-decorated envelopes and gave them to Lance as his Valentine’s surprises….
MAY 31, Thursday
Went to the Tax Trailer to talk with our amazing accountant, Vicki. We are learning the difference between contract labor and employee, and will be hiring Mollie as our first employee, which means, in essence, we pay her taxes for her instead of assuming she will take care of them herself, which is what everyone else in the office has done all these years. We are excited to be able to give Mollie the official title of “Employee”! I have also become an S Corp, as I have been an LLC all these years. Probably boring stuff to put here, but the more I learn about the business side, the safer I feel, especially nowadays with the government more and more in our business (meaning EVERYONE’s business!!)
Packed for the trip to Los Angeles this weekend.
The girls have been taking art camp at the Umlauf Sculpture Garden and Edie’s Retreat. Lots of beautiful ideas coming to fruition that we get to hang around the house and enjoy!
JUNE 1, Friday
Lily went out with me to Georgetown, Tx to play at the library for a children’s show….aha….or should I say, “ahem…” cuz when we got to the library, it was closed! Then we realized, DUH!, it was around the corner in a new location, so Lily carried the cds in a box and I carried the guitar and we walked over and up the stairs. NICE library! We walked into an un-air conditioned room FULL of kids and moms (and two dads, hello!) and got to work. The press was there, snapping pictures immediately! They had no P.A., only a lav mic that sounded like ca-ca unless I held it directly in front of my lips, which, of course, would be impossible since I play the guitar, and they had no MIC STAND, and then proceeded to tell me they had paid thousands upon thousands for this new sound system and I wanted to take them in my arms and give them all a nuggie and actually said, “I WILL BUY YOU A MIC STAND and donate it to the library” cuz I could imagine Joe McDermott or Laura Freeman or some other children’s performer getting there and also wanting to hand out nuggies….Anyway, just one of the things you learn to flow with so I announced in my loudest voice, “Ok, everybody! We have no sound system today, but can you hear me?” to a resounding roar of YES!!!!!!!!! and, thus, I performed. AND Lily sang, as well, and did a lovely, heartwrenching version of “Look At Me” to which the mothers all want to come up afterwards and give her lots of accolades, and it makes me so happy to see Lily enjoying her gift! It has also become a summer job, in which I give her monies for coming out to help me at the library shows. This year we actually negotiated her price…I started waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too high, and she looked at me and said, “Mom, really. You need to come down. That is a ridiculous price!” So, flattered she would be so wise and generous, I slashed the amount in half and said, “How about…?” to which she countered with another, higher offer, and I accepted. That kid! She’s off to a confident start!
My mother-in-law came out to the show, and we hugged and she stayed to help Lily and I sell cds, then we had to pack up and ska-doodle back to Austin where I grabbed my bags, kissed the family goodbye, left Lily in the air conditioned house (whoo, thank goodness!) and off I went with Kristin, my friend and back up singer who had joined us at the house, off to the airport to fly to Los Angeles for a show….TONIGHT.
Yes, you read that right.
We landed at 6 pm, got our bags almost right away (after a friendly conversation with a man from New Zealand who I could have sworn was a surfer dude, and I was right! but he now lives in Phoenix and sells telecommunications…promised he’d come to the show…yea….did he? no, he did not!), got on the shuttle, Kristin started to haul all our bags/guitars off the shuttle while I ran to the counter, ahead of the crowd, to get our rental car….We got in the car, drove the 11 miles to McCabes (which seemed like 1349 miles due to L.A. time constraints, also known as ridiculous traffic!) got to McCabes at 7:30, did a quick sound check, ran back upstairs to put on makeup and warm up our voices, made a set list, BOOM! downstairs to do our show.
Afterwards, chatted with the folks in attendance, including Keith Holzman (brother of legendary Jac Holzman, founder of Elektra) and I was so delighted to see him! So many nice people…
I’ll have to write more later…gotta go get ready for today’s life!
