A New Chapter

Like every good book, our lives have many chapters and my book is about to turn a page!

• Doctorate completed [Check]
• Celebrated 10 years of Women in Jazz South Florida, Inc. [Check]
• Completed 4th class of Public Speaking at SEC [Check]

Now is the time for rest, recuperation, and renewal of my Spirit so that I can move forward toward my new goals and aspirations!

My new goals include but are not limited to:

1. Formal graduation exercises on July 8, 2017, in Prescott Valley, Arizona.
2. Teaching two classes (one online and one in the classroom): Business Marketing and Ethics at Keiser University, while continuing to teach Speech in March, July, and November at Southeastern College (SEC) to earn income enough to live well and pay off my nearly $100,000 in student loans acquired since 2011.
3. Traveling to present my lectures on The Best Business Practices for Women Musicians and The Importance of the Messages in Women’s Music.
4. Traveling for pleasure.
5. Engaging with my new love interest (TBA).
6. Celebrating 20 years of FYI Communications, Inc. in September 2017
7. Enjoying my 70th birthday on December 7, 2017.

Other events coming up this year are my father’s 98th birthday on May 7, 2017, and the birthdays of my children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Follow my journey at http://www.drdivajc.com

Talk with Mamayah

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Mama turns all negative activity around. Mama, we, the daughters of Earth, the Sweet Crone Trinity has been inspired in the spirit of compassion for the well-being of our ancient cosmic family to understand why you connected this trio to demonstrate the magic of your power to awaken and protect our universal ancient family.

Empower our ability with the authority of our common purpose. We are one in the best interests of our global family in your essence as ancient of ancients. Mama, please allow this trinity to naturally raise upright our fallen sisters to elevate them to their true celestial level in mind and spiritual substance. ~ The Sweet Crone Trinity – Mamayah El, SiStar Myrah, and Celah Eliana Bey.

Blog: www.divineconnectionchurch.wordpress.com/2016/04/06/the-ninth-call

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Welcome to the Ascension

Today, is the official Ascension into the 5th Dimension of Earthlings in the Aquarian Age that began on December 21, 2013, according to SiStar Myrah, and will last for 2,160 years. Ascension is a shift in consciousness, a raising of all lower bodies – physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual – to full awareness and presence in the NOW. Ascension is the raising of consciousness to a new level of existence, a shift from 3rd dimensional reality to that of the 5th dimension and beyond. [Exit the matrix]

The 12 Stages of Ascension into Your Lightbody

Excerpt from the book In Resonance by Jasmuheen

We are aware that, while the planet is under going a shift to a higher frequency because she is a living moving energy system, all who reside within her energy fields will also experience this realignment.

Consequently, I would like to cover two issues in this article.

First, as Earth undergoes her transformation, what many are experiencing, naturally, is termed the Creation of the Lightbody.  I will outline the different stages we may experience as this occurs and how it manifests in our personal energy fields as bouts of flu, headaches, and other symptoms.

Second, many are enthusiastic and joyous at these changes. I will cover practical things that we can do to build and increase the Light quotient in our own bodies.

Tuning ourselves to the higher octaves of Light and changing our vibrational frequency has been explored extensively in previous chapters, which I will summarize and add a few additional techniques to accelerate this process. The process of transition into Light is a gradual one. We are not matter one day and pure Light the next. Our energy fields are infused with and realigned to Light, gradually, or else we would experience electrical ‘burn out’.

In the text Revelations from an Archangel – Ascension to the 12th Dimension, Archangel Ariel stated that the entire crystalline structure of matter was activated to 3rd level Lightbody, for all planetary inhabitants, in April 1989. Creation of the Lightbody is due to the planet’s current transition process and is not an optional experience or process. Beings not wishing to be part of this process at this time will choose death by accident, natural disaster, or decay and disease. As mentioned previously, it is foretold that they will continue their cycle of evolution on another planet of frequency comparable to their own frequency. There is no judgment. It is just the changing nature of energy.

According to Ariel, the Lightbody is gradually created through the transmutation of our current physical body as it mutates and absorbs more Light. Again, this is interconnected with the realignment of our energy fields to higher frequencies and higher octaves of Light and the following information describes the actual physical process and common symptoms as this change occurs. We are all evolving and absorbing Light at our own pace. Some are consciously working with these changes, so their transmutation is quicker. Others are unaware and are absorbing this Light and change in direct relation to planetary change.  However, one can classify this creation in 12 levels:

