"Your Voice is the Loudest"
What times these are! Having always enjoyed solo time, there are more and more moments now just becoming one long chunk of time. Days– weeks–months? Just time.
It’s been a creative time for me. How about you? I see now there are 72 followers for this blog! Wow, I’m most grateful. Thank you. Hope you enjoy my posts! Please let me hear from you, how are you, what are you working on?
Stay well and be happy. xo dm
As a Jewish woman, it is in my blood to nurture. I was surrounded by nuturing women my entire childhood and my teen years. Some might say, a bit too nurturing leaning towards bossy, at times. Whatever. The intent was/is always to care for those we love. The Yiddish saying Balabusta (Yiddish: בעל־הביתטע) is a Yiddish expression describing a good homemaker. And I was called that by my dad, during his final years on earth. He thought it meant bossy. Yup, I got a bit bossy with my dad (desperate times call for concise measures!) –I wanted to be sure he was comfy during his final years. Love.
I believe I started writing songs out of love, to nuture listeners or to bring a respite from everyday life, to express feelings in a song to those that might not be able to expess themselves as freely. To entertain. That is how I started my singing career, as Baby June in Gypsy, with the famed song “Let Me Entertain You.” Well I guess I took it literally! Thank you Jule Styne (music) Stephen Sondheim (lyrics) for the inspiration.
Now you may be wondering why the title of this blog is Matza Ball Soup, well here we are with the answer. Today I sent a sick friend in Los Angeles, Matza Ball soup, from Canter’s in LA and delivered feverishly by Uber Eats (Odi) and ordered from my West Village apartment. Nurturing has never been easier and if I could, I’d send a quart of Matza Ball soup to allthe people I am close to. It is good for the soul. We all need some nurturing these days!!
And check out my next performance where I share all kinds of stories and songs during the United Solo Theatre Festvial 2021 of THE PASS Musical: https://unitedsolo.org/shows/the-pass-musical/
Time for some soup…
What leads to a new day? If I hear you and you hear me. The thought of seeing you next to me or on top of me as if I am watching the fiercely fiery rip tide of the ocean soothing over the warm and anxious sand and feet of all those that long to be cooled down in this lovely hot mess of a life we now live in –with all our extra gadgets and gizmos. step on me, jump on me, swipe my face with your hair. Yes, with your soft and billowy hair. Spend time with me, check me out- check me in -check that I am being absolutely positively me — from all the years still who I am today, now and I like it.
We are so resourceful so meaningful in our abstract ways and our differences. Let’s sit in the dark and then you, light the candle in the corner, the tall white one yes with the tapered top and then slowly walk it over to me so that I may see two of you, in the darkness, the you and the shadow of you –oh how exciting to have two of you all at once in my gaze, in my vision and at my fingertips. Lucky say I, and happy too to be able to share all this, this one day with you.
Today I am thinking about the concept of love.
That feeling that we describe and use for so many different scenarios. What are the easiest parts and then the hardest parts. And what are the parts that allow or push us to do something we never thought we’d do, good or bad, we do it because we love. Love holds lots of places and space in our society.
That’s part 1, need to dig deeper for part 2…
SPARK: a feeling or quality that causes excitement:
They kept running into each other and eventually realized there was a spark between them. The music is mediocre because there’s no spark, no thrill, no unpredictability.
Four different words with very different meanings. We seek, we search, we research, we desire. We understand the differences as we continue along the road. L Frank Baum, what a genius! The Wizard of Oz? The Wizard of Life…
Sitting inside, alone, yet not alone, I feel the sun and the moon, as the traffic stumbles on, and the search continues. I am ever present, every inch of me inside and out. Today. Alive. Trespassing on fate, faith and forgiveness. Surrounded by love and sound. And words.
Going into the New Year has always been a very vulnerable time in my life especially regarding my career and relationships. They both intertwine for me. True to form, leading up to January 1st I began to access my personal and career relationships as I refuel and prepare for the New Year. Decisions made, feelings amplified, change occurred in a few areas. As always, a new song was my outlet. The song came to me very quickly though I have been altering the cadence to make it even more powerful, it is the result of challenging times as the year came to an end and the new one begins.
2016 was a powerful and important year for me in many ways.
Renewal, whether of the self or the season, can be gradual that sloughs away old habits and leaves an outline. Left stark as a bare branch against the winter sky, I can see even more, how much I have grown.
Hello 2017.
DENISE MARSA 