June 7 is World Caring Day. I see it as one day to remind us that we are called to care for each other every day. Like all observances, it’s a way of shining a spotlight on something someone thought warranted the focus. On any of these days, weeks, or months, celebrating or acknowledging one thing doesn’t preclude us from celebrating anything else. So, the strange pearl clutching that goes on for Black History Month Pride Month, Women’s History Month, etc., has always struck me as odd. I’m not Irish, but I enjoy celebrating St. Paddy’s Day with my Irish friends. I’m not Mexican, but I’m married to one, and I love participating in Cinco de Mayo, dia de los Muertos, Las Posadas, and many other Mexican celebrations. Variety and diversity are marvelous things that enrich life so much. I can’t fathom why anyone is bothered by it all. Not into it? Don’t participate. Those of us who choose to don’t care. But we do care when you try to stop us. Why do that?
You can’t care about something you don’t understand or know about. Opening ourselves up to the world around us lifts everyone. In the Big Blend Radio Network podcast family, we love to bring together varying cultures, viewpoints, cuisines, Art, and literature, and highlight different regions of the nation and world. Creators Lisa D Smith and Nancy J Reid have upped their game by building a virtual Big Blend Media House where you can explore all of these things in a fun way. You can find all the podcasts I have participated in over the years there, and SO MUCH more!
In today’s podcast celebrating Pride Month and World Caring Day, Lisa and I invited Grammy® Award Winning singer-songwriter Melissa Manchester and prolific composer, arranger, songwriter, producer and filmmaker Geoff Levin back on the show. These two are shining examples of individuals who consistently care for the world through their art and the way they live their lives. I am so grateful to them for their music and for all I have learned from them.
In a world that is besieged by cults that prey upon the fears, ignorance, and confusion of millions of people, Geoff Levin boldly shares his experience with becoming immersed in the Scientology cult, and escaping its clutches in his moving film, Brothers Broken. The film doubles as a rock documentary, as well. It’s an emotional and musical journey that helps us understand how good, smart people can be channeled into unhealthy institutions that harm them, those they love, and the world around them. The film is now streaming on Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Fandango, Google Play, YouTube, and Vimeo. Please watch the trailer and share it with your circles. Educating ourselves about cults is a powerful way of caring for the world around us.
Both Geoff and Melissa express their care through their music. Geoff and I worked together to get my song, “When It’s Yor Kid” out into the world. The song derives from conversations I’ve had with young people where they express exasperation with the world they are growing into. It’s not just one thing, it’s many. I highlight teen suicide due to homophobia and school shootings in the song, with a closing reference to climate change. I received some criticism that it was too much to tackle at once, but that was my point. Geoff and I also have a song of his in the works that asks listeners to reconsider things they have been taught about spirituality. More on that soon.
Melissa Manchester has a life and career of caring for the world through all that she does, and she has been widely recognized for it. In 2018 she released a powerful ballad called “A Better Rainbow (Paco Silva and Melissa created two videos for the song.)” The song begins with a reference to Judy Garland’s timeless standard, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” Melissa sings “I think about the girl who went to Oz. She didn’t like the world the way it was.” She then sings about our collective task of creating a better rainbow in our world when we don’t like the way it is, and what that can look like. Last June, Bolton Hill and Melissa released a joyful dance remix of the song which preserves the form of the original while making it into a danceable anthem of perseverance. Bolton Hill also brilliantly remixed “You Can’t Hide the Light” and “You Paved the Way” and co-produced “Who Put the Ghosts There.” with its two million plus YouTube Views. The rainbow theme ties nicely into Pride month, and that is something I would like to address. In their ever-present fear and loathing of things that make them uncomfortable, people calling themselves “Christians” take offense to the LGBTQIA+ community symbolizing the marvelous diversity of our community with a rainbow flag. For me, it exemplifies the dance between the ephemeral, physical world and our spiritual call to live in that world the way God would. In my worldview, there isn’t anything God did not create. It’s what we do with it that makes some of it seem “Bad.” Our world and universe are spectacularly diverse, and we can barely scratch the surface of the wonders around us. Celebrating it all seems to be in keeping with the 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “In all things, give thanks.” In the original story of Noah and the Ark (Which is in the Torah, btw,) the rainbow is a promise. We aren’t hijacking anything by embracing a symbol that perfectly demonstrates a complete creation in which all colors, all expressions of humanity, all parts of nature, and all Art, is an extension of God. And God is Love.
Melissa Manchester is in rehearsal for the musical Cagney, the Musical and also has an album in the works with Anne Hampton Calloway. You can catch up with all of it at melissamanchester.com. Geoff Levin is always doing something great, and you can explore that at geofflevin.com. My website is hearjohnny.com. Connect with Bolton Hill on Facebook.
Check out our World Caring Spotify and YouTube playlists, which accompany the podcast. Much love to you.