1. First level – When the body drops density it displays mutational symptoms of flu, headaches, diarrhea, rashes, or muscle and joint aches. Most flu epidemics are actually Light epidemics! Brain chemistry changes mean that right and left brain functions blend and the pituitary and pineal glands begin to change in size. The DNA structure and chemical components begin to change and pick up extra hydrogen atoms and chemicals that the cells need to take undifferentiated higher Light and break it down into useable Light codes for the DNA.
2. Second level – The etheric blueprint floods with light and releases karmic experiences. Individuals may feel disoriented and experience of bouts of flu.  Many may ask the question “Why am I here?” Light in the etheric blueprint releases 4th dimensional structure and causes spins in the geometries of the emotional, mental, and spiritual bodies.  Change is rapid and many will feel tired.
3. Third level – Physical senses become much stronger. Your body not only absorbs Light for its own change but also acts as a transducer – a decoder of higher light energies to the planet as a whole. The process of the in-breath is now irreversible, like an elastic band stretched to maximum capacity and let go of to return to its natural state.
4. Fourth level – Major changes are in the brain, its chemistry, and electromagnetic energies, resulting in symptoms like headaches, blurry vision, loss of hearing, and chest pains. Crystal regulators in the etheric body keep lines of light within the 5th dimensional blueprint from connecting again, until you are ready. Chest pains are due to the expanding energies of the heart as it opens to deeper levels. Vision and hearing are realigned to function differently. The mental body wonders if it is really in charge and individuals get strong, inexplicable, and undeniable urges to follow spirit without hesitation. Individuals may get flashes of telepathy, clairvoyance, and automatic writing, and nearly all begin to experience empathy, [the ability to understand and share the feelings of another]. This is a time of feeling, honoring, and accepting, by validating the emotional body and learning to control it.
5. Fifth level – The mental body decides to tune into spirit. Dreams change and may become more lucid. You get feelings of deja vu. Thought processes become non-linear.  Beings oscillate between knowing and doubting. They become more prone to knowing answers to questions about “Who am I?” We all realize the habitual nature of thinking and behavior, and look at deprogramming and reprogramming to create the “I” we wish to be, not the “I” we thought we were from our interaction with parents, peers, and society. Change is constant and we discern, consciously, from our heart rather than judge from conditioned responses.
6. Sixth level – We draw to us others for mutual support and stimulation of growth.  We question what is real, our mental process, and how we identify with others. Our selves change, rapidly. Re-evaluation may be uncomfortable but we feel it must be done. We look at our relationships, jobs, home, environment, and lifestyles, with an understanding of letting go and moving on. We change our friends. Everything feels to be in a state of flux but we feel lighter, vaster, and freer, somehow.  By this stage, the Light quotient in our being is 33%. We feel as though our inner senses are opening up and clairvoyance and clairaudience seem normal and natural to us.
7. Seventh level – The heart chakra opens more and we become more ‘real’ with our emotions. We just have to be ourselves! We release blocks and old patterns. It is a time of great emotional clearing and great intensity as we rid ourselves of emotional baggage. We feel in tune with each moment, feeling very present, and flowing with life. Often, old relationships end or change, rapidly, as Earthlings dig deep and honor their feelings. There is no room for denial on any level. We lose emotional attachment to others. Chest pains (angina, discomfort caused when your heart muscle does not get enough oxygen-rich blood) are more common as the heart continues to open its energy fields. Doing the unified chakra meditation will assist in the heart opening. Fear is released as the energy fields of all the bodies are realigned through the heart and, when aligned, fear drops away. Pressure at the forehead, back or the whole head is due to the opening of the pituitary and pineal glands as they absorb more light, when these glands are fully open, activated and functioning at the highest level, aging and death cease. When the pineal gland is fully open, we experience multi-dimensionality. Yet, duality seems to increase as we leave it behind. Some days, we feel connected and joyous. Other days, we are in fear and caught up in survival issues. Many wish to ascend and leave the planet as they sense the very real possibility of ascension, through their deepening connection with spirit. As we learn to follow our joy, we may then want to ‘save the planet’ and have everyone follow their joy. ALL are stages of progression and reflect our changing perception.  Dietary wise, you feel to eat less, lighter, and live food. Many at this stage have ceased imbibing meat, sugar, and alcohol as they feel the effects of these substances on the vibrational fields of the body. 
8. Eighth level – We see the Master in all and purely wish to be of service. We leave the ‘saving and rescuing’ mode behind in favor of the desire to serve Divine Will. The pineal and pituitary glands change shape. If headaches persist, ask the Beings who are working with you to simply ‘tone it down’ for they don’t feel pain. Ask them to release endorphins, the brains natural opiate. The brain is being activated – particularly the cerebrum, the ‘sleeping giant’.  Cranial expansion is common. When triangular seed crystals in the brow and recorder crystals in the right side of the brain are activated, along with the 8^th, 9^th, and 10^th chakras, we begin to be hooked into the languages of Light.

Symbols of the Language of Light

#1 – FORGIVENESS – Pink – Nature: Active Forgiveness is the basis of all unity in that all is allowed; yet all is healed. In using the vibration of forgiveness, nothing sticks, and therefore all karma is released. As forgiveness is made a part of the aura, all interactions become a blessing. Forgiveness made manifest is the thousand-petal lotus in the heart of the Bodhisattva that projects joy and compassion upon all.

