VIKING: A Strange Message on the Train (part 4 of 4)

If you haven't read parts 1 HERE, part 2 HERE, part 3 HERE then get going, I will wait for you! It's important! Scoot!

The StarViking

Alright, hopefully you're back from your catch up!

So one night, we were all travelling back from Sydney on the train, We were dressed normally, my youngest daughter was chatting with her father, my oldest was reading a book and I was just sitting in the aisle seat making lovey dove eyes at my handsome Husband.

Across from us, about three seats down, was a gentleman dressed smart casually. He had a laptop bag, and he had a lanyard around his neck that had a Gosford Library card attached to it, along with another type of work entry card. He kept looking at me and then looking away as if he was embarrassed. He looked decent, clean and regular.

When we were nearing Woy Woy, about 15 minutes from our destination, he started to shift and act like he was going to get up and come to us. He did.

He sat in the seat opposite us and in a shy and embarrassed way he introduced himself. Then he said something that blew me away.

He said, "I am so embarrassed, and I have never done this before. Please forgive me. But I have to give you a message and I don't know why!"

So I looked at him kindly and said, "You won't be the first, so go ahead, I'm listening"

And he said almost incredulously, "I have to tell you that you are a star. Not like a famous person, like, an actual star. I sound crazy."

So I smiled and said, "No, you're correct in a way. I am the StarViking and I sing intergalactic music." *totes normal response!!!*

The look on his face!! 😄

Then he looked at my oldest daughter and said, "She is a StarChild. I don't even know what that means."

So I said, "Yes, that is her other name. She is called STARCHILD. I have even written a song about her. She is a very special child, and she was supposed to be stillborn/miscarried or born with multiple life altering defects, she is a miracle."

His face!! 😃😆

Then he said, "And your other child is another kind of star, she goes really fast... what does that mean?"

So I replied, "Yes. Her name is SHOOTINGSTAR and I have written a song about her too. They are both very special girls"

He looked at Francis, and Francis just smiled gently, in his way, like this was a totally normal conversation to have on a train 😂 I handed him my card, and we then arrived at our station and left.

How bizarre!!

Thanks for joining me on my 4 part ramble.

Love you all and thanks for almost 250,000 views!!

VIKING: Communication From Beyond? (part 3 of 4)

Alright, so hopefully you've already read part 1 HERE and part 2 HERE - it's important so scoot! I'll wait here for you to come back before I tell the story... (part 4 is linked at the end!)

www.sandybigara.com

This is the year of the third album in my trilogy: DEITY: DIVINE & NATURE and I started paying around with cover designs. Please note, I have only recently learned about my Scandinavian, Viking and Norman heritage, so I'm slowly learning about my cultural roots as I can. One thing I haven't learned much about it the spiritual aspect of the Viking culture. I know of Bifröst, and