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In the Key of Ruth

Let's Hug the Earth Together! 

World Memes 

Earth Memes 

We are Earth! Let’s express Love and awesomeness together! Yeah!! 

Save the date: Sunday March 22, 2020! Come and hug the Earth with me! 

So, considering the internet and everything and with how things are becoming so interconnected, it is time that we as humans and humanity on Earth start doing collective memes together to express something great of humans. My project Earth Song is one idea of this. {Another Save the Date of March 19, 2020.} Get involved here! And, I have a second idea. While looking through funny memes, I happened to see a short video of Carl Sagan explaining how in ancient Rome, Eratosthenes, in the city of Alexandria, was able to calculate the circumference of the Earth based on the difference of the lengths of shadows in different locations. So I found out that the Earth is about 40,008,000 meters around the equator. Considering the size of humans of all ages holding hands with their arms slightly outstretched, this would mean that in order to get a circle of humans holding hands and singing all the way around the Earth, it would take approximately 50,000,000 humans. 50 million humans sounds like a big number, but consider that it is less than 1% of the entire population of Earth. Also, 50 million is about half the number of ps4s (Playstation 4) that have been sold as of June 30, 2019. If only half the people who bought ps4s participate, that would be enough. This seems achievable! So Gamers, join us! 

Let’s be Earth circlers. Well, let’s be Earth huggers together. That sounds about right. Hug the Earth with me!! 

The physics of where on Earth would be best for humans to circle around has not been worked out yet, so this first year of the event, I am asking you to join locally and reach out your arms with friends. I am hoping to have 10-20 people here in Jacksonville, Florida. As the date approaches, I will give further instructions. I hope you are willing to take and share pictures of you and your friends reaching out on this initial, first annual experience of trying to hug the Earth. 

01/31/2020

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in Music Event

Story of "Hello, My Name is Ruth" 

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Thank you for joining me for this 'backstory of the song time!' I am so excited to share this with you. I am the type of artist who really thinks about the lyrics I write and I want the songs to communicate a certain positive energy of Love and peace--as a transmission to this Earth Family, my family, including me!  

Backstory of "Hello, My Name is Ruth" Song. 

“Hello, My Name is Ruth,” is my musical biography. In creating my website, I thought a lot about how to present my bio. I thought, “Well, as a musician, what better way to share who I am than with a song.” So that is what I did!  

Musical bios on websites are not that common, so I had fun being creative and taking charge of the process. The song came to me as all my songs come to me, through divine inspiration, and life influence. The process of song-writing for me, really feels like a discovery. I open up, listen, and let the melody come to my heart, with my ears and body following the resonance, sometimes like meeting a friend.  

When the song came through me, I found two different main influences that the song itself references. Did you pick up on them? The first is the jazz standard, “Autumn Leaves” composed by Joseph Kosmo, original lyrics by Jacques Prévert, with the English words written by Johnny Mercer. This is a gorgeous song with a rich history. I remember as a child hearing my older brother Mark playing it on his guitar. It has such a lovely haunting melody with plenty of 7th chords to dazzle the ears.  

The imagery of “Autumn Leaves” with the falling leaves also references an important personal milestone in my life. When I was in 6th grade, I won an art contest for musical composition at my elementary school. It was a “Reflections” contest with the theme of ‘falling dreams.’ I composed a piece and recorded it at home on a tape. Yes, a tape! As an introduction to the song, I described the way people reach for their dreams, as dreams fall to the ground like leaves in autumn, and that we have to reach out for our dreams and grab them! In the video, the image sequence for the second verse shows leaves on trees changing from green to brilliant autumn colors. I grew up in Utah, where each fall I got to witness the leaves change from green to bright colors. One autumn as I was growing up, I realized that it is the cold--the unstoppable challenge of the impending winter, that inspires the trees to pull their energy inside of them, causing their leaves to magically change color. Without this potentially frightening challenge of winter, the brilliant colors would never become visible. In a similar way, I imagine the realization of one’s dreams in the world as happening through a challenging, potentially frightening process of forging and alchemically transforming to show the world one’s colors! 

I actually won 1st place in the Reflections contest, along with another young woman at the school. At the awards night, we each got to perform our pieces. Having public recognition for the ability I knew I had inside of me was affirming and exciting. 

