The Love Experiment You miss me missing you You thought I would die of the gloom A whisper out of the past You would have possessed me too soon You thought it was strange that my heart could still beat while it sits in a jar on your table But I’m still so busy picking up pieces of our fate-shattered fable You kiss me Already gone My lips are nowhere to be found You call me warped in the wire but I answer you without sound You thought it was strange that my lungs could still breathe while they sit in a jar on your table But I’m still too busy picking up pieces of our fate-shattered fable Hard whiskey— don’t you know? perfect solution for this I miss the parts I once had never quite knowing the risk You thought it was strange that my brain could still scream while it sits in a jar on your table But I’m still too busy picking up pieces of our fate-shattered fable Jennifer Hughes © November 3, 2013

Hearsay Nobody knows about the things that you do If somebody did They would talk about you Talk about you They’d talk about you They don’t need to know about the raging storm inside They can't understand so you best not confide They will talk about you Talk about you They will talk about you You thought that by now You’d be getting your peace/piece But life carries on with pain time-released Still, ya shouldn't have done it Shouldn't have gone there Shouldn't have played there ‘cause you don’t belong there They might talk about you Everyone knows about the things that you do now the secret’s out They will talk about you Talk about you They will talk about you Nothing discreet about the raging storm outside They can’t understand So you best go and hide They will talk about you Talk about you They will talk about you You thought that by now You’d be getting your peace/piece But life carries on with pain time-released Still, ya shouldn't have done it Shouldn't have gone there Shouldn't have stayed there ‘cause you don’t belong there They’re gonna talk about you Music & Lyrics by Jennifer L. Hughes © August 31, 2013 Performed by Skylar Drior

Special I’ve seen that look It says it all and you know it’s not the same You say you feel If I were gone without a trace Do you think you’d finally find your place… inside it all? Inside it all… You always say that I am special But I don’t think you know There’s no good place to hang out where special people go In the institution I’m anything but sane So here’s to special people who answer to my name The doors have locks for minds like mine Even though I’m crazy-lite most of the time The sirens come to make me scream the demons come to catch my fall… inside it all Inside it all… You always say that I am special But I don’t think you know There’s no good place to hang out where special people go In the institution I’m anything but sane So here’s to special people who answer to my name Music & Lyrics by Jennifer L. Hughes © September 28, 2013 Performed by Mira Parfitt

