We last posted an update in September 2006. Since October it’s been a steady stream and we’re overdue for a look back – and forward. Our schedule has been modest compared with some road warriors we know but too busy for us. We’d like to see our eco-footprint shrink. Old habits are hard to break.

Still and all, it would be hard to keep on against the grim backdrop of these murderous wars if we weren’t in continual contact with so many of you who continue to believe peace is possible, who organize tirelessly to see that day come ‘round. Since our last update we’ve toured through 16 states singing in support of those efforts for less violence and revenge, more love and justice in this world. Here’s a quick itinerary.

October found us on the Journey of Hope from Violence to Healing, 17 days in Virginia working to abolish the Death Penalty there (2006 VIRGINIA JOURNEY OF HOPE). We’ve done this journey annually since 1993 and it was especially rich to be able to spend 2 weeks singing, walking, listening and building community among the Murder Victim’s Families’ members and several innocent men who were exonerated from Death Row. Their stories are a powerful witness against the tragedy of capital punishment and its failure to address the issue of violence or the need for healing in American society.

November brought a full week plus, wending our way down and back from the SOA Watch demonstration at Ft Benning, Columbus GA. (November Vigil 2006). It was the largest SOA protest to date, over 20,000 marchers, the largest ever protest at any US military base, though you wouldn’t know that from the media coverage.

There’s a wonderful report on those four days in Georgia by Holly Near on her website: School Of The Americas Protest. Being with Holly at the SOA demo and the 30th anniversary PMN/SFS concert in Philadelphia (more of this below) was a highlight of the year for us. Her humility, clear vision, good sense and courage are inspiring. She’s good company, a gracious co-worker and a leader and elder whenever the situation requires. She has much to teach us all.

Later that month we were invited to join Joyce Katzberg for an evening at the University of Rhode Island billed as “The Cutting Edge.” It was one of a dozen evenings of political music in their fall semester Honors Colloquium: “Songs of Social Justice – the Rhetoric of Music.” It was our honor to be included with such folk heroes as Peggy Seeger, Ronnie Gilbert, Utah Phillips, Kim & Reggie Harris, Buffy Sainte-Marie and Hip Hop artist Chuck D.

And then there was Hawaii. Maui to be specific, Dec. 4 – 19, allowing us to be oblivious to most of the annual, year-end shopping frenzy. As you may recall Charlie won an AFL-CIO sponsored songwriting contest. The prize was a trip to Hawaii. We were able to stretch it out for 2 weeks and had quite a wonderful time. First week we rented a sweet cottage near Makawao with a beautiful 3 mile sweeping vista down to the Pacific, then spent 2 nights in a youth hostel (at least everybody else was young) in Hana, and 5 unusual nights as guests of the Longshore Workers Union (ILWU) at a luxury hotel in Lahaina.

We climbed volcanoes, walked long and beautiful beaches, snorkeled, whale watched and, got to meet, hang out with and sing for activists of Maui Peace Action (send us an e-mail request and we’ll send you a beautiful photo of 1,500 of them rallying for an end to the war). We heard and collected some wonderful Hawaiian music, ate quite a lot of very fresh fish and spent more time relaxing than we have ever before – a gift and a blessing. We are eager to return, perhaps for an island hopping music tour (Maui Peace Action are you listening?)

2007 has been marked by touring (Charlie more than Karen), visits to Lois Brandow in Philadelphia (Karen more than Charlie) and stretching in new directions as a duo and as individuals. You’ll see more of this in our individual news below.

The months ahead offer a sweet combination of new and old.

• In October we’ll be returning to the Journey of Hope, this time in Texas (Texas Journey of Hope). Want to join us?
• We plan a 10 day trek to the SOA Watch event, perhaps this year a celebration as Latin American countries continue to terminate their participation (4 countries and counting) and Congress gears up to vote down funding for this School of Assassins.
• We look forward to 30th anniversary reunion events with the Peoples Music Network (Next Gathering, June 1, 2, and 3, 2007) and the Clamshell Alliance.

As for the new, we’ll be:

• Participating in Building Abrahamic Partnerships (About BAP), an eight-day immersion group of Christians, Jews and Muslims for mutual study, dialogue, prayer services and alliance building.
• Singing at a gala fundraising event for the Rosenberg Fund For Children featuring such luminaries as Angela Davis, Eve Ensler, David Strathairn and Howard Zinn (Celebrate the Children of Resistance).
• Booking a short but sweet tour with in the Northeast with Claudia Schmidt and Sally Rogers.

