1. |
crossing imaginary lines
02:50
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Waiting at the border for my turn to share
The purpose of my visit and what I
Declare I'm a traveler, I'm duty free
Citizen of the world, not one country.
But the lines we draw upon this earth
Manifest to values, beliefs and worth.
[Chorus]
Borders on the map, on my heart, in my mind
I conjure up the courage to cross these lines.
When I close my eyes and truly see
All of these lines are imaginary.
Some people tell me to steer clear of bees.
To plan out each moment so they won't sting me.
But I miss out on the honey if I live my life this way
Lines form on my brow if I worry every day.
When I release fear and intend to do no harm
I watch as the bee walks a line across my arm.
Well I've wondered who I am and who I can be
If what I wear, if what I do is what defines me
Who can be my friend, who can be my love
Lines etched from within, from outside, from above.
A “kind of person” person just fails to describe
The beauty in us all and our joy to be alive.
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2. |
traveling light
02:53
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I got no baggage to weigh me down
I'd rather lose it than to lug it around
All that stuff won't help me on the road
I will give it away if it will lighten my load
Integrity's all I need to keep
I'm gonna go far and I'm gonna go deep
'Cause I'm a... I'm a traveling light
It's out of my mind if it is out of my sight
Don't need to hold on so tight
'Cause I'm a traveling light
I cross some paths along my way
They feel the warmth and they want my to stay
They think it's only what I bring to share, but
I can only illuminate what is already there
They want to hold on to it all the same
They don't realize that would smother my flame
'Cause I'm a...I'm a traveling light
Try to hold me back, I'm gonna take flight
Don't need someone hold me close every night
'Cause I'm a traveling light.
Don't need a camera tell me what I saw
I am present throughout it all
Don't need a book tell me where to go
I can discover something nobody knows
Don't need a watch to tell me how much time
Before I'm allowed to shine shine shine
'Cause I'm a...I'm a traveling light
Don't need anything tell me what's wrong or what's right
I can tap into my own insight
'Cause I'm a traveling light
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3. |
no tengo prisa
02:58
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When visiting a new land
It may be tough to understand
How to act and where to go
But all you need to know is...
Yo no tengo prisa
I don't want to miss
A chance to be right here
Makes everything so clear.
When I learn this phrase
I watch as my days
Flow gracefully along
As my heart swells up in song, singing...
Je ne suis pas pressé
Relieves my stress to say
And remember how to be
Connected to humanity.
It may seem too easy
The results they always please me
Turns out in the end
That I always make a friend. And I say...
Ich bin nicht in Eile
Think I'll stay a while
And learn all I can from you
About your world view.
These words are the golden keys
To endless opportunities
To move aside the screen
And see life behind the scenes. It looks like...
I am in no hurry
I refuse to worry
'Bout what's in store for me
'Cause I'm where I need to be.
Yo no tengo prisa
Je ne suis pas pressé
Ich bin nicht in Eile
I'm in no hurry. In no hurry.
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4. |
we're getting there
03:30
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In the city of brotherly love
Running underground and above
Through rain and shine and through snow
It sings a song, here's how it goes:
We're getting there, so don't despair
Just have some faith and say a prayer
We're not sure when or even where
We're aiming 'tween the Schyulkill and the Delaware.
We're not New York, we're not D.C.
In the middle we're proud to be
Why be clean or efficient
When what we've got is quite sufficient?
We're getting there, so don't compare
But if you transfer it's an extra fare.
Just take your seat and please don't stare
We're getting there, we're getting there.
You might think that we are joking
We're Serious About Change..or a token.
It's character we really sell
Like the crack in our great bell.
We're getting there, so try to bare
The piece of trash left on your chair
The ever-present florescent glare
We're getting there, we getting there.
So bring a book, plan for delay
Know that it may take all day
When the alternative is the PPA
Well, what's the hurry, anyway?
We're getting there, so please don't swear
And do not blame the messenger
We do our best, we really care
We're getting there, we getting there.
So next time you are really pissed
About the train that you just missed
Do yourself a little favor
Go ahead, talk to your neighbor.
We're getting there, so won't you share
And show how much you really care
Make a friend if you dare
We're getting there, we getting there.
Surrender to public transportation
You learn it's the journey, not the destination
Each trip becomes an exploration
Of local customs in your subway station.
We're getting there, become aware
Allow yourself some time to spare
Pretend you're an adventurer
We're getting there, we're getting there, We're Getting There.
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5. |
only a path
03:34
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I used to stay up all the night
Wondering whether to turn left or right
Analyzing what would be best for me
Paralyzed by the possibilities
It was just so easy to get in a groove
Of needing others to approve
Of every little step that I take
If I didn't make a decision, I didn't make a mistake
Wish I had known...