#2 – STRUCTURE – Lavender – Nature: Passive Structure is the formation vibration which, when applied, holds the space for layering other vibrations together for the completion or creation of a thought regardless of the creational level. Much as a cup contains or holds the space for a potential mixing or blending in third dimension, structure provides a similar function in the energetic realms. Another way of perceiving structure is as a template or grid work through which other vibrations may be woven. Yet another function of structure is to provide a pathway for

The pituitary and pineal glands are opened fully and work together to create the Arc of the Covenant, a rainbow light that arcs over the top of the head to the third eye that is a decoding mechanism for higher dimensional language. You may find it hard to find words to express yourself as you may think in geometries and tones. If confused, do the unified chakra meditation and ask for messages to be decoded and translated. Again, you become so much more aware of the vastness and multi-dimensionality of your nature that you can be anything that you want to be. You cease to operate from obligation and relationships and become transpersonal. You share words from your heart and soul and others may feel disorientated, when dealing with you, as they no longer have ‘hooks’ into you to link with. You operate from a deep level of serenity with heightened sensitivity and awareness. Yet, you feel grounded and transformed. By this stage, it is possible to be sustained purely by Light and prana, to take no nourishment from the atmospheric realms and to be healthily sustained by the ether.

9. Ninth level – Decoding geometries and toning is easier. Spirit is using the languages of light which shift the 6th dimensional blueprint into a new template for your 5th dimensional Lightbody. Your body may change shape as the energy field’s shift.  You feel interconnected to all Beings everywhere and less connected to the opinions of others. You release the desire for and the energy to sustain the ‘game of separation and limitation’ and feel truly free. The 9^th level sees a mass descension of the Lightbody into physical form. As with the 3^rd and 6^th levels, this level sees a strong re-evaluation as we begin the final surrender to Spirit and truly become the Divine instrument. Here, Spirit determines our income, our work, other beings in our lives, virtually, everything about us and our lifestyle.  This is the dissolution of the ego-self and, while ecstatic, it can be most painful.  Making the leap can be fearful, even though we have evolved through eons of time to reach this point. We may go back and forth, clinging to old comfort zones, before completely letting go. There is no turning back and all must be released. At this 9^th level, we experience surrender, then, ecstasy. Letting go of the “I” means we realize that, while free will is real, it is also an illusion as it is only there to guide us and to empower us to be One with Spirit. Survival fears leave as we focus on the Now, at-one-ment.  Though fears may surface, they seem unreal and are easily put aside. We tend to disconnect from consensus reality and our choices and reality seem unreal to others. From the 7^th, 8^th, and 9^th levels, the inner light radiates out noticeably and you feel unbelievably grounded, connected, centered, filled with purpose, and desiring only to serve.

Good grounding surfaces include:

• Sand (beach)
• Grass (preferably moist)
• Bare soil
• Concrete and brick (as long as it’s not painted or sealed)
• Ceramic tile

The following surfaces will NOT ground you:

• Asphalt
• Wood
• Rubber and plastic
• Vinyl •Tar or tarmac

For a while, you may slip between the 8^th and 9^th levels from feeling complete at-one-ment to being ‘a limited human being’ again. This fluctuation settles down by the end of the 9^th level. Then, you will feel connected, continually, and operate from your Christ level. Your intention and motivation is always for the highest, although others, due to their own inner triggers and issues, may not always choose to see that. The 9^th level is where we begin to hook up to our Mighty I AM Presence. The last three levels unify all energy fields. All chakras are unified and you become totally connected to your Mighty I AM Presence.

10. Tenth level – You are one with Source consciousness and know all is possible. Your DNA is no longer 2-strand but 12-strand and teleportation and manifestation are instantaneous. This exercise will change your DNA:

Ho’oponopono is the Hawaiian Code of Forgiveness that follows four simple mantras created by Morrnah Nalamaku Simeona, a Hawaiian Kahuna Lapa’au :

1. I love you.
2. I’m sorry.
3. Please forgive me.
4. Thank you.

Your Merkabah (Lightbody) has been built and allows you to pass through space, time, and dimensions complete in your totality. It has its own consciousness directed by you.