When I got together with Charlie in 1998 I was at a stage in my life when I was ready to nest. However, falling in love with a traveling musician did not match up with those plans. I have loved many aspects of traveling and singing and will continue to do some of that, but the nesting instinct is resurfacing. I’m finally at home more and on the road less and I’m loving it. I’m spending more time with friends, attending local town meeting, going to early morning meditation, volunteering at the local library, taking a drumming class and attending regular synagogue services. I guess this is how most people live, but I haven’t done it since I left for Guatemala in 1986.

In January I completed my two-year training program to become a spiritual counselor/director. I’ve incorporated this spiritual component into my other work, and have been offering individual activists and activist groups counseling sessions, retreats and workshops on issues like self-care, preventing compassion fatigue, trauma and recovery, developing a spiritual practice, and transitioning back to the U.S. after serving on overseas peace teams or serving time in prison for civil disobedience. I’m also interested in helping activist organizations to develop policies and practices that exemplify this caretaking of their staff and volunteers. It’s a culmination of all I’ve studied and experienced over the past 30 years and I’m excited about it. I’ve been collaborating with the Voluntown Peace Trust on some of this work, which is an interesting turn of events since Charlie and his family lived on the same property in the late 1970’s when it was the Community for Nonviolent Action (CNVA).

In the fall I lost the two Spanish interpreting and translating jobs that had sustained my other activist work (including singing) for the past decade. I’ve been seeking other work for progressive organizations and have found occasional translating and interpreting work to fill in. Get in touch with me if you know of any groups that could use a unionized, certified Spanish translator/interpreter.

I’ve continued to spend a week a month with my mom in Philadelphia, and I’m grateful to have a lifestyle that allows me to serve her in this way. After a year it seems clear that she is not going to regain her ability to walk or use her hands much, so adjusting to and accepting this is her current challenge. I admire her spirit and we continue to grow closer by sharing this stage of her life experience.

My musical goals for the summer are to develop another visual/text/musical workshop for us, this one on The History of Nonviolence in the United States, and to master some of those instrumental Irish fiddle tunes on guitar that I’ve been noodling around with for decades so I can perform them in concert.

The big news for me is I’m spending more my time as a musician and less as a self-employed office worker. With the financial freedom of the AFM pension I’m freer and easier about performing with a range of other artists. This means building a range of repertoire which keeps my nose to the musical rather than clerical grindstone. I’ve been touring with Rebel Voices, Prince Myshkins and Colleen Kattau. Once I even performed with (tada!) MYSELF! After years of duo and trio work I was challenged to revisit my solo repertoire when Karen got snowed in back in Massachusetts and couldn’t join me for our annual AZ tour. Luckily I had a day’s warning and rehearsed hard to put together two shows for Tucson and Phoenix. By all accounts I haven’t lost my solo chops but I’ll only go there by necessity. I’m having too much fun sparking off other performers and besides solo is lonely.

Bright Morning Star, the troupe we formed in 1978 and retired in 1990 is reconvening itself. We spent 4 days rehearsing and reminiscing and performed at the 30th Anniversary PMN/SFS concert last January in Philadelphia. We plan to continue to re-group, build repertoire, perform occasionally and book a tour of the Northeast in March 2008.

My songwriting has enjoyed a growth spurt. Leon Rosselson and I were commiserating a few years back that our output is diminishing with age but suddenly my life long love of parodies has blossomed in a batch of new lyrics to freshen up the repertoire. I posted some here on the website.

Some good family news. Son Jamie and soul mate Jessica have announced a wedding date for May 2008 in Kentucky. Jamie has stepped up to a smaller Law firm in NYC that allows him to practice the intellectual property law he loves. Jessica has worked the past year in a school for children with autism and this summer begins an ambitious grad school program in Special Ed. at the fine Bank Street College of Education.

Daughter Nell graduates May 20 from Marymount College Tarrytown NY giving the graduation address for this last class ever (Fordham U. has bought the campus and will fold it into its grad school system) and I couldn’t be prouder. The speaker is chosen by submitting a speech and hers was selected as best. She’s had a terrific academic career at Marymount and goes on next year to Grad School at Albertus Magnus College to pursue a degree in Art Therapy. She has made a lot of good choices in collaboration with Joanne, her mom, and has a great life ahead of her.

With all these kids in grad and post-grad life I must be getting older and indeed I am – 60 years old on May 27, a quiet Memorial Day weekend at my favorite spot on earth, College Pond, near Plymouth Mass. where I’ll be vacationing for my 61st consecutive summer. I’m feeling very fortunate and owe so much of it to you who’ve been sharing the music with me these past 4 decades. Let’s hang in there, end this war, head off the next one and give the rest of the world a break. As the bumper sticker says: