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Is it possible that we, the American people, are not as partisan as perceived? Is it possible that the political labels we use are inflammatory and designed to play on our fears, when on examining original meanings and comparing them, we are all on the same spiral that is life? Is it possible that there is no need to be scared of people who think and act differently than you do because, if we look carefully, we all have basic shared beliefs?<\/p>\n
Clear Rivers Chorus\/Women of the Watershed is rehearsing a song that addresses these questions and the fears that create divisions between well-meaning people. \u201cThe Spiral Song,\u201d composed by songwriter and international performer, Elise Witt, invites us to look at the ways our lives not only come full circle, but expand into the future as we learn from each other and our different perspectives.<\/p>\n
The song examines the root of the labels \u201cconservative\u201d and \u201cliberal\u201d through its lyrics. For example: \u201cSome people get so scared at the sound of \u2018conservative.\u2019 Conservative means save\u201d and applies to the saving of traditions and customs, as well as saving \u201cwaters, skies and trees and birds.\u201d Also, \u201cSome people get so scared at the sound of \u2018liberal.\u2019 Liberal means free.\u201d<\/p>\n
Freedoms, the song expresses, include baring our souls, liberating our love for our fellow humans, and trusting the sacred message placed in us. These things don\u2019t seem so scary when you look at the root of their meanings. All people, whether they identify themselves as \u201cconservative\u201d or \u201cliberal,\u201d have attributes of each. There is a little bit of us in them, and them in us.<\/p>\n
Even potentially inflammatory words like \u201crevolution\u201d and \u201cradical\u201d have something positive to offer. \u201cWhat threat is in that hand?\u201d the song asks, when a revolution is just life turning around. \u201cRadical\u201d derives from the Latin word for \u201croot.\u201d The song entreats us, \u201cLet\u2019s get back down to the root of the matter!\u201d<\/p>\n
The song concludes in each verse, \u201cIf you want to move on, sing a spiral song!\u201d The essence of the phrase and of the song is, if you want America to effectively move forward, recognize the parts that are similar at the root and come together in non-partisan collaborations.<\/p>\n
Witt takes a more global view.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2018The Spiral Song\u2019 invites us to leave our well-worn paths, and to keep moving onward and upward, exploring new territories. My hope is that the song invites us to remain open to new ideas and new people who might seem foreign or strange, but who might open us to new worlds, new insights and new understanding,\u201d she said. \u201cIt is a song of hope and of possibility.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clear Rivers Chorus is a local volunteer chorus that began in January 2003 with a mission to make music with a purpose, reflecting many different cultures and traditions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe believe that singing together can strengthen our sense of community and help us find ways to express timeless values that have an impact on issues of our day,\u201d said Carol Boyd, director of the chorus.<\/p>\n
Members of CRC are from many different faiths; the group however, is spiritually nondenominational, as well as politically non-partisan. CRC welcomes women of all experience levels and backgrounds to participate. It meets on one Saturday morning and one weekday evening each month at St. Andrew United Methodist Church.<\/p>\n
Clear Rivers Chorus emphasizes the experience of participation in singing together more than the polished performance, but enjoys the challenge of an occasional \u201cgig\u201d to share meaningful songs with family and community. They usually get their audiences to sing along, too!<\/p>\n
In the spring, they often sing for a local Earth Day gathering. In winter they sponsor \u201cRing Out the Old Year on a High Note,\u201d an alternative New Year\u2019s Eve celebration for families that includes clay bowl-making for the next February\u2019s Empty Bowls project, and a casual meal of soup and bread. They have also helped raise money for local, state, national, and international organizations: the Carrollton Soup Kitchen, Keep Carroll Beautiful, Georgia Riverkeepers, Georgia Water Coalition, the Tembwe Youth Club Library in Malawi Africa, and other good causes.<\/p>\n
Giving at least three performances a year, the group\u2019s next performance is at the League of Women Voters of Carrollton and Carroll County\u2019s \u201cMeet the League\u201d Open House on Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. at The Burson Center, 500 Old Bremen Rd., Carrollton. The community is invited to this informational event. Tracey-Ann Nelson, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Georgia will speak on the relationship between local, state and national League work.<\/p>\n
In addition to the \u201cSpiral Song,\u201d Clear Rivers Chorus will also be singing \u201cLiyashizwa,\u201d an African women\u2019s anti-apartheid protest song celebrating the heroes and volunteers who brought freedom for all in South Africa. The title means \u201cIt is burned,\u201d referring to the restrictive pass documents used by the state. CRC\u2019s third selection is a medley of \u201cTrees of the Field,\u201d words from Isaiah 55:12, and \u201cTrees Grow Tall.\u201d<\/p>\n
For more information about Clear Rivers Chorus, contact Carol Boyd, 770-832-0688, or e-mail boydville@bellsouth.net<\/a> , or go to http:\/\/www.clearriverschorus.com<\/a> .<\/p>\n For more information about the League of Women Voters of Carrollton and Carroll County, e-mail carrollton@lwv.org, or just come \u201cMeet the League\u201d on Sept. 14.<\/p>\n