This song was written during a time of isolation and despair which you may well relate to – the world‘s lockdown of 2020. This was a time when we all had to recognize that our planet is not infinite – it’s fragile. This doesn’t seem obvious, however, especially when people still seemed to fight with one another. It seems that rather than getting along and co-surviving on our shared planet we don’t even try to get along.  Compared to the backdrop of the vast darkness of space, we all seem rather puny and vulnerable. That is one sensation that comes about when we experience a worldwide plague.

Our world is so connected. Every single part of the earth reacts with every other part. It is one unit. Every tiny animal is vital to our ecosystem. So, inhabitants of this earth, how do we, or more importantly, how should we react?

In a time of isolation, I relocated to NY with my husband. Just the two of us hunkered down in our house surrounded by a garden, which I soon referred to as “My Sacred Garden” because there I found the spirit of God, alive and thriving in nature – I could feel the spiritual power rising up inside me granting me the hope to survive those difficult times. In that small plot of space, I realized I had the dearest and most important of all things – the love of my life, my husband, and nature. I came to realize so much more about how love keeps us safe and healthy during hard times. Just as I saw my garden flourish, so did my relationship with my husband – it reached full bloom as we savored each moment of our lives. The outside drama was crashing down and even separating so many couples and families and yet my love and I found refuge and spiritual communion in our home for two.

STAY HOME has many meanings to me. Stay, and dare I say linger – safe in your home with your family – that is your loving and caring sanctuary.

STAY HOME- Our planet Earth is your home – be a respectful guest in your temporary home. Respect not only the place but its inhabitants. Treat your passing time here regarding this as your home – tending to it as your loving care increases the beauty of the earth, rather than destroying it. As I penned the words and music to this song, Spring was exerting herself into a frightened and pandemic-riddled world. Despite an alarm to retreat, I could sense the independent and unyielding power of nature.

STAY HOME- Stay, grounded in your inner world – don’t be distracted by this shell surrounding us. Create your own spiritual home governed by peace and serenity. Self-reliance played a big role during that difficult time and confidence sprang out of the knowledge of how to even survive. Through the cancellation of medical appointments, my childhood gift acknowledges of medicinal herbalism sustained me, my husband, and my loved ones. Teas and Tinctures gleaned from my secret garden were the medicine that God provided to ensure that we “stayed” strong.

STAY HOME- Stay grounded in what matters. As a musician, and as a person who values creativity, culture, and the vast number of ways that humans can express themselves, I had held tight to the dream of moving to NYC. Our chance to relocate came just as this thriving city had tightly bolted her doors. My husband drove the car through the heart of the world’s city and the silent weeping of the eerie, empty streets broke my heart. All of man’s power and majestic creations, which had flowed from great minds and impassioned efforts, were now rendered uninhabitable – unusable. In that vacant landscape that my camera was capturing, I was struck by how nothing man makes can ever truly make us happy – no power, no man-made beauty, and no amount of money. Those things that we consider to be foundational, don’t hold up when we must STAY HOME – isolated in the 4 walls of our homes.

And so, in the midst of what should have been a joyous move in the spring of 2020, my husband and I found ourselves sleeping and eating on the floor in a new space in what should have been our dream city. We stayed in our new confinement and we yielded over our dreams of stepping into the vibrancy of this city. Those dreams would have to wait. But we were not entirely alone. There, in that vacant space, was my keyboard. There, in that icy silence, was birthed the haunting melody and heartfelt refrain for my song, “Stay Home”.

May this song serve to bring you back to that moment when perhaps you shared some of these sentiments – that time of uncertainty, fear, and aloneness. May you join me in sanctifying that time as the music and lyrics beckon us to embrace the lesson that invited us to live in a new home – one filled with appreciation only exposed as we witnessed so many losses.

May you enjoy this song as you continue to discover new and lasting ways to continue to value those things of value here on earth. Stay Home!

Christie Kansa