And the people stayed home
A prayer by Kitty O'Meara at the time of the COVID-18 corona virus pandemic, 2020
With music by Peta Williams
It is quite some time since I have written a blog.
And my website has changed, so I am still navigating my way through updating the new design.
The reason for this blog is that I have just written the music for a new song, called 'And the people stayed home'.
It is my musical interpretation of a prayer by Kitty O'Meara, who lives in the United States and whom I have never met, but whose words have moved me to set them to music, with her gracious consent.
About 5 million other people around the world have also been moved to set Kitty's words to music; I am merely one of them.
So what is it about Kitty's words that have engaged so many of us so fully?
For me, it is because her words have a quality of optimism and hope.
And in this time of the COVID-19 pandemic, where there is so much loss throughout the world, and so much grief and disappointment, I truly wanted to respond to something that gave me heart, that tapped into my own need for optimism and hope.
This song won't resonate with everyone.
People who are isolated at home with domestic violence, or people who are homeless, won't find that the words about staying at home and healing ourselves as well as the earth will have any resonance for them. LIkewise for people who are struggling to work and home-school children at the same time, or those who have lost their jobs and are struggling.
And yet.
This song is my gift to you, in the hope that Kitty's words and my music will inspire you to get through the hard times, and come out the other end perhaps thinking differently, perhaps having re-thought the way we want to live, perhaps wanting to contribute to healing the earth, as well as yourselves.
Your comments and feedback are welcome.
Peta Williams
Blue Mountains, Australia
29 April 2020