Stars in the Rafters Julie Vallimont

Hello, everyone. This is just a quick update to say that Stars in the Rafters will be going on pause for a couple weeks while I deal with a situation. Unfortunately my apartment was flooded recently, and I have to relocate on short notice. Once life settles down back to normal and I can set up my home recording studio again, Stars in the Rafters will be back! Take care, everyone. - Julie

This week, we have music from Dave Wiesler, Airdance, Cindy Kallet, and Owen Morrison. Julie reads an excerpt from T.H. White and a poem by Jones Very, and Ben Williams reads a poem by Susan Reid. We’re getting into the heart of winter now, and so I just try to keep moving and keep my momentum up. If we’re outside in the cold we will keep moving to stay warm. I try to keep learning new things, find new ways to connect with people, keep myself inspired. All knowing that someday things will be better, whenever that day comes. And when we don’t have energy, we can ride on the momentum that we had, or the friends around who carry us. Take care, everyone.

This week we have music from Lissa Schneckenburger, Airdance, Nightingale, Alchemy, and Andrew and Noah VanNorstrand. Julie reads poems by Rumi and Susan Reid, and Charis Boke reads a poem by Rumi. This week is Valentine’s Day. It’s an opportunity to be reminded to take a moment to tell the people around us that we love them, whatever our relationship is. This has been a weird year for a lot of our friendships and relationships, as they navigate new circumstances in this pandemic . And yet, I am also immensely grateful for those people in my life who have constantly been there, as constant as the moon. Rumi says: “Love rests on no foundation. It is an endless ocean, with no beginning or end.” You can reach out to me at starsintherafters.com. Take care, everyone.

This week we have music from lydia ievins, Keith Murphy, George Wilson, and Tidal Wave. Margaret Youngberg reads a poem by Thomas Campion, and Julie reads a poem by John Keats and an excerpt from a poem by John O’Donohue. I love the cold clear nights of winter. On a really clear night, it seems like the stars go on forever. Once the sun has gone down, we can finally see the stars which have been waiting patiently, shining constantly this whole time. They are always shining, whether we can see it or not. You can reach us and find our Patreon at starsintherafters.com. Take care, everyone.

In this time of stress and difficulty, sleep can be a restorative place where we can retreat into our inner world, connect with our spirit, and get a brief respite from the cares of the world. Yet a lot of us have found our sleep disrupted this year. And it’s sometimes hard to leave the day’s stresses behind. So this episode is devoted to songs and poems about sleep and nighttime. To that end, we have music from Wild Asparagus, Elixir, Eloise & Co., and Cindy Kallet. Julie reads poems by Sir Charles George Douglas Roberts and Rumi, and Ben Williams reads a poem by John Crowe Ransom. Take care, everyone.

This week, we have music from Jeff Warner, Keith Murphy, Bare Necessities, and Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem. Julie reads poems by Pádraig Ó Tuama and Denise Levertov, and Ben Williams reads a poem by Grace Hazard Conkling. This week it’s the presidential inauguration, and a time of great change in our country. No matter who our elected officials are, we have to keep working to create the society that we want to build, where everyone has freedom and opportunity, where we have strong communities and neighborhoods and families, and where we learn to walk better with the earth. Civil rights icon John Lewis said in 2019, “Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Do not become bitter or hostile. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble. We will find a way to make a way out of no way.” Take care, everyone.