As a songwriter, I have one rule: I always say it to the person before I write it in a song. If I feel that I can’t speak some truth to you first, I won’t sing it about you after.

Art imitates life.
Fiction imitates memory.
Avoidance imitates heartbreak.

I suppose if you can’t tell the difference when it matters, the next best thing is a metaphor.

Read the rest of this entry »

Thank you to Providence Health, Robin Henderson and Tyler Norris for inviting me to come tell my story and talk about how the Keep Oregon Well movement came to be at the launch of their new, national Institute for Mental Health and Wellness. It is an honor to be creating this new world with all of you!

And thanks to my advocacy partner / chosen sister Sheila Hamilton for always sitting in the front row when I do this public trauma response routine. You can watch her video of me addressing the crowd here:

And here are a handful of photos from our time in the Bay: