IT’S A NEW DAY, POCKY WAY
“One of the most calming and powerful actions you can do to intervene in a stormy world is to stand up and show your soul. Struggling souls catch light from other souls who are fully lit and willing to show it.”
- Clarissa Pinkola Estes
(Noted American poet, psychoanalyst and post-trauma specialist who grew up as a migrant worker, the child of Mexican mestiza immigrant parents.)
The start of the New Year and the approach of Mardi Gras reminds us that with energy and optimism we each can make the personal and societal changes we seek. In this spirit we reach out to each tradition bearer, every social aid & pleasure club member, every gospel singer, every Mardi Gras Indian, every member of a brass band, a JAZZ, R&B, funk or Cajun group to please allow us to empower you and your household members to meet your goals: Be it losing 9 pounds in 2009, or arranging 9 more gigs, or cutting back your smoking by 9 cigarettes a week. We have set a goal for ourselves of 9 new patients at the NOMC per week, but we can’t achieve this without your participation. All you have to do is call 412-1366 to make an appointment at the New Orleans Musicians’ Clinic (NOMC)!
As passionate fans of New Orleans music and culture, we understand that here “in the fertile crescent of American music” our culture was fertilized with the blood, sweat, and sacrifices of our heroes both sung and unsung; it was seasoned with passion, sorrow and violence; emerging as our world famous culture, our music and our food. Sure, fans all over the world can play the music of our beloved musicians long after they have departed this life, but we at NOMAF and NOMC do what we do, not because we want to insure your legacy, we want to see your smiling face at your gigs!
Just as JAZZ , America’s only indigenous art form, extols equality, innovation, diversity, dedication, collaboration, and community; NOMAF and the NOMC strive to live up to our vision to keep New Orleans music alive by empowering musicians and tradition bearers in mind, body and soul. In a sense we are all building a new “foundation”, restructuring our lives, goals and dreams based not on what has been lost but on what is now possible.
What can the NOMC/NOMAF do to help you create the changes you desire in the first 100 days of YOUR new year?
We would ask each of our dedicated donors to please consider holding an NOMAF/NOMC friendraiser for your friends with the goal of getting 9 new supporters for our mission. NINE new donors who give $100 each would help us fund 1 gig for a brass band. Every note they play will help Keep the Music Alive in 2009!
As the song goes, “It’s a new day! Pocky way”
Lyrics: Modeliste, Neville, Nocentelli, Porter