11. Eleventh level – All levels of the lightbody have been constructed and activated, and are connected to your physical body via spin points.
    1. Axial Circulatory System is 5th dimensional and is within the body, connecting to every Spin Point in every cell and on the body’s surface. This is the model for physical transmutation. The energy that it pulses is like the blood circulatory system but is basically electrical like the nervous system. It draws energy from the Oversoul through surface Spin Points, combining color and sound to realign the blood, lymph, hormonal, and neural systems into the Divine Being. The axial system shifts the body’s pain, sending apparatus so that the mutation can be experienced with Joy as it accelerates the molecular spin of the cells to create or generate a grid work for renewed evolution in humankind.
    2. Axiatonal Lines – The axiatonal lines lie along and connect into the acupuncture meridians by means of the Spin Points, which also connect to the axial circulatory system. The axiatonal lines are the equivalent of acupuncture meridians and connect with the Oversoul and resonant star system. The separation game, as it is called, took place when the acupuncture meridians were cut off from direct connection with the Oversoul and other star populations. This separation is what created brain atrophy, aging, and death that we humans constantly think about and experience. It is through these lines that a human body is directly reprogrammed by the Oversoul into a new body of Light. The axiatonal lines exist independently of any physical body or biological form and emanate from various star systems and are the means by which the galactic body controls its renewing mechanisms. The lines are made up of light and sound.  It is necessary to reconstruct the axiatonal meridians in the human body to allow the Oversoul to transmit the appropriate color and tone frequencies to regenerate the physical body into a Lightbody.
    3. Grid Lines – The axiatonal lines intersect Universal waves, forms, and grids. So, in Higher Light Integrations, we lay grid works from chakras into various Spin Points on the body, thus connecting chakra grids into the axiatonal and axial systems. By connecting chakra grids into the axiatonal lines, the chakras are hooked up into a high evolutionary resonance grid and wave motion. This assists the chakras, as well as the emotional, mental, and spiritual bodies to merge into one unified energy grid, which receives the Oversoul bodies and moves in synchronicity with the Universal waves and pulses of energy through the Spin Points into the axial circulatory system, thereby recalibrating the pulse and flow of the body fluids. When this happens, the whole new grid work transmits the waves and pulses of energy through the Spin Points into the axial circulatory system, recalibrating the pulse and flow of the body fluids.

    These light matrices lie along the physical acupuncture meridians and are lines of light intersecting in beautiful geometries, in a new 5^th dimensional circulatory system of Light. Subsequently, cellular regeneration has been accomplished. Time is no longer linear but simultaneous – past, present and future co-exist – all exist in parallels. There is no separation and you will manifest fully your vision of Heaven on Earth and express the ecstasy of Spirit. In this ‘frame’ of conscious awareness, many now access and create new types of Light-based technologies, new community living, new systems of government, and equitable food and resource distribution systems. All have received specialist training and skills to help create and manifest the Golden Age in the New World.

12. Twelfth level – The continuation of the Creation and implementation of New World systems connecting with other 12^th level initiates, who bring into existence new governments, new financial and educational systems, and a better system of food and resource allocation. All Beings will be redefined in the final stages of Earth’s ascension, so that all may exist in joy, equality, and harmony. By this time the planet and her inhabitants will have been ‘rewoven’ into Light to shine in their full glory as the final stages of this Divine Plan unfolds. The planet goes to Light, shifts out of this dimension, and is brought into a multi-star system, where everyone is a lightbody and follows Spirit in total Mastery.

[Source of this article]

The Vision Alignment Project: A Vision for the Golden Rule, a new vision from Isabel Foltin for the alignment of children and adults into a world of true compassion.

I visualize the Golden Rule being properly and carefully taught in all schools all around the world. It is the mission statement of all the schools everywhere. As the Golden Rule is taught and properly explained and understood, the children of the world are touched by it, they live by it, thus making them more compassionate and understanding not only of others but of themselves as well. This generates a cycle of continued growth, expansion and well being for all and as the cycle grows, the vibrations of everyone are increased. This increased intensity in vibrations, releases the light within each one of us, allowing all to live in harmony, love and camaraderie. Life becomes Light once again!
In Love and Light,
Isabel Foltin

 

Age of Aquarius

According to Celah Eliana Bey’s post, “There will be no leaders, gods, or deities in the Age of Aquarius.”

You need to be fully aware of the duality and polarity that you are steeped in, dear ones. Understand that there will be no leaders or gods or deities of the Age of Aquarius, for this age is about oneness, not hierarchical systems and Pyramid schemes. It is about full equality and unconditional love.

The dark is still trying to control this new era with their layer upon layer upon layer of deception, false flag operations, mind control, and programming operations. They have even bought those who were once working for the light with wonderful gifts, such as bestselling books on the New York Times bestseller list and huge web presence, including alternative news networks that shout and scream about conspiracy theories and those dastardly dark ones in charge who plan to disarm you and send you to internment camps. They show you all of their symbols and secrets in order to expose the dark and warn you about how powerful they are.

The truth is, the dark does not care whether their games (New Age or Conspiracy Theory) raise or lower your vibration. They just want your full attention. They want to occupy your mind. For, if they occupy your mind, you will never find your heart and true soul power.

SiStah Myrah said it is now time for us to go within our own Spirit. Going to people outside of ourselves is becoming obsolete in the Age of Aquarius, which will last throughout this new millennium and into the next.

Mamayah El remembers what SiStah Myrah told her in an astrological reading, that it is up to me to focus on what it is I want to manifest for myself in the future. “No more looking outside of yourself. You’ve got to look internally. Spiritual language is symbolic. Only your Spirit can guide you,” according to SiStah Myrah. There is too much clutter in the airwaves and we are challenged with listening to our Spirit and adapt to an opposite reality.

It is up to us to encourage others to “Walk in your knowing!”  SiStar Myrah discussed the signs of Leo that says, “I create” and Aquarius that says, “I know!” Together you have the proclamation, “I know I create.”