Please skim before you listen: My music mentor (the incomparable and indispensable Tal Aaron More of The Quiet Revolution--I am connected to him on Linked In if you need him too)--(1) told me to drop the $5 words to be more relatable and (2) warned me that being so "artistic" could come across as snobby and/or pretentious (actually, he may have said "elitist highbrow intellectual", but I'm pretty sure I don't know what that means :). Well, I am nothing if not (mostly) humble, candid, and accessible, so I feel my choice at this point is either to keep the song to myself, or release the song (at least, for your opinions at this point) with some definitions and explanations... which naturally turned into what my sweet, beautiful, amazing, prolifically creative friend Maria Panlilio calls "the continuing flow of Jennifer Hughes's stream of consciousness." So here you go (as do I): $5 word alerts and a little more info about the meaning of this song: 1. Parnassian: 1 [Latin parnassius of Parnassus, from Greek parnasios, from Parnasos Parnassus, mountain in Greece sacred to Apollo and the Muses] : of or relating to poetry 2 [French parnassien, from Parnasse Parnassus; from Le Parnasse contemporain (1866), an anthology of poetry] : of or relating to a school of French poets of the second half of the 19th century emphasizing metrical form rather than emotion –Parnassian noun So what do I mean? Taken into context with the preceding lines, "destiny abridged with every fortunate freedom of will" (in other words, what you choose matters more than your environment, genes, childhood, societal programming, etc.), I refer to Parnassian very broadly as the draw of fantasy which pulls us away from enlightenment and back to a world which offers no lasting happiness... so we can choose to transcend anything but there still exists the temptation of the world. Why? Because the world is fun for awhile... (see--with my apologies--my song The Long Ride Home on the Third Life Charm album). 2. symbiosis: 1 : the living together in more or less intimate association or close union of two dissimilar organisms 2 : the intimate living together of two dissimilar organisms in a mutually beneficial relationship; especially : MUTUALISM 3 : a cooperative relationship (as between two persons or groups) What I mean by synchronized symbiosis: the re-union of the physical body and the spiritual body/quantum field/consciousness. Dr. Joe Dispenza compares the physical body to the nucleus of an atom--it is approximately 1% matter with a vast field of invisible energy constituting 99% of the atom around it... on a larger scale, that invisible (but measurable) energy around the body is the consciousness... and where you put your awareness is where you put your energy. (sub-tangent: we have 3 parts of the brain which ALL must be used for total integration of knowledge... we must go from THINKING to DOING to BEING... the dendrites (very cool) look like hands grasping and reaching for each other... when a fact is learned, the "hands" make a connection and every repetition of that action strengthens that connection. This is neuroplasticity (a subject of great interest to me far beyond a hobby). We become jaded because around age 35-40, because we stop learning; we stop having new experiences and we live in an emotional state of the past--i.e., we predict the future based on the past (the body is emotion, the mind is thought)... we think the same things which cause us to feel the same way, which cause us to do the same things, which lead to the same results, which lead back to the same thoughts. 3. apotheosis: 1 : elevation to divine status : DEIFICATION 2 : the perfect example : QUINTESSENCE *this is the literary apotheosis of the shaggy dog story— Thomas Sutcliffe* What I mean by pondering on philosophy in search of apotheosis: intellectualizing the purpose for existence of humanity (e.g., the postmodern existential angst)... which doesn't bring any full or lasting realization but only reveals more questions without complete or viable answers. One must use logic and discernment to a point of inquiry, however, the final stage is (counter-intuitively) letting go. The end of the intellectual inquiry is a (scary, but liberating!) free fall into intuition... which leads to the next stanza "outside of objectivity illustration can still show metaphysical mystery to remember what we know"--the "metaphysical mystery" is accessing the quantum field and the relief at the realization of knowing--in fact, remembering--who we authentically are.* It may sound as though I've lost my marbles (which supposition assumes I had marbles in the first place), but science has caught up with spirituality. One excellent book which explains the very real benefits of meditation--not only to the brain and body, but to one's entire personal reality--is Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself, by Dr. Joe Dispenza (speaking of brilliant--he is very possibly the most evolved human being I have ever met). *As an aside: at the end of the song Awakening on the album I WAS HERE, the last lines are "Intuition will trump cognition to find the treasures we seek"--I am talking about the same thing there (i.e., remembering who we are... that we are all very literally connected by the quantum field). I have on my intention board in my home an adage which states, "Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds." I looked at it in a new light the other day, because I had never considered it to mean "within the same being." We are at war inside of ourselves, and until we triumph over each successive battle, we hold ourselves back like no one else ever could. Until full liberation from duality (i.e., mastery of the body, or mind over matter), it is a constant struggle for dominance between the lower chakras (survival, sex drive, ego, me, mine, me first, separation, judgment, individuality) and the upper chakras (us, we, our, spirituality, integrity, honor, connectedness, and the integrated knowledge that I cannot hurt anyone else without injuring myself). Regardless of how intelligent we are individually, it is nothing compared to the unlimited quantum field, which contains all knowledge as well as a sense of unprecedented peace. Am I an untethered kook? Maybe, but that makes it no less true, and once again, science is catching up... though Dr. Joe Dispenza uses the term "energy centers" rather than chakras. We are immortal beings having a human experience... thank God for the journey and for music, which is the language of the soul. When the student is ready, the teacher appears. God bless you on your journey. Brilliant note: * is different phrasing of Cmaj7 * B7 You say that I am brilliant Am11 Em but it is you who makes me shine * B7 Poetic muse in motion Am11 Em who sparks internal rhyme What glitters is not gold But the cream will always rise Striking similarities To nobody’s surprise The ego rises and falls tonight With the body’s every breath The only hope of rescue being spiritual inquest B7 Em Life unfolds, the moment holds B7 Em time passing slowly by Am11 Em and I behold a fate foretold B7 Em by star codes trapped sky-high B7 Em Destiny abridged with every B7 Em fortunate freedom of will Am11 Em allurement of Parnassian B7 Em permeating dreamland still * B7 I thrive under your sunlight Am11 Em Been in obscurity for so long * B7 Wondering if there is a place Am11 Em I actually belong Recognizing this rebirth of synchronized symbiosis Pondering on philosophy in search of apotheosis Outside of objectivity Illustration can still show Metaphysical mystery to remember what we know B7 Em Life unfolds, the moment holds B7 Em time passing slowly by Am11 Em and I behold a fate foretold B7 Em by star codes trapped sky-high B7 Em Destiny abridged with every B7 Em fortunate freedom of will Am11 Em allurement of Parnassian B7 Em permeating dreamland still Jennifer Hughes © 3/22/13

