BE STILL NOW

I walked along the western shore
One bright November day
I watched the heron watching me
And thought I heard him say

Just be still now
Wait awhile
And let life come to you
Just be still now
All your dreams
Are on the breezes passing through

I walked along the city streets
And wished that I could fly
I saw the heron by my feet
And thought I heard him say

Just be still now
Wait awhile
And let love come to you
Just be still now
All your dreams
Are on the breezes passing through

Just be still now
Just be still

© Luka Bloom // www.lukabloom.com
(IMRO/MCPS Ireland)

"I reckon it was 2002.
I had been on the road for the bones of 12 years; pretty much non-stop.
Maybe after years of going nowhere, when the road finally opened up, I just couldn’t stop.
Maybe I was afraid that if I stopped it would be gone.
The road is so great. Really great.
The friendships, the gigs , the songs.
Drinking coffee in San Francisco with Paul Scully and friends.
Running into the sea at Bondi in Sydney.
Cycling in Amsterdam.
Meeting old friends everywhere.
And then, singing the songs.
I love it all.
Completely understand why people go on the road and stay there until they keel over and die.
Yep. No issue with that.
Anyway, up to 2002 I was still doing this thing called a European tour.
Slow learner.
I would get on a flight to Holland, and do Holland, Germany, Belgium,
France, Italy, Switzerland, and be gone for months!
Why not just do Holland and Belgium, and go home?
Then do Germany another time.
No. Too easy.
Lets do Europe.
Hilarious. And nuts.
Anyway, at the end of 2002 I came home from a mad tour, to a newish house in Kildare.
Ready for some rest.
After a few days there was a problem with my right wrist. A big problem.
Serious tendonitis.
And over the next while it was clear there was also a problem with my vocal chords.
I was burnt out. It happens.
Too much adrenaline.
Too many gigs.
Too much exhaustion.
Not enough rest. Suddenly life forced me to be quiet.
And still.
It was so hard in the beginning of that stillness.
So vulnerable.
But little by little I just settled into it.
Bought my first nylon string guitar.
Started learning lullabies, to calm my nerves.
Started writing a few.
The softer tones of the nylon string were the opposite of the hard strumming I had been doing for years.
I needed the change.
When you feel vulnerable and lost, it is hard to be still.
But little by little I began to accept the stillness.
And then embrace it. During this time, I went to Eoin O’Toole’s Mill near Naas a lot.
A magical place where I met many great people.
It was here I recorded ‘Before Sleep Comes’, with Mark Gavin.
A very simple cd of lullabies, just guitar and voice.
The song BE STILL NOW was a call to myself, to just literally be still.
And TRUST being still.
It is so hard, when the mind is racing, to trust that there is meaning in the stillness, and that everything will be ok.
This song always is dedicated to the true zen warrior of stillness, the great Donnacha Rynne.
Donnacha teaches me every day about navigating stillness.
He has been doing it for 16 years, with courage and grace.
We are all vulnerable now.
So I sing it for anyone who is struggling with being still.
Writing this song helped me so much.
And singing it reminds me to be grateful for all the gifts of life, including stillness.
I wish everyone peace and love in this time."

Luka Bloom

Filmed by Damian O'Rourke of Cuppa Tea TV