The second song that my bio song references is, “Happy Together,” by The Turtles. “Happy Together” is an epically beautiful song to me. It is one of those songs I learned as a young teenager and walked through the streets of my city singing alone, or with friends, sometimes at the top of our lungs! This song itself has been a friend to me over the years. For myself, a child of the 80s’, “Happy Together” is just so cool with its 60s pyschedelic pop vibe. I also love the way the song envisions a life of joy and happiness being with that one person who makes one’s soul sing. 

Both of these songs have been hugely influential in forming my musical ears and heart, so I was completely thrilled to hear them show up in my music. Now, if you don’t already know, I must tell you and retell you that I am not a follower of a formula. I am more of an ‘open up and let inspiration flow through’-er. Music thrills me. The process of discovery and uncovery and the big reveal. I am humbled and ensouled by it! I was also surprised how the two songs seemed to sample themselves in the song and how they fit together. I did not consciously plan this, but more discovered it as I played and wrote the piece.  

The song and basic lyrics came together first, and then later I hashed out more words through logic and artistic practice/discipline and listening, in order to communicate about Who I Am, to Yoooou! My goal was to give some basic and inspiring information about me, with an upbeat and playful melody and rhythm, with reference to musical greats. I share about me, including my sweet family of my husband Keaton and our 2 boys, Soleil and Luna, the sun and moon.  I also wanted to tell you about my big goal of singing WITH you. That’s right, I want to sing WITH YOU! So if you haven’t yet, please join my Star Family on my home page of my website, and read this blog talking about eARThSong, the yearly world singing-together event.  

Here are “Hello, My Name Is Ruth” song lyrics. 

1 

Hello, My name is Ruth 

I live on Earth since my birth 

My children are the sun and moon  

& We’re happy together 

2 

The autumn leaves are out dreams 

And things may be as they seem 

But either way it’s time to play 

& Be happy together 

3 

The Star, The Star 

She’s not so far, so far 

She shines, she sines so fine 

Makes life holy Divine 

4 

Thank you Dear Son 

For all the Fun, Keaton 

Luna, Soleil, we play 

& We’re happy together 

5 

I dream that we all sing 

The whole wide Earth one song  

And that means you must sing along 

Let’s be happy together 

6 

Hello, my name is Ruth 

Now sing with me, Let’s hear your truth 

The note that sets your heart free 

Let’s sing harmonies 

7 & 8 

{Sing harmonies} 

9 

Hello, my name is Ruth 

Now take my hand, and hear this truth 

Together we are humanity 

Yes we are family! 

Let’s live our dreams 

Sweet harmonies 

Shine as Earth Beings 

Fun facts about the recording and mixing this song. 

1. I recorded a total of 211 tracks before paring it down to the final 79 tracks that made it to the song. 

2. All of the music was recorded in my “green room,” which is what I call my home recording studio, which is also the bedroom, because it is painted green with green carpet: also because it is where I get things ready to share with the world! I will be making a video sharing the equipment I used to achieve this goal, and will reference that video here once it is ready! 

3. All of the singing and sound effects were done by my best friends in the world: Keaton, Soleil, Luna, and myself. Keaton does the beatboxing and whistling. Each of Keaton, Soleil, and Luna say their own names.  

4. Pretty much all of the harmonies emerged during the recording process. When I first sat down to record, I had the melody and song, and that was it.  

5. I have worked DILIGENTLY to bring this song to you, and I am so proud of it! I hope you enjoy it and that it seeps deep into your soul and brings a beauty home to you. 

01/16/2020

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in Story of the Song

Star Family 

Star Family: Life, the Universe, & Everything!

This morning, my sweet 5 year old Luna asked me, “Who made the universe?” How delicious it can be to be a mother! “No one really knows for sure,” I told him. I proceeded to start with the Big Bang theory. I explained that the Universe is thought to be between 13-14 billion years old ^1 and that the Earth is about 4.5 billion years old ^2. {Luna is obsessed with numbers and together we have counted all the way up to decillion with him asking “what are 10 ___?” in order to increase each number by multiplying it by 10, such as, “what are 10 hundred nonillions?” The answer to that last question is one decillion ^3.} Then I explained the miraculous possibility that our own bodies are made of elements that resulted from exploding stars, supernovae ^4, ^5, ^6. We are literally made of stardust! Life on earth as we know it would not be possible without the elements formed deep within stars and from supernovae. 

