Holly Near

I admit it. I never had heard of Holly Near until 5 years ago. People who sang in the same women's choir with me talked about her as if she were a rock star. Who?

Why do we kill people who are killing people
To show that killing people is wrong?
What a foolish notion, that war is called devotion
When the greatest warriors
Are the ones who stand for peace

Then I sang her songs. They are the songs that sink into the very marrow of your bones. The words she writes are so real, so true, so powerful, that you cannot help but remember them as you go on with your life. The melodies of the songs she writes are easy, folksy, uplifting or melancholy. Still don't know her? Let me give you a little background.

I ain't afraid of your Yahweh
I ain't afraid of your Allah
I ain't afraid of your Jesus
I'm afraid of what you do in the name of your God
I ain't afraid of your churches
I ain't afraid of your temples
I ain't afraid of your praying
I'm afraid of what you do in the name of your God

Holly Near was a singer and performer from a young age. She grew up with parents who were passionate about their world and their country. Holly had many musical experiences, including a time in "Hair" on Broadway. When she was in her early 20s, she met some of the most well-known political activists and expressed her own anti-war sentiments through her music.

Send in a thousand grandmothers
They will surely volunteer
With their ancient wisdom flowing
They will lend a loving ear

Not only was she singing for peace, but she also sang for equality. Civil rights, women's rights, and gay and lesbian rights were the themes of so many of her pieces. Holly didn't stop at just standing on hilltops, singing the folk songs she created. She became involved, participating in forums, in conferences, marches and protests for so many of those who needed the brave and strong to stand up for them. She has been doing that for over 35 years.

Imagine my surprise!
I love that I have found you
But I ache all over wanting to know your every dream
Imagine my surprise!
To find that I love you
Feeling warm all over knowing that you've been alive

Yet Holly's voice rings out, in a unique way that lets the listener know she loves to entertain and to sing for you. Her face, her hair, her eyes are mesmerizing. You open your heart a little when Holly walks into a room and begins to sing. You know these songs have meaning.

I am open and I am willing
To be hopeless would seem so strange
It dishonors those who go before us
So lift me up to the light of change

Enough? No? Go, look up her up online. Listen to her music. Buy a CD if you can. But know, above all else, that here is a woman of integrity in a time where lesser women are making strides in changing the world. Fall in love a little bit with a woman you may not know. And then go on with the rest of your day, singing about foolish notions, about 1000 grandmothers, and about how you ain't afraid.

My German Phone Call

I had just moved to Germany to work as a teacher for the American Department of Defense schools. My language training had been only in Latin, both in high school and in college, so my knowledge of German was very minimal. I decided right away to take a conversational German class so I would be able to communicate, even just a little, with my neighbors and shopkeepers.
I had one or two classes under my belt. I knew how to say, "Ja,"[Yes], "Sprechen Sie Langsamer, Bitte" [Speak slowly, please], "Wir machen eine pause, bitte", [We are taking a break], "Konnen Sie das bitte wiederholen? " [Can you repeat that please?], "Meine name ist Fraulein Piper" [My name is Miss Piper], "Verstehen Sie Das?" [Do you understand me?] and probably a few other words and phrases. (note: my spelling, translation, and grammar are quite likely not correct, but this is the general idea.)
The phone in my new home rang. Excited, I answered, "Hallo?" and a man began speaking rapidly to me in German. I listened to all the words, and finally, I heard the word, "Name." Recognizing this, I said, in German, "My name is Fraulein Piper" (note: Piper is actually pronounced as "Peeper" in German.) The man repeated my name, I said, "Ja, ja, ja, " along with him and we had a good laugh. I have no idea why, but I was pleased that I was conversing! The mostly one-sided conversation continued, peppered with an occasional "Ja, ja, ja" along with polite laughter.
Finally, I just had to slow him down. So, I asked him to "Sprechen Sie Langsamer" and he said something about "Langsamer?" which I responded with more "Ja, ja, ja" answers. He laughed, I laughed, and on he went. Sometimes he would pause, as if waiting for me to say something, and I would say, "Konnen Sie das bitte wiederholn?" Again, he would repeat it, laughing, and I would sputter out my "Ja, ja, ja." Whenever I would say anything, I would ask him if he understood it, in German, and he would also "Ja, ja" me in return.
At one point, I realized that this was getting me nowhere, so I pulled out my last phrase, which was in German that I needed to take a break now. This was met with dead silence, and then in a low voice, he said, "Pause?" and I again told him yes. After another sentence or two, quieter talking, and more pauses from his end, I heard him say in a sentence the word "Schwanz."
I was familiar with this term, as the German vulgarity for "Penis" had also become an American slang term. All of a sudden I stopped listening to his talking and finally realized that what, indeed, I had been a part of was an obscene phone call. In German. And I was telling him my name, asking him to repeat things and speak slower, lots of "Yes, yes, yes" and finally that I needed to take a break.
Embarrassed, I hung up the phone. My friends call me Fraulein Peeper to this day.