To my friend from across the sea who inspired me with her truth…her brilliant, brave and heartbreaking truth…thank you…I hope you will all find a few minutes to watch this. I am honored that “We Are Not Broken” has meant something to you…so much to come….and I’ll see you one day, I promise.

( Letter to my 15 year old me)

Peace, be you,
Jake

I’m finding when you truly face yourself you learn quickly who you are and who you
are not. But first you see who you have BEEN and who you haven’t been. But
eventually you see you can in fact be whoever you want to be. We can change
anything. It’s so easy to give up, to give into our paterns, to avoid LIFe, to BE.
To be still, to be ANYTHING.

Living in the clouds feels so easy, but really, it slowly defeats us. No, we must
live within this world. We can do anything. And it’s always worth it

So much to come

“Be Still” (from the album Alive and Screaming) listen free on Spotify and share!

http://open.spotify.com/track/0NeeaHALjnc6cStZ4ddPbJ#

Life is messy. And when I think of all the mistakes I have made, all the intricate weaving of bright and dull and torn and pristine patches of the tapestry of my life, so often I find myself buried DEEP in that hole in the ground suffocating and blind in the dark. And I remember all those people who I have come to know in my life, even those that pass by me, through me…I remember that every one of them has just as intricate a tapestry as I do…and I find comfort in that. Maybe it’s human nature, to have that NEED to not feel alone in this world. Many times this knowledge in fact uncovers the damp earth that swallows us and lets in brilliant streams of light. Sometimes they taunt us high above and other times they break through and bathe us in warmth and heal…hope.

We are allowed to make mistakes. We are allowed to fuck up real bad. We all do. We are allowed to admit to and fix that which stops our purpose, to love, to find and live in meaning…and most of all, for me at least, to have peace within.

“…still every time I wipe my eyes when I begin to realize ALL that life is,
it’s almost brave
to show our faces
to reveal our names” ( Almost Brave 2011)

Peace, be you, Jake

Growing Pains

It reminded me that from birth to death, all growth knows
some pain. It is a natural wonder, a gift wrapped in razor blades.

Our bodies grow, our minds grow, our power of spirit grows, our
relationships and understandings and hearts, they all must grow in order
to stay alive…and many times in happens in bursts. And many times we stall. Many times we crawl into a hole, or more often are thrown into one kicking and screaming.

And the Dreamers so often just keep walking even as dusk approaches and our innate youthful hope tells us the dark will not hinder us…we don’t need our eyes, we have walked these paths before….our faith leads us further and further into the dark…and one step later, you are confused, bruised, scared and angry having fallen into a deep, earthen hole. Maybe you will go mad scraping your way out. Maybe you will find your peace within the confines of your hidden prison before hands reach down and pull you out with MIGHT.

Maybe the only way out is time. And it will hurt. And your sanity and faith and hope will be tested.

Growing pains are beautiful. They scream in our conscious and rattle our
bones and allow us the gift of continued life.

Does anyone remember being a teenager and literally going through growth spurts? When I was 16, I went to live as an exchange student in Denmark. I left 5’6″ and came back 6 feet tall where I stand today. Only I don’t remember feeling a thing. It didn’t hurt at ALL! In fact, at that time, for those brief months and months in that foreign land I was free and oblivious…free perhaps in a way I may never know again.
Free from my mind. I didn’t know who I was? I didn’t care. I just LIVED and it was beautiful. And I grew..yes, I did…looking back, in almost every way one can in life….as I/we do today…and yet, the pains are now undeniable. I”m alive right? Can you hear my steps? Even in the dark? I hear you…

Peace, be you,
Jake

I live in my imagination
I wake up every day in reality

No wonder it always feels a little unreal.

And I know only one thing…
I’ll never understand…

Who am I to question?

Peace, be you, be brave,
Jake