Like in the movie “The Matrix” (Parts I and II), most people are still plugged into the system and cannot unplug from the program of Christianity and other programs that promote self-doubt and insecurity. Most of these programs proliferate the emotions of doubt and fear. Intimidation reigns supreme among so-called leaders that the masses cannot wrestled their personal power away from. Therefore, focusing on your internal power is the only way to communicate with the subconscious mind, the hidden power, Mama’s domain – what’s most hidden – the hidden kingdom balanced with the visible kingdom. SiStar Myrah said we must balance the opposites in order to become whole.

Spirit is spiral. What goes around comes around. But Spirit moves inside out not outside in. Our true value is determined by the balancing of the internal feminine elements of water and earth with the external masculine elements of fire and air.

So, the Zodiac signs work in pairs:

• Aries – Libra
• Taurus – Scorpio
• Gemini – Sagittarius
• Leo – Aquarius
• Cancer – Capricorn
• Virgo – Pisces

Therefore, on Sunday, March 20, 2016, our Sun will move into Aries, fully into the Aquarium Age, wherein we will begin to manifest everything we think, say, and do, in Fifth-dimensional speed. We remain in our third-dimensional bodies, but our thoughts and words catapult us into fifth-dimensional reality.

Celah Eliana Bey asked, how long will the age last?

SiStar Myrah said we entered the Aquarian Age on December 21, 2013. The age will last 2,160 years. Aquarius is the sign of evolution -the cross of crucifixion – an infinite process of transformation, referred to in Ezekiel about the four faces of the cherubim. [Ezekiel 10:14]

So, our statement should be that we are returning to the internal domain, to Black Mama’s Magic, who is the matriarch that we are spiraling back to in a new cycle at a higher level – the point of evolution in the Aquarian Age. The individual aspect of the star is just a twinkle, which is just as important as the full shine of the star. Without that contribution it is not whole and complete.

One heart, one mind, one spirit. One in all and all in one.

As we each awaken and refocus our energy and vibration away from the illusion, we are returning to the original idea of pooling our personal power for the good of all.

We are approaching the reward we have been awaiting, once the negative energy is balanced with the positive energy. We are at the crossroads, the Jubilee!

Walk in the knowing of your power means to act like you know you know this power that is blossoming within you. If you send it out at 20%, you’ll draw it back at 20%. If you send it out at 80%, you’ll draw it back at 80%.

Mama Magic is beyond our comprehension. You must embrace this energy with faith that Mama Soul will bring us the magic of the ancestors balanced with Father Spirit to generate the power. All four of the elements are harmonizing equally to open the vortex for us to evolve.

 

 

 

I love you!

 From GaiaMind Poems

By

Joan Cartwright

Refreshing My Spirit

Sometimes, opportunities lead to extremely debilitating circumstances that call for a complete overhaul of the Spirit.  My one-month performance on a cruise ship turned out to be exactly that situation. Aside from making far less money than I consider myself to be worthy of, the accommodations on Deck 1 of a 17-Deck ship proved to be less than I am ever able to accept for myself in the future. “What’s the lesson?” asked my dear friend Aman.  Well, there were many.

First, knowing my worth is first and foremost the most important lesson I can ever learn. Entertaining hundreds of people is my forte. Knowing what I should be compensated to do this is of paramount importance. Then, choosing the right musicians to accompany me is next on the list. When you are confined to a band that doesn’t know your repertoire, this can be HELL for a professional vocalist and that was my experience on this gig. Too many musicians call themselves Jazz musicians without knowing the vocal Jazz repertoire.

Here’s mine: www.fyicomminc.com/Jazzquest/divajcrepertoire.htm. Certainly, from over 250 songs, a true Jazz musician would know 50 of these songs. However, on this journey, that was not the case. So, this gig was like pulling a train without an engine. Each of the 24 nights we performed, I resorted to singing the Blues in Bb, just so I knew the musicians would know the song. A few times, I had to stop them from starting the song in the wrong tempo. My question is: “If you don’t know the tempo I want to sing in, why start the song without my count?”

Second, where you are living and how you are living dictates how well you feel when you perform. This is standard for any vocalist. You must be clean, warm, and comfortable. All three of these elements were lacking on this cruise. The crew cabins are not well-kept, so I felt very uncomfortable. Also, the second one they moved me to (to get me off the top bunk, where I cried to climb up into most mornings at 2:00 a.m., as my 26-year-old roommate slept, curtains drawn) had a faulty temperature gauge to the point that I caught a horrible cold, being chilly for four days. I finally called maintenance and an engineer came and closed the vent that was wide open.

Third, my left foot was swelling, continually, until I got my water pills mailed to me by my daughter to my friend in Fort Lauderdale, where we docked every Sunday. It was so painful and I was the only one standing on stage and in the club. Painful. Uncomfortable. Miserable. Eventually, I figured out that the salt in the foot had a lot to do with my feet swelling.

