In a blog post written in 2016 Paul Doffing, a contemporary folk singer and guitarist, spoke at length about an experience at Standing Rock Indian Reservation where he worked alongside the protestors trying to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) from being built through South Dakota. In that post he wrote some words which will resonate with many of the protests currently going on around the world:
“I don’t want to be called an environmentalist. I don’t want to be called an activist. I’m a child. We are the fortunate children of a beautiful, powerful, magnificent mother. She has given us everything we need and more, but we’re jabbing spears into her and watching her blood run out. We must learn to respect and care for our mother. This is a common native perspective, but also obviously a perspective that every creature on the planet must share. This is our fight. Each and every one of us.”
This is the same man who undertook an epic bicycle tour, which led him across 22 U.S. states and 7 countries. His latest album, Running in the Dark, is a 36-minute musical odyssey, documenting the self-exploration, human connection, and worldly realization that Paul’s found along the way, as you can imagine, he’s not short of inspiration. One song, “Easy as you Come” which is also our Song of the Day, was inspired by that Standing Rock experience which he talks about below.
“I departed to take part the Standing Rock DAPL resistance the day after Donald Trump was elected. It wasn’t only because he was elected that I went, but it certainly enhanced the gravity of the choice. I spent a week on the frozen plains, working with the Natives, and I’ve written about that here. After several nights on the plains, listening to the native songs as I fell asleep and woke up, as planes flew in constant circles overheard, I attended a ceremony with a native priest. He welcomed us on a guided vision quest that would become the basis of ‘Easy as You Come.'”
Running in the Dark will be released on June 14, 2019. You can support it on Kickstarter here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1405685676/running-in-the-dark
Find out more here: https://www.pauldoffing.com