Blue Dream I am a sketch upon the surface Penciled in on half the page Illusory realities have us all Come inside to meet the sage Conclusion rides in circles Silent sound waves pull me here Logic stacks in even columns making coded symbols crystal clear Hysteria is not excessive And nothing here is extreme Submit to a terse progressive To actualize my blue dream Reach through now and kill the pain let's start the final phase Let the music play on in an abundant bluish haze Blue dream... my blue dream Blue dream... my blue dream Deny the superimposition Submit to ordinary fate Void the motion for recision And the thesis antedate Get inside my head and listen Move outside to hold me still To the legends here which glisten Come and overtake my will Hysteria is not excessive And nothing here is extreme Submit to a terse progressive To actualize my blue dream Reach through now and kill the pain let's start the final phase Let the music play on in an abundant bluish haze Blue dream... my blue dream Blue dream... my blue dream Jennifer Hughes music & lyrics © June 11, 2012 Performed by Skylar Drior

Music Plays Me They asked me how I did it and I said it wasn’t me I just reached up and picked off a few leaves of sound from the song tree I welcome its wont insolence (Al)though it has its way ‘Cause the songs will be themselves No matter what I have to say The music plays me In my dreams through slumber deep Inundates me Until cascading builds to steep The music plays me I had no chance to get away It engages me Flows through the ether night and day People tend to think I’m clever But I’m the one here who got played So I suck it up and cooperate Filter through the vast array There are times I’d mutiny for tiring of marked discipline Then it lets me use my words awhile till it takes control again The music plays me In my dreams through slumber deep Inundates me Until cascading builds to steep The music plays me I had no chance to get away It engages me Flows through the ether night and day Jennifer Hughes music & lyrics © 2/23/13 Performed by Skylar Drior

A plectrum is a guitar pick. So this is a little ditty about a guitar pick... the etymology of the word plectrum from a Greek word meaning "to strike." The Plectrum Strikes Back You just wanted to play music and proceeding in accord (a chord :) you reached to pick him up any time that you got bored Loving the sounds further when you played with your guitar ol' plecky boy became a tool and you became a star you whipped him for amusement and beat him to a pulp chipped his rigid edges off sent out with forlorn hope prepare to have your fingers stretched across 12 frets of medieval rack because he's finally had enough-- THE PLECTRUM STRIKES BACK!! You didn't mean to hurt his feelings but you thought only of you the whats and hows and promises of what others should do Now he's waiting for his moment at your biggest concert yet and when the crowds are shouting "more!" he'll break before abet you whipped him for amusement and beat him to a pulp chipped his rigid edges off sent out with forlorn hope prepare to have your fingers stretched across 12 frets of medieval rack because he's finally had enough-- THE PLECTRUM STRIKES BACK!! Music & Lyrics by Jennifer L. Hughes © 2/18/13 Performed by Mira Parfitt

Waterfalls C Hiding beneath it F you can’t help but see it C F The irony in the fall C Placing your fingers F the water drops linger C F And no one can see you at all C F You came for a message C F A sign you were certain— C F The answer to everything You can’t help but bless it So apt to confess it The cleansing the silence brings Dm Em Waterfalls are still Dm Em inside your space Dm Em Am a dream within a dream Dm Em and you marvel at Dm Em the commonplace Dm Em Am Behind the curtain’s stream Em Am Em Am Em Am Em Am C F Flowers in bloom are all dying too soon while wind whips them as it will The promise of sunshine the lure a rock climb but phantoms pursue me still C F I came for a lesson C F behind nature's curtain C F but I cannot read the signs I stumble inside me while barely abiding all promises lost in time Dm Em Waterfalls are still Dm Em inside this space Dm Em Am a dream within a dream Dm Em and I marvel at Dm Em the commonplace Dm Em Am Behind the curtain’s stream Em Am Em Am Em Am Em Am Music & Lyrics by Jennifer Hughes © 3/2/13 revised 8/28/13 Performed by Skylar Drior