XO
S
posted by Sara Hickman at 06:50 am
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Richmond Times-Dispatch Article
June 07, 2007
Saturday, June 9th
Shady Grove Coffeehouse
PO Box 7139
Richmond, VA 23221
and
Sunday, June 10
Harris Creek Acoustic
Hampton, VA
757-850-1011
BY BILL CRAIG
Special Correspondent
“Spiritual” is just one of many adjectives that could describe Texas singer-songwriter Sara Hickman.
“I’m a big believer that I’m really charged by God to do certain things, so I get these mental messages,” Hickman said by phone from her Austin home. “The more I listen to those, the more good things come to fruition.”
One very good thing that came to fruition is “Motherlode,” her 2006 double CD.
The album’s concept was born a couple of years ago when Hickman was doing some songwriting at her piano.
“I got to this one line, ‘No one is as mean to me as me.’ I kept thinking about that line and played the song for some girlfriends, who all told me that that is exactly how they feel.
“That night I had a dream and a message. Basically, the message said that I needed to make a CD from the point of a rock mom, a musician mom, and talk about all the things that you think about as a rock mom.”
The project is divided into two parts to represent the two very different moods of Sara Hickman. The first CD, “The Mirror (of Despair),” contains songs of “universal woe and quiet lament in conjunction with womanhood.” Disc two, “The Thread (of Happiness),” is “woman’s heart, bright and sparkling, with undercurrents of frustration and wanting.”
It’s Hickman’s attempt to allow listeners to get inside her head.
“I realized that I’m either in a place of euphoria, where I love being with my family and friends and this community and all the happiness those things bring me, and the other side is this universal low, where I feel burdened by the suffering of all the people on the planet. I really wanted to talk about some darker things.”
Subtitled “Start the Dialogue,” the album, with a painting by Austin-based artist Aletha St. Romain on the cover, also represents Hickman’s commitment to motivating discussion of the issues surrounding human sexuality.
“When I talk about the CD and the CD cover onstage, I talk about how important it is for parents to start talking and have this dialogue with their kids. Not only because they need to understand sexuality, but to prevent them from having early pregnancies and to prevent sexually transmitted diseases. I find that people are actually applauding and in some cases giving me standing ovations.”
The album’s 20 mostly original tracks are driven by the gentle yet provocative brand of folk-rock that Hickman has been perfecting during an almost-20-year recording career. That blend of deep lyrics and rock rhythms is a product of the sounds that surrounded her during her formative years.
“I was 8 or 9 in the’70s, and that was a big time for John Denver and Jim Croce and people who were singing these detailed storytelling songs. But I was also listening to the Rolling Stones, and when Heart came along I was very influenced by Nancy Wilson because she was the first female guitar player that I knew about.”
When she’s not singing, songwriting, or being a wife and mother of 7- and 11-year-old daughters, Hickman is contributing to her community.
Her latest project is a series of monthly concerts in Texas cities that will provide entertainment and raise the profile of the Texas Coalition Against the Death Penalty.
Slated to start in October, the tour will be another Hickman effort to start a dialogue — this time about the death penalty.
posted by Sara Hickman at 08:16 am
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Guantanamo Bay—Please Take Action, Too
June 05, 2007
This is something I have signed up to be a part of on June 26, here in Austin. But you can be involved in your city, as well, or go to D.C. and speak out with a delegation there. Please read on. This is a very important, and serious, issue that needs to be resolved NOW.
Love,
Sara
Dear Sara,
I am writing to you from the U.S. Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. This base has become synonymous with U.S. disregard for human rights and rule of law. It is the icon of bad U.S. policies in the “war on terror,” where people are held indefinitely without even the right to ask a court to review the lawfulness of their detention. Just last week, a fourth person died of apparent suicide in Guantanamo. Many more have attempted suicide as an escape from the uncertainty that comes with life in one of Guantanamo’s prisons.
