February 2012 | Issue #2

Editorial. The truth is that most of us spend our lives making someone else’s dreams happen and we march to the beat of someone else’s drum. When we follow established patterns, we are safe, but, by following them, we also get a predictable result. Here is an old puzzle that can illustrate how we tend to box ourselves in.

Fiction. If neither foe nor loving friend can hurt you… But even the strongest among us may have wounds that won’t heal. This is one of those stories you cannot talk about without spoiling it.

Poetry. If anyone doubts the power of words, spoken or written, they need only read Shakespeare. Among Shakespeare’s works, few have the power of the scene from his drama “Henry V”, known as the “St Crispin’s Day Speech”.

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but make allowance for their doubting too... What happens when you start to live as your true self?

Music Review. “The Friends of Mr. Cairo” by Jon & Vangelis is one of my top albums of all time. I’ve loved it from the first time I heard it, and I experienced an interesting phenomenon—you have a sense you know exactly what the lyrics mean, although you really don’t have a clue, and it doesn’t matter. Serenity drowns out the daily grind, and you flow with music that’s both powerful and soothing.

Wow. You're not going to believe this. I hardly believe it myself. When I first heard "The Friends of Mr. Cairo" back in 1981, I never thought I would actually have the opportunity to interview Jon Anderson about his almost mystic collaboration with Vangelis.