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    217. Ribbon 14: Clearing the Decks

    Ribbon
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    ​The Sunday after this episode is released, January 4th, 2026, at 4 p.m. Eastern time, there will be an online gathering of folk who use song to help navigate life -- and we'll sing through this Ribbon of Songs with live-looping! To learn more, click here, or sign up right now to join us!
    Lyrics ​& Links to the original episodes for the songs in this ribbon.
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    ​4. Let It Blow Through     
    by Maggie Wheeler

    Let it blow through, let it blow through.
    Open up the windows of your soul, and let it blow through.

    Hard times come, and hard times go, let it blow through.
    Open up the windows of your soul, and let it blow through.

    Hard times come and hard times go, let it blow.
    Open up the windows of your soul, and let it blow through.
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    ​63. Awaken Me
    by Abigail Spinner McBride

    1. Open my eyes to the miracles around me,
    wake me up, wake me up. 
    (2x)
    2. Shake me from my sleep and stir me from my dreaming.
    wake me up, wake me up. 
    ​    (2x)
    Chorus: Awaken me. (4x)
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    113. Borrow Trouble
    by Patricia Norton

    Let me not borrow this trouble
    ahead of time.
    Let me not carry this sorrow
    before it's mine.
    It will come when it comes and go when it goes.
    I will know; I will know.
    It will come when it comes and go when it goes,
    I will know.
    ​
    My trust and love are banks on the river
    where grief and praise can find a flow.
    My tender heart, it floats on the ocean.
    The waves come. The waves go.
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    ​161. Good Friend     
    by Jan Harmon

    Oh the wind, it is a song
    that harbours through the winter,
    Oh the sail, it is a door
    that bids the song to enter,
    And let us sail the sea, good friend,
    And let us sing together,
    The singer lasts a season long,
    While the song, it lasts forever.
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    ​204. May the Way Open Before You
    by Ana Hernández

    May the way open before you.
    May you see beyond darkness and light
    to the love you are;
    to the love you bring into the world.
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    ​6. Be Open
    by Debbie Nargi-Brown

    Be open for something wonderful to happen
    Be open to the possibility
    (x2)

    Aiye Aiye Aiye, Aiye Aiye Aiye (x2)
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    216. I Believe with Guest Singers

    4:4 Celebrate Gratitude & Trust Hope Love Scale: Aeolian (minor) Song Form: Harmonized Song Form: Layer Uptempo
    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:05:24
    Start time of reprise: 00:19:52
    Lyrics:

    *Soprano, Alto, Tenor*
    I believe in the goodness, 
    in the goodness of you, 
    and the goodness of me, 
    And the goodness of everybody

    We were born to love, to love, to love 
    We were born to love, to love, to love

    *Bass*
    Oh! I believe, I believe, I believe, I believe in everybody
    We, we were born to love, to love
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    Song: I Believe
    Music by: Una McCann

    Guest singers:​ Rebecca Csuy, Seth Norton, Tom Norton, Marika Tabilio

    Notes: You'll hear a wonderful group of singers helping me cover all the ranges of this song: Tom and Seth bring the bass, Marika nails the tenor, Rebecca lines up the alto, and I take on soprano. There's a bit of octave confusion -- where do we find these pitches in our different voices?! And then this fabulous song and groove reminds us to see the goodness -- in you, in me, in everybody. So grateful to Una McCann for living into the teachings of Tara Brach and catching this song that feels so good to have singing in my body! Wishing everyone a week of discovery and festive comradery, whether you are celebrating holy days or simply the close of 2025...

    Songwriter Info:
    Una McCann is based in Belfast, Northern Ireland where she works as a choir leader and songwriter.  She has been leading groups in harmony since her school days and has been working professionally with choirs for 15 years.  
    Currently the chair of the Natural Voice Network, Una runs 6 Natural Voice style weekly choirs.  She also enjoys running singing holidays and retreats.   
    Una is passionate about the power of creativity to transform lives and encourages her singers to improvise, play and explore their own creativity.
    Song writing is a part of life that sustains and supports Una.  She writes melodies and words that she needs to hear in that moment and is always delighted when they resonate with other people too.  
    I Believe was born out of the wish to always see the best in people even when it’s hard and we don’t want to, and to remember that underneath all of us is someone who just wants to be happy. We all come from love but sometimes we lose our way a bit. 
    It was inspired by listening to Tara Brach who creates beautiful talks on topics such as this.

    Sharing Info: Please buy sheet music on Una's website (see below) if you plan to share this song as a songleader.

    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:05:24
    Start time of reprise: 00:19:52

    Links:
    Una's website: www.unamccann.org
    Sheet music for this song: https://unamccann.org/product/i-believe/ 
    Una's Instagram: www.instagram.com/unamccann47
    Una's Facebook (Una McCann Music): https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558408430060 
    Tara Brach's website: www.tarabrach.com
    Natural Voice Network: www.naturalvoice.net 

    Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, minor, 2 layers, one layer with melody & two harmonies

    Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely:  https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share

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    215. What A Gift with guest Angela Gabriel

    4:4 Be Grateful Be Present Body Percussion Celebrate Gratitude & Trust Scale: Aeolian (minor) Song Form: Layer Songwriter Conversation Uptempo
    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:04:55
    Start time of reprise: 01:22:01
    Lyrics:

    What a gift, what a gift,
    what a gift it is to sing.
    What a gift it is to sing 
    right now with you!