[Chorus]
Any path is only a path
And I can choose to change it
Or rearrange it
Be open to whatever comes
'Cause any path with a heart is a good one
Well I changed my mind a few times a day
Telling myself that it was not okay
And that life would be easy if I could only decide
Deep down I could not buy it no matter how I tried
'Cause I was just a detective asking who what where when why
And how would I know if I didn't try?
Looking at every path turned out to be fun
I could live so many lives instead of just one
I was learning...
I realized I was on a greater mission
To learn to hear my own intuition
I needed to practice just like anything else
This fine art of trusting myself
But intuition can be kinda hard to find
And it sure does helps to have someone remind
Me once in a while of my deepest desire
To live a life that's truly inspired
Now I know...
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6. |
in the name
02:31
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On Wednesday mornings at the pool where I swim
There's a loud joyous group of gospel singing women
They would always wish me a blessed day
And I'd think, “yeah right,” but I'd smile anyway.
See, I've spent so much time questioning God
Convincing myself the whole thing is a fraud
Those so-called righteous with all their harasses
Religion seemed the opiate of the Sunday masses
[Chorus]
God, the universe, nature, allah, adonai
What's in the name that I call it by?
One or the other doesn't seem to be better
But I'll use any name if it will bring us together.
Well, I was enlightened and I sure knew more
Than those people thumpin' bibles 'til their thumbs were sore
I tried to make it clear that I was not a part
But there was something missing inside of my heart
See I would look on with awe and wonder
When the sky was filled up with lightning and thunder
I took note of the magic happening all around me
And slowly connections became clearer to see.
If I spent my whole life looking for proof
I would miss out on a deeper truth
My God doesn't need to be some guy up above
Just the feeling when my heart is filled up with love
What I get is not what I see
But what I allow myself to believe
I don't have to fight it, I don't have to stress
I can allow all my days to be truly blessed.
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7. |
maggi
02:44
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I have a new friend
Octogenarian
It feels like we're in a play we're staging
I met her in the park
She shared her bench, she shared her spark
I needed to not be afraid of aging.
'Cause if I only watched TV
I'd think old age is a disease
That in this world there is no place
For grey hair or wrinkled face
Where does that leave me?
I hear about her latest passions
See her bike and the helmet she fashions
She is one inspiring lady.
Sure she's got aches and pains
She always shares her champaign
And tells me sex is the best at eighty
'Cause if I only watched the news
I'd think that I was bound to lose
Any sense of sensuality
Or what we've agreed is beauty
Where does that leave me?
It's through eyes glazed in tears
She tells me 'bout her husband of fifty years
And all the adventures they had shared
Her heart holds so much sorrow
She's optimistic about tomorrow
Even if life's not always fair
'Cause if I lived in Hollywood
I'd think the ending's always good
Always laughter, we can pretend
Happily ever after will never end
Where would that leave me?
We sit together in the park
We sip champaign till it gets dark
Time's a figment of imagination
With my new friend by my side
I have myself an honest guide
To a full life lived in celebration
'Cause if I believed all that stuff
I'd never think I was enough
I'd pass on wisdom in search of youth
I'd search for profits instead of truth
I think I'll leave them.
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8. |
old habits
03:13
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When my work is never done
Can't stop to rest or have some fun
It sure don't help my quality
This low grade anxiety
[Chorus]
I may know know know know
But I still go go go go
I must slow slow slow slow
So I can grow grow grow grow
I throw my hands up in defeat
Got no control over those sweets
What am I trying to get fed?
What will nourish me instead?
Oh those matters of the heart
It can't end if it don't start
For every rise there is a fall
I guess I'm human after all.
Old habits they don't budge
Who am I to be the judge?
Why do I think it strange
I'm not so quick to make a change?
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9. |
in this together
03:15
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My atoms are the same atoms
Going all the way back to Eve and Adam
The very same atoms that make up me
Also vibrate in everything that I see
When I turn my gaze to this molecular place
I cannot understand the conflicts we face
And we all look so good in our genes
The difference is so much smaller than it seems
[Chorus]
We're all in this together
Through calm and through stormy weather
No matter the color of our skin or our feathers
No one is worse, no one is better
I see beautiful children with such innocent faces
Don't matter religion or what their race is
They all shriek in delight when picked up and twirled
It takes a village to raise this world
When all of the “them's” become simply “us”
Slowly we start to build up our trust
I can care for a stranger as one I hold dear
I act out of love, and not out of fear
Walking this earth I see signs of neglect
We've forgotten just what it means to respect
The environment around and inside
But from our true nature we just cannot hide
We've been clogging our rivers and arteries
Allowing our food to become a disease
By working together it's safe to assume
We will plant the seeds to see our world bloom
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Michal Pearl Seattle, Washington
I'm a Seattle based singer-songwriter, educator and naturopathic physician. I explore the intersections of creativity, community, spirituality and (mental) health.
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