I bought two pair of shoes, one Sunday, at Famous Footwear in Hollywood, FL, that never fit. They were Italian-made but didn’t coincide with American sizes. Just pitiful. I returned them, when I got off the ship for good and the cashier wanted to argue with me about not bringing the boxes back, which I had never taken from the store. “We always explain that we will not refund your money, if you don’t return the boxes,” she said snottily.  “Well, WE never told ME that, when I said I didn’t want to take the boxes,” I responded. “Well, the next time you may not get a refund, if you don’t return the box.” Needless to say, there will NOT be a next time for me to shop at that store. Customer service is a thing of the past. I wonder if she knows that I could start a Facebook campaign to shut her out of a job?

Fourth, after one week, the food started tasting the same – tasteless. The fatigue of the crew that works seven days a week, 10 hours a day was in the food. Extremely uncomfortable. Eating in the crew mess hall became more interesting than in the guest buffet, where the young waiters walked around from table to table producing obvious false smiles, apparent to me and the band members, during the third and fourth week.

The upside of this journey is that I managed to WOW my audiences, night after night. At 66, any singer is happy to hear that she or he is appreciated. “OH, Baby,” got me over ever time! That’s a hook I developed at O’Hara’s Pub in Fort Lauderdale, in 1988, that has carried me along for 26 years. “OH, Baby,” exclaimed cruise guests, as they passed me on deck or in the elevator. A memorable line that brings a smile to the faces of those who watch me perform.

I would love to say getting off the ship in St. Thomas, St. Maarten, Labadee, and Cozumel was interesting but because of the intense tourist shopping scenarios, I did not enjoy those places very much. In Falmouth, a friend picked the four of us band members up and drove us to Montego Bay. That was the most fun I had off ship.

St. Thomas, Virgin Islands

Falmouth, Jamaica

Montego Bay, Jamaica

On ship, I slept most of the mornings on Deck 17 in the lounge, simply because it was sunny and quiet. In my room, you couldn’t tell if it was night or day. Plus, the air conditioning kept my nose stopped up. So, I got up, during the first week as early as 6:30 a.m. and went up to Deck 17. The following three weeks, I rose around 9:00 a.m. and went up to Deck 16 for breakfast, then into the lounge for a nap. There was little else to do because the Internet was too expensive ($30-35 for a 24-hour period) and too slow to be bothered with.

In port, on Sundays, in Fort Lauderdale, we all had to disembark, meaning that as guest crew, we had to go through customs with the other 4,000 – 6,000 guests. Most harrowing experience I can remember. Just like being in a cattle call. So uncomfortable. One Sunday, our drummer had to do this twice because the port manager gave him the wrong ID card, getting back on the first time! Ugh! Painful. Repeat!

Did I mention that the piano player (60) fell asleep at the piano? Now, this was truly a first for me. I was mortified. I just called his name loudly until he was revived. “I could not be playing and asleep,” he insisted. “Yeah, right,” I  maintained. “Yeah, right!” Luckily, he didn’t snore.

We performed on the Promenade Deck 6 twice a week for one hour.

At Jazz on 4, we preformed from 9:30 pm to 12:30 a.m. six nights a week.

So, in conclusion, what I learned is that “All that glitters is not gold!” These cruise gigs may seem like a dream to most but, if it were not for the spa, where I enjoyed the steam room and large shower and the audiences that showed great approval of the music I brought them, I would have chalked this month up as the worst ever spent in my career.

I learned that only I know my true worth and that it is my responsibility to demand what I need as far as payment and accommodations BEFORE I sign a contract and hire musicians. And I must be sure that the musicians I hire are up to the job, meaning that they know the music I perform.

Now, after one week of being off the ship, I am in Spirit Overhaul Mode. Sleeping in my own bed is very healing. Eating my own cooking, and being in my own space is rehabilitating. I will think very carefully before I accept any future contracts that take me out of my comfort zone. If the Creator wants me to perform for multitudes, I must insure that I am duly compensated and comfortably accommodated. This is what I learned!

P.S. I did meet some wonderful people and for this I am ever grateful!

Zoila, Lilliana, and Vanessa from Mexico City

Kiki & Jeff from CT

Vicky and Nancy Chaloff from Florida

One of the “Oh, Baby” crews in Jamaica.

Ladies from Indiana in Jamaica

More audience members in Jamaica

Carl and Victoria Branker, publisher of Treasures of the Heart Magazine from Pembroke Pines, FL. Here, they are at Juici Patties in Falmouth, Jamaica. We became fast friends. “Oh, Baby!”

So, all’s well that ends well. Home safe and comfy, never to leave again without sufficient remuneration and accommodations and that is a promise to myself! My Spirit is, again, on the rise.

This video is about sleep deprivation:

[youtube:youtu.be/LWULB9Aoopc]

DEO

Dream – Keep your dream close to your heart and your mind will know the answer. While your soul plays the chords, your imagination can be the dancer! ~ Diva JC

Since 1983, I’ve been building dream boards with destinations I wanted to visit.  I began touring Europe in 1990 and visited most countries on my board except Ireland, Scotland, Egypt and India.

Presently, my dream is to develop multiple streams of income with rapid flow as I complete my PhD in Business Marketing, build my www.fyitravel.biz and continue to recruit members into www.wijsf.org to promote women musicians, globally.  My goal is to find like minded people, who are interested in fulfilling their dreams and willing to do what it takes to do that.

