The past days remind me I'm part of an extended family, grieving the loss and celebrating the life of our musical brother, pop or grandpa or great-grandpa, depending how old you are... And all the sharing of photos, anecdotes, songs and videos are like food and drink we would share if we were sitting shiva together.

The kerfluffle about memorials got me thinking what I would love to see is a day of local, global all-ages truly participatory stone-soup potlucks, community sings and dances FOR PETE'S SAKE on May 3.

Remembering long-ago and recent encounters, but even more just feeling the resonance of Pete's presence, his voice, humor, imagination, intelligence, open-heartedness. And so many songs, including ones I heard him sing live and haven't heard or thought of for years, like "Farewell little Fishes" and "Maple Syrup Time" (soon coming):

"...I'll send this song to Scott and Helen [Nearing], up in Maine where they are dwellin'
Hoping they don't mind a little advice in rhyme.
As in life or revolution, rarely is there a quick solution,
Anything worthwhile takes a little time.
We boil and boil and boil and boil it all day long..."

That advice also resonates in Pete's singing of Jacob's Ladder http://youtu.be/n7d6ATNyA98 and in a verse I made up and tacked on to our singing of Steve Earle's great '06 tribute "Steve's Hammer (for Pete)" http://youtu.be/wx9SGI97wuU :

"One of these days I'm gonna pass this hammer on
to a little kid who's listening to our song
'cause life is short, but the struggle's long
it takes generations to right these wrongs
One of these days I'm gonna pass this hammer on."

with gratitude from Jerusha and The Beat Greens...

what never dies "goes on to organize"--