Naked Guitar show me your chords and I'll show you mine let's move together and I'll stay the time your strings are taut they tune into me my breath is heavy with controversy I will come for you at dawn's first light I will dream for you in dreams I will fight your fight in deepest night no matter how dark it seems I'll caress you when there's no one left I'll come for you, my pride bereft I'll comfort you I'll come for you you have your reasons for calling me here intoning your magic for love to appear I cannot save you from passage of time you cannot keep me I'm not even mine I will come for you at dawn's first light I will dream for you in dreams I will fight your fight in deepest night no matter how dark it seems I'll caress you when there's no one left I'll come for you, my pride bereft I'll comfort you I'll come for you Jennifer L. Hughes music & lyrics © 2011 Performed by Skylar Drior

Above the Fray F C you don’t have to guess F C everything will change Am F and if you get my gist F G you know it’s all the same F C feelin’ some new wanderlust F C can you feel my vibe? Am F My life is living me F G No where to go inside Am F Let it unfold C Day by day Am F Let it unfold C Play-by-play Am F Let it unfold C Am F No one taught you how to wait Am F But let it unfold— C G Rise above the fray F C Thought I had some clarity F C turns out I was confused Am F Trapped in this austerity F G I’m bound to feel used F C I suck it up and stay the course F C The will combats the mind Am F Inert communication F G to promise worth in-kind Am F Let it unfold C Day by day Am F Let it unfold C Play-by-play Am F Let it unfold C Am F No one taught you how to wait Am F But let it unfold— C G Rise above the fray Music & Lyrics by Jennifer Hughes © 3/19/13 Performed by Skylar Drior

Music in My Soul Life will break your heart But when you’re feeling weak know that sometimes you can sing When you can’t bear to speak As you turn the pages Phases go in stages Always dreaming something will redeem He said, I can’t teach you What you already know It’s clear that when I watch you play Music’s in your soul The world can’t reach you Where you’ve always belonged So it’s time to show your heart now In a song Imaginary parts of silent melodies words will just transform the time to moments I can keep Through the rising measures Life is rearranging While I sing the song of everything He said, I can’t teach you What you already know It’s clear that when I hear you sing Music’s in your soul The world can’t reach you Where you’ve always belonged So it’s time to show your heart now In a song (break) He said, I can’t teach you What you already know It’s clear that when I watch you play Music’s in your soul The world can’t reach you Where you’ve always belonged So it’s time to show your heart now In a song Yeah, it’s time to show your heart now Your beautiful heart now Time to show your heart now In a song

Baby Let Your Soul Shine Bright Pick your favorite pretend place Like a book that’s in your face Exercise your options there But doncha let them break your spirit You’ve come so far to see the light Sometimes truth is outta sight Hold to love with all your might & if ya gotta, pick a fight But baby let your soul shine baby let your soul shine bright Don’t let haters get you down Make a smile from that frown Greet the day—let’s roll it out Shine your light & make us proud You’ve come so far to be the light Sometimes truth is outta sight Hold to grace with all your might & if ya gotta, duck the fight But baby let your soul shine Baby let your soul shine Baby let your soul shine bright Lyrics by Jennifer L. Hughes © August 2, 2015 Music by Jennifer L. Hughes and Kristi-Leah Bradley Performed by Skylar Drior