Education – Now, in my fifth year of doctoral studies at Northcentral University, I see the light at the end of the tunnel. My projected completion date is January 2016. The next step is to travel to Fiuggi, Italy, where I will do research at Fondazione Adkins-Chiti: Donne in Musica on the economic status of women musicians.

Opportunity – There are several streams of income I have at my disposal including:

• Music performance
• Book sales and Lecturing
• Writing, Editing, and Publishing music and books (mine and others)
• WIJSF (memberships, CDs)
• YTB Travel – www.fyitravel.us (booking) www.fyitravel.biz (recruiting)
• Miche Purses – www.divajc.miche.com

The object is to get ALL of these opportunities flowing rapidly!

 

 

 

My 2-Year Plan 2014-2016

In life, as a Co-Creator with the Universe, I must have vision and a plan. In 1981, I finished my B.A. in Music and Communications and moved from Philly back to my hometown, New York City. There, I worked as a keypunch operator at a computer school on Columbus Circle with Quincy Jones’ first wife, Jerry Jones. I learned Lanier word processing from a wonderful friend Patricia and worked as a temp for Ernst & Whinney at the Citicorp Building on the 53rd floor. This enabled me to increase my earning capacity from $8 to $14 an hour. Eventually, I was making $25 an hour, working 6 hours a night for a very prestigious law firm that sent me home in a limo, every evening after work!

Often, I walked from 53rd and Lexington to 60th and Madison, stopping at travel agencies, collecting travel guides that I would use to create a DREAM BOARD in my home office on 139th Street and 7th Avenue, in Harlem. Eventually, I visited most of the countries on that board. That plan came to fruition in 1990, when I began touring Europe as a jazz vocalist.

Also, I embraced my musical career by performing with Artie Simmons and The Jazz Samaritans that included George Cables on piano and Cindy Blackman on drums. When singing in Central Park and in front of the Plaza Hotel became too much for my vocal chords, I booked my band Joan Cartwright & Jazz Hotline at the Blue Note and at Freddy’s. I had begun attending Barry Harris’ piano and vocal workshops, while I lived in Philly, and continued until I moved to Fort Lauderdale, in July 1984.

My career really took off in South Florida, where I was a big fish in a very little pond on the Jazz Scene. By 1990, I was on my way to Europe – Holland, France, Switzerland, Spain, Germany, England, Austria, and Italy – where I sang and made a really good living. In April 1994, when I completed my Master’s in Communication at Florida Atlantic University, in Boca Raton, FL, I moved to Switzerland, where I lived until September 1996.

My first European contract was for $6,000 for the month of November at the Janus Club at the gorgeous Beau Rivage Palace in Lausanne, Switzerland, where Diana Ross got married. This contract was negotiated by my dear friend Cecile Weltman, a Belgique woman, who spoke five languages. There, I met my life-long friend Isabella Romeo, who took me to Taormina, Sicily, where I’ve been 7 times and look forward to revisiting with a travel group in 2015-16.

Isabella Romeo was the hostess and Angelo Unia was my accompaniest

My first trip to Brienz, Switzerland, was magical! In 2015, through my new travel biz, FYI TRAVEL, I plan to take a group to the Seehotel Baren, owned by my dear friend Monique Werro.

This club was in Hamburg, Germany, owned by an elderly American gentleman, who asked me to take it over, when he passed away. However, it is just tooo cold in Hamburg for me

This is my Sicilian quartet led by Giovanni Mazzarino, who co-produced my first CD – Feelin’ Good. Here, we are in Lipari, one of the Aeolian Islands, off the northwest shore of Sicily

Giovanni worked with me at the Montreux Palace in Switzerland for one month. We met at the San Vito lo Capo Jazz Festival and toured together for four years in Italy

I was a featured artist on a Jazz fest in Reggio Calabria with talented bassist Dario Dieda from Salerno, Italy

This was my band Jazz Hotline. We recorded my first demo tape in 1990 at Philip Michael Thomas’ Miamiway Studio. The three songs are on my second CD – In Pursuit of a Melody

After touring Europe, I moved back to Fort Lauderdale, and semi-retired for one year, until the owners of Ellington’s in Hollywood, FL, hired my band to perform on the weekends. From August 1997 to March 1998, I organized Gaiafest, A Celebration of Mother Earth with Women in Jazz, honoring vocalist Dakota Staton, and featuring fabulous and Amazing Musicwomen.

From 2001 to 2002, I owned Motherland Bridge Gallery, where I featured several local artists and sold batiks and Shona sculpture that I acquired on trips to Johannesburg, Ghana, and The Gambia. That lasted for 18 months, until July 2003, when my daughter packed me up and moved me to Atlanta, where I helped run her business Caustic Entertainment Group, continued my work as a website designer, and wrote my first of 11 books, a memoir In Pursuit of a Melody. While awaiting my copies of the book to be delivered, I was contracted to perform at CJW Club in Shanghai, China, for three months (May-July 2006), thanks to my friend and colleague Sandra Kaye.