Yesterday, I observed pretrial proceedings in military commissions that were established by the Military Commissions Act (MCA). To read about what happened, visit the Denounce Torture blog (http://blogs.amnestyusa.org/denounce-torture/archive/2007/06/05/live-from-gitmo—-update-06-04-07.htm?tr=y&auid=2738054). This process is seriously problematic as it is unlike any other U.S. court in that it allows evidence obtained through coercion or cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment to be used to convict someone. However, the MCA also took away the federal court’s jurisdiction to hear any challenges to this unfair process when it stripped the right of habeas corpus for any non-citizen that the President decides is an “unlawful enemy combatant.” This provision has also lead to dismissal of habeas cases for the hundreds of others who have never been charged with any crime, and likely never will be.
We have to push Congress to reverse course and amend the MCA. We have to insist that every person in U.S. custody has the basic right to ask the government to show cause for their detention.
You can help change this. During the last week of June, concerned individuals nationwide will visit their elected officials’ district offices or come to Washington, D.C. to tell Congress to do everything in its power to ensure basic rights. Apply to be a delegation leader (https://www.kintera.org/site/apps/ka/rg/register.asp?c=lgJVJ4PJItH&b=2724253&en=kwLQI6PVLlIUJ6NZLkJPK7PUKfL2KrN1IdIVJiNXIeKZKhNVLnIfF)and let your elected officials know that the American you believe in does not lock people up and throw away the key just because the President said so.
Sincerely,
Jumana Musa
Advocacy Director, Domestic Human Rights and International Justice
Amnesty International USA
P.S. - If you’re not sure you’re up for leading a delegation, consider signing up to join one instead.
http://www.kintera.org/site/apps/ka/rg/register.asp?c=lgJVJ4PJItH&b=2724291&en=htJKLXPJKiKOJXPNKhLJKYMIIcKWIiMPJaJPI9PLKbKTI8PJIkI9F
posted by Sara Hickman at 09:49 am
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Cool… Check this out!
Attention all Hickheads. Or SaraTops. Or Tri-SaraTops!
We interrupt this regularly scheduled email with an important offer from
the Franklin Mint under your Pillowman.
I’ve been spreading the Gospel of The Sara since 1998 after attending a
modest church service in Kerrville.
Recently I was blessed with a visit from the Exalted One to our house
concert series here in California. Lucky for you, her entourage allowed
me to ask many a question and capture Sara’s responses on glass
recording discs for posterity.
Knowing that you all wear the crown, too, I offer it all up as a gift on
this, the Queen’s Birthday, as officially celebrated in New Zealand.
http://TreeHouseConcerts.org/hickman
All the best, and catch you on the flip side of your Motherlode CD.
Greg Pool
posted by Sara Hickman at 08:49 am
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sarahickman.com | Bio | Music | Shows | Press | Store | Community | Zooks
Copyright © 1993-2007 Sara Hickman/Sleeveless, LLC | 298004
Whether you've learned about Sara Hickman through her music, her family, her causes, or her films, you know that her originality, creativity, and enthusiasm bring a fresh meaning to the well-worn phrase "living life to the fullest."
What makes Sara tick? What has she been up to since she first hit the ground running (well, at least crawling in the early years)?
Read a complete bio at sarahickman.com.
Visit Start the Dialogue
Click here to preview!
Click here to Order!
Press Coverage
KUT's Austin Music Minute
Jupiter Index interview
Motherlode Reviews
Sara heads the Austin Chronicle Fortunate 500 Music List once again!
Here's the 2006 list.
Listen and vote for Sara on the American Idol Underground, featuring on-demand streams of popular artists like Sara!
Check out this cool map showing where Sara fans are across the nation -- and add yourself to the map!
Motherlode
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Faithful Heart
Click here to preview!
Click here to order!
Big Kid
Click here to preview!
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Featuring "Look At Me" as heard on American Idol!
I Am Going On A Journey: the DVD
Click here to preview!
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