    What a gift it is to sing with you,
    when I’m happy!
    What a gift it is to sing with you,
    when I’m blue!
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    Song: What A Gift
    Music by: Angela Gabriel

    Notes: What a gift it was to be in conversation with Angela Gabriel -- we talked about how to deal with having been "poked in the voice" -- and the sensation of healthy singing. -- What was "one of the most idea shattering things" Angela has ever done in her life, and how "that butterfly excitement" led her there. How she's gotten to a place where, "I don't shame myself anymore," and a slew of adulting tactics she practices. ("I have a lot of arrows in my quiver.") How community singing can show up in activist spaces, where "it is difficult, but it doesn't have to be somber." How she sets up her own space -- "I actively choose to make it colorful..." and how that helps with healing. "The tremble" when singing for someone who is dying. Percussion and how it that has made Angela's voice distinctive in community singing songs... SO many things I loved in our conversation, not to mention this song!

    Songwriter Info: Angela is a performer, a teacher, a facilitator, and a lifelong learner. Her mission in life is to facilitate expressive creative, musical, and vocal experiences and to encourage folks of any age and background to replace judgement with curiosity and open themselves to their unique, creative flow.

    Sharing Info: The song is free to share but Angela always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.

    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:04:55
    Start time of reprise: 01:22:01

    Links:
    Moira Smiley: Leather Britches: https://moirasmiley.com/downloads/leather-britches-2/ 
    “The Truth” – Velma Frye: https://www.abreathofsong.com/episodes--show-notes/18-the-truth#/ 
    Josh Habermann – Santa Fe Desert Chorale: https://desertchorale.org/about/our-people/#artistic_director 
    Susan Swaney – choir director in Bloomington UU church: https://www.uubloomington.org/about/our-ministers-and-staff/ 
    Kate Munger – Women Singing In Circle retreat: https://www.lamafoundation.org/engage/events/women-singing/ 
    Threshold Choirs: https://thresholdchoir.org/ 
    Melanie DeMore: https://melaniedemore.com/
    Becky Reardon: https://beckyreardonmusic.com/ 
    Terri Garthwaite: https://terrygarthwaite.com/ 
    Poor People’s Campaign: https://www.poorpeoplescampaign.org/ 
    Pam Blevins Hinkle – No Kings Song doesn't seem to be online yet, but her website is https://pamblevinshinkle.com/ 
    Online group called “Lumos Transforms”: https://lumos-transforms.mn.co/ 
    PetCanvas: https://mypetcanvas.com/ 
    Mbira: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mbira 
    Unitarian Universalist Church in Bloomington, IN: https://www.uubloomington.org/ 
    Rhiannon’s All the Way In improvisation class: https://rhiannonmusic.com/2026-all-the-way-in 
    “I live my life in a river of grace…” Kate Munger: https://thresholdchoir.bandcamp.com/track/life-grace-trust 
    Yes – Fragile: https://www.yesworld.com/discography/fragile/ 
    Willow Smith – Empathogen: https://willowsmith.com/products/empathogen-digital-download 
    Angela's website: www.angelagabriel.me 

    Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, blues minor, 2 layers and body percussion

    Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely:  https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share

    Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support.  https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html
  • Published on

    214. Make Good Trouble with Family Singers

    3 Layer 4:4 Change Determination Empower Hope Scale: Aeolian (minor) Song Form: Harmonized Song Form: Layer Uptempo
    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:03:56
    Start time of whole song: 00:09:21
    Lyrics:

    This is the struggle of a lifetime (2x)
    Never ever be afraid to make some noise, and make good trouble.
    Make good trouble; necessary trouble.

    From the words of John Lewis:
    ​“Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble.”
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    Song: Make Good Trouble
    Music by: Angela Gabriel

    Notes: I had the privilege of recording this song together with many members of my familiy -- and something happens on this recording that is very common in community singing -- I started in the key of A minor, and group wisdom decided that the key of A-flat minor, slightly lower, felt better in our collective voice! So you'll hear us readjusting together to reach an agreed sound, and what's cool is we all get there. Rather than rerecord to get an ordinary "perfectly pitched" recording, I decided to stay with the energy of the moment -- that really beautiful feel of connection that we had in that room -- because that's what this song is encourages. We support each other to speak up, to disrupt when needed, to make good, necessary trouble! You'll hear the six-year-old in the room leading some warm ups, and even a blooper at the end (never telling whose phone it was....)

    Songwriter Info: Angela is a performer, a teacher, a facilitator, and a lifelong learner. Her mission in life is to facilitate expressive creative, musical, and vocal experiences and to encourage folks of any age and background to replace judgement with curiosity and open themselves to their unique, creative flow.

    Sharing Info: The song is free to share but Angela always welcomes financial and/or networking support if/when folks are so moved.

    Song Learning Time Stamps:
    Start time of teaching: 00:03:56
    Start time of whole song: 00:09:21

    Links:
    Angela's website: www.angelagabriel.me 

    Nuts & Bolts: 4:4, minor, 3 layers, each harmonized

    Join this community of people who love to use song to help navigate life? Absolutely:  https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/335811/81227018071442567/share

    Help us keep going: reviews, comments, encouragement, plus contributions... we float on your support. 
    https://www.abreathofsong.com/gratitude-jar.html