In 2002, I joined a press tour to Brazil for nine days and had the time of my life! That was in May, and in June, I traveled from Milan to Palermo, Sicily, and back with my best friend Bess Covington, in an Alfa Romeo, as Divas on Wheels!

Nothing was more fun that touring Italy with Bess! We celebrated 33 years of friendship with 33 days in Italia!

From July 2003 to May 2006, I lived in Atlanta, where I renovated Caustic Studio, where we recorded my song Talkin’ That Jazz.

[blip.tv http://blip.tv/play/AYKv7F0C?p=1 width=”550″ height=”443″]

Now, in 2014, I am realizing my 2-year Plan: To complete my PhD in Business Marketing – www.drdivajc.com and become a Director at YTB TRAVEL and travel everywhere on my bucket list. Visit my Travel Club blog and join my team at www.fyitravelclub.wordpress.com

JOIN MY TRAVEL CLUB

JOIN MY TRAVEL TEAM

 

I walked and wept

I walked and wept

By Joan Cartwright

Today, I walked and wept

I asked the trees why am I unhappy

I asked the angels to surround me

Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Ariel

Aniel, Zadkiel, and all my guardians

I asked them to protect me

I asked the sky, the clouds

Why the tears are flooding my eyes

I asked the ground on which I walked

Why my heart felt so despised

I wondered why I felt despair

Since blessings I saw everywhere

There, across the lake, I live

A pleasant place with peace to give

But, still I felt as if I knew

With all I have some more was due

Oh, why, I asked am I so blue?

And why should I stop crying, Who

Could see me cry and pass on by

As if my tears meant nothing, Why

Could no one see that I was sad

That I was feeling really bad?

Bikers passed and waved as if

They didn’t care. I wondered if

I was a fool to be so blue

I wondered if my mood was true

I asked the birds, the butterfly

If my poor heart is open why

All I felt was the need to cry

And then, as I stood by the shore

Gazing on a sycamore

The answer came as teardrops poured

Down from my eyes, I saw, I saw

That I was feeling all the pain from

Knowing folks who gave their all

And, even though they stood so tall

Their withered lives most don’t recall

I cried for Billie who died a junky

I cried for Bird whom drugs had killed

I wept for Ella whose eyes were dim

When I was blessed to be in her midst

I wept for Betty whose “manager”

Stole her savings to buy a jet

That crashed, alas, all was misspent

I cried for Freddie whose lip did swell

From smoking crack as he did tell

Me of the horror he saw in Russia

Or was it just a doped up dream?

I wept for Miles who on his break

Outside the Vanguard (not the Gate)

Was beaten by an ig’nant cop

Who had no clue about Bebop

I cried for Clark whose back was sick

From flying cross the pond too much

I cried for Gloria Lynne, the Voice

Whose body made another choice

I wept for Etta, obese, until the day

She slimmed down to become Beyoncé

And both of them, who turned to blonde

To forsake all the Black they’d known

I cried for Whitney, who had it all

Who was a star that slipped to fall

Down from her thrown, as Michael did

I cried for them and God forbid

I kept on counting all the lives

That brought us music and then died

Where’s Donna Summer? Where’s Jimi?

Where’s Judy Garland and Janice Joplin?

Where’s Bessie Smith and Ray Charles?

Where’s Dinah? Where is Phoebe Snow?

Where are they, now?

Why have they flown?

I cried for those

Whose songs I’ve known

Whose lives had blessed the multitudes

I wept for them in my solitude.

On my solitary walk, today,

I cried for saints who went away.

©2013 Joan Cartwright

Tornado Blues

Hundreds of homeless are in shock from the barrage of tornadoes that rained on Central Illinois. This news prompted me to appreciate that I have a room to sleep in tonight.

I appreciate the bed, the light, the window, the home that it is in. I appreciate the weather here, the cool weather in South Florida, where hurricanes have hit before but are not hitting like those Illinois Tornado Blues.

Homeless neighborhoods lay vacant from a one-minute gust of wind and people succumbed to the force of that wind on that day. Whisked away by a breeze the size of a building risen to devastate a century of lifestyles in recovery.

The last wave from a gust of wind that stretched from Illinois to Typhoon Haiyan in Central Philippines where thousands died from a gust of wind. Poof and they are ancestors driven out by a tidal wave that ripped the islands with The Typhoon Blues.

Oh, winds and rain in dark of night arresting all their belongings and kin. We can pray and that says we still have life to make anew all the dreams we thought we had made come true. Oh, Blues. The Tornado and Typhoon Blues. ~ Diva JC

FOOTNOTES

Author Henry Mosquera  said “I find composing (composting?) a worthwhile thought in the span of 140 characters to be a mostly pointless exercise, the writerly equivalent of being sewn into a sleeping bag with a flashlight and the Dummy’s Guide to Semaphore.”

However, I’m sure some people tweeted words and images of what they were experiencing during the Illinois Tornadoes on November 17, 2013.