Only by first acknowledging that we are living beings together here on this planet before labeling ourselves as anything else can we hope for peace on Earth.

Only by first acknowledging that we are living beings together here on this planet before labeling ourselves as anything else can we hope for peace on Earth.

Mancil Travis - I have always had a fascination with this character from my hometown. When I put pen to paper to recount stories I knew of him, I kept hearing this dream sequence in my head that was Willie Sugarcapps harmonies singing like a Greek chorus, "White carnations."

I look for something universal in songs rather than something personal. I look for something that will give us a platform for live improvisation.

I'm an introverted sort of writer.

I try to keep my eyes and ears open all the time for the bones of my next song: things people say, melodies I hear in my head, and little musical parts I may stumble across. I write them down or record them on my phone. Whatever I need to do to keep the idea for later when I have the time to sit down with it. So writing for me is a 24/7 pursuit.

I think we are all of the same opinion that "wherever you go, there you are," and if you are constantly searching for paradise outside of yourself, you will miss what is in your own backyard.