And, if you noticed what Luna asked, it was “Who made the universe?” and not ‘How was it made?’ The next part of my answer was that many religions believe “God made the Universe.” Luna exclaimed, “God made the universe?!?!?!” He seemed to be happy with this answer, and then added, “I’m God.” To which I said a quote from Simon Amstell’s “Do Nothing,” “I think I’m God a bit.” And then added, “Me too, I’m God.” Which is close enough to part of the truth that I believe that I joined with my little one in the celebration of our souls’ depth.  

So, what is the Star Family anyway?  

As my sister-in-law Kendra pointed out, I greet the Sun as if the Sun were a person. “Hello Sun!” I say. And carry on my greeting and prayer, “Thank you for all you give. Please help me be a good person. Please help me love.” To me, the Sun is The Star, much as Irene Adler is The Woman to Sherlock Holmes ^7, ^8. The Sun is our star. The One Star. It’s beauty is the most divine, peaceful light that is healing and literally nourishing to our bodies. Our One Star gives and supports life on this miraculous planet.  

We are humans, part of the bigger family of beings living on Earth. We are one human family, living on the third planet from Our Star, the one who nourishes and feeds us. Our very bodies are essentially made of stardust and light. We are a miracle. And we are the Star Family! And as Soleil, my lovely 9 year old realized, "Mom, your age is 42. That means you are the answer to 'Life, the Universe, and Everything.'" {Yes! He makes Douglas Adams' references, specifically to the 3rd of his 5 book trilogy, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy!}

So if you haven’t yet, join the Star Family on my homepage by signing up with your email address. And I will send you awesome stuff! Thank you so much for being here! You are a miracle of stardust and light. And I want to sing with you.  

 

References

1.  StarChild Question of the Month for December 2000.  https://starchild.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/StarChild/questions/question55.html

2.  How Old is Earth? https://www.space.com/24854-how-old-is-earth.html

3.  Definition of decillion. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/decillion

4.  Imagine the Universe! The Dispersion of Elements. https://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/educators/lessons/xray_spectra/background-elements.html

5.  How Elements are Formed. https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/1727-how-elements-are-formed

6.  Blow to Supernova Nucleogenesis Theory. https://crev.info/2015/01/blow-to-supernova-nucleogenesis-theory/

7.  Why Can’t Any Recent Sherlock Holmes Adaptation Get Irene Adler Right? https://io9.gizmodo.com/why-cant-any-recent-sherlock-holmes-adaptation-get-iren-5972417

8.  Free PDF and audio reading of “Adventure 1: A Scandal in Bohemia,” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. https://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/32/the-adventures-of-sherlock-holmes/345/adventure-1-a-scandal-in-bohemia/

01/08/2020

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Announcing: eARThSong, an event of human proportion to change everything  

Here it begins! Welcome!! I am so excited you are here. 

This is my blog and I am writing about my real hopes and dreams! I heard that this is one way to help them along.

I want to sing with the world! All the world! And that means I want to sing with YOU. I want to have a whole world celebration where we all sing together. And I believe this is now possible with the internet. At the celebration I want to sing harmonies and songs of love with you. I want to start a broadcast online and hear people singing along out my window! I want for everyone to hear each other the whole world round! I want to hear the voice of humanity singing together. Singing in beautiful melodies and harmonies. And to make this happen, I need YOU to participate!  

This coming spring, 2020, on the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere and, correspondingly, the first day of autumn in the southern hemisphere according to the astronomical start date based on the Earth’s position to the sun, March 19, 2020. So save the date!!  

Join me for this dream to become reality!! Let’s sing and dream together! 

Announcing: eARThSong, an event of human proportion to change everything 

 

Will you sing with me? Please let me know in the comments below!

 

As humanity’s voice  

We sing  

We bring  

The Love  

Humanity’s Voice  

One Voice  

Our Voice

 

For updates on this event and other great stuff, join my Star Family on the Home page. We need your voice and your heart!

Brought to you by RuthButlerMusic.com

 

01/01/2020

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