New Shoes He had the saddest eyes that I'd ever seen when he surrendered to the dream of time Dressed in his new tennis shoes put them on to stomp the blues of life he wore them proud to forge a bet movin' on just ti forget anything to mute the noise inside his head with his last breath, he said Tell me why the odds are broken tell me why the cards are stacked tell me why that when I think I've won I just keep comin' back Give me grace to surrender Give me hope to hold on and if it ain't too much trouble don't forget me when I'm gone She had the brightest smile that I've ever seen when she surrendered to the dream of life Blessed in her new sacred views fleshed them out to stop the blues of time She wasn't really sad to know this movie house is just for show and what you see depends on how you finally grow in her last breath, she said Tell me why the odds are broken tell me why the cards are stacked tell me why that when I think I've won I just keep comin' back Give me grace to surrender Give me hope to hold on and if it ain't too much trouble don't forget me when I'm gone yeah, if it ain't too much trouble don't forget me when I'm gone Bridge: I'm sellin' all my patchwork dreams nothing's ever what it seems so tell me if they mean a thing to anyone now Tell me why the odds are broken tell me why the cards are stacked tell me why that when I think I've won I just keep comin' back Give me grace to surrender Give me hope to hold on and if it ain't too much trouble don't forget me when I'm gone Lyrics by Jennifer L. Hughes © September 13, 2015 Music by Jennifer L. Hughes & Kristi-Leah Bradley Arranged by Kristi-Leah Bradley Performed by Skylar Drior

Bonnie Girl Grade A student Lookin' for a daddy that I'll hit before the end of the road Some imagination that'll blow your station if anything gets blown Write it all down where I hate the cowboys but I love the talkin’ picture shows Workin' as a waitress serving' coffee to the pigs it's a lonely way to go Lookin' for redemption between the cradle and the grave Baby, let me be your Bonnie if you’re lookin’ for a soul to save Grew up too fast and your virtue passed but you're as cool as ice under fire Cock your Browning to even the score so join me—let’s conspire ‘fore the raid goes down ya love the outlaws but ya hate the newsroom liars Workin' as a bandit servin' justice to the pigs you know you won’t retire Lookin' for redemption between the cradle and the grave Baby, let me be your Bonnie if you’re lookin’ for a soul to save I will just wait in the getaway car writin' poetry in simple rhyme Don’t you worry— they’re never gonna catch us and pretty girls don't serve time Some folks suffer heartbreak from weariness some die So let me be your Bonnie and you’ll always be my Clyde Just lookin' for redemption between the cradle and the grave Baby, let me be your Bonnie if you’re lookin’ for a soul to save Jennifer Hughes © December 29, 2013

It's Not Nothing You understand a part of me but there's so much that you can’t see I wish authentic essence mattered more You can't quite see who I am I don't know if people can Without a spark the magic dies away Without you would I still be me today? It's not nothing what I feel inside Not nothing when you say goodbye Not nothing when you're walking out the door Yeah baby, it's not nothing... but I need something more What's the point of giving in? No reason to begin again I'm not sure there's something left to say Only life inspires the soul wounds that bleed won't leave you whole Without a spark the breathing dies away Without you would I still be me today? It's not nothing what I feel inside Not nothing when you say goodbye Not nothing when you're walking out the door Yeah baby, it's not nothing... but I need something more Pleasure gives us different waves surging bliss inside the brain use you for distraction like you're using me We'd like to call it something else I know we both are meaning well But if you look at it with clarity it's just so plain, oh, so plain to see It's not nothing what I feel inside Not nothing when you say goodbye Not nothing when you're walking out the door Yeah baby, it's not nothing... but I need something more BRIDGE: How nice that you love my mind but there are corridors there you will never find It's not nothing what I feel inside Not nothing when you say goodbye Not nothing when you're walking out the door It's not nothing what I feel inside Not nothing when you say goodbye Not nothing when you're walking out the door Yeah baby, it's not nothing... but I need something more I need something more Lyrics by Jennifer L. Hughes Music by Jennifer L. Hughes & Kristi-Leah Bradley © October 30, 2016

If you're watching sports I will make you dinner Don't you even worry 'bout the mess Have another beer - I'll meet you in the bedroom Hope you don't expect me to be dressed I will make you happy if you love me Love me if you want your dreams all true Another thousand lies won't hurt our romance Baby tell me you don't want the truth If you’re making war I’ll just support you I won’t even bother with the facts Filibustered whole – I’ll meet you at the TV with a great massage to just relax I will make you happy if you love me Love me if you want your dreams all true Another thousand lies won't hurt our romance Baby tell me you don't want the truth Bridge: Things are now going so well The truth would make them go to hell So let’s pretend we’re all that is Babe give me a little kiss I will make you happy if you love me Love me if you want your dreams all true Another thousand lies won't hurt our romance Baby tell me you don't want the truth