The fully loaded Boeing 787 Dreamliner banked low over the Persian Gulf and the lights of Doha rolled into view. The city lay stretched out like a stroke of golden paint smeared across the early morning desert. The silver moonlight was dancing off the soft ripples on the water and I felt the same nervous apprehension I have felt many times before approaching a strange city in a foreign country. The anticipation of new experiences, running arrival logistics through my mind and anxiously fumbling around for my passport while instinctively putting myself in the cockpit with the crew being vectored by Air Traffic Control onto final approach.
I’d been in South Africa for a few weeks after just over four months in the desert. Since mid-July I’d been figuring out how to live in a new country, learning the ins and outs of a foreign, complex airspace and processing the things that happened leading up to my departure. I got to see a few good friends and spent two brutal weeks on the farm repairing and maintaining farm equipment, branding and doctoring cattle and getting acquainted with the first batch of goats we had recently acquired. Daybreak to sunset was for working but the evenings were full of conversations with family and friends, good whiskey and making music. Like the rest of my family and employees I kept my eyes on the sky that remained a dry-white, endless blue. The rain refused to come and I left the farm really worried about the next few months. Streams are running dry, grazing is dwindling and without a doubt cattle prices will be down in the dumps come the Fall.
Last Sunday I was sitting with my friend Gerhard in the old Potchefstroom Air Traffic Control Tower picking guitars, drinking whiskey and catching up on a few months worth of news and stories. Midway through sharing one of my new songs a couple walked in and quietly sat down. It was a fellow aviator and his significant other and after a quick introduction we got right back to the songs. I would share the stories and then play the songs. That would trigger another story and soon it turned into an impromptu performance and an almost therapeutic journey through shared experiences. One of my favourite things.
For all the obvious reasons I can come up with for needing this trip back home I probably needed the conversations with my friends and family the most. It’s been a lonely few months and only towards the end of November I started seeing some signs of a social structure developing in my new city. I’m extremely grateful for it but I needed some perspective. My art has been playing second fiddle for a while and I’ve been progressively becoming more and more frustrated with my inability to even string together a decent melody or a few lines for a song. So, I went out to find some answers, some guidance and some closure. I found so much more. I was overcome by the grace, love, friendship and support of my friends and family. I found some courage to leap into the abyss of walking away from something I should’ve done years ago. Artistically I received guidance and inspiration from my heroes.
I’m back in the desert, there is work to be done and stories to be told. I will do my best as always and I will endeavour to walk lighter upon this earth. To carry my responsibilities and the cross of my calling, to count my blessings and tell the truth but to also remember to recognise the beauty of this world we live in. It’s my responsibility to let go of some the things that have been weighing me down and stealing my joy. I have picked up my pen again and I like the things flowing out of me. Some of it is coming out in longer form but I’m rolling with it. Some of it hurts like hell and some of it is purely fictional. I’m excited to share this new chapter in my life with you, my followers, friends and loved ones.
Thank you for reading this blog and for your support. I wish you all a peaceful festive season.
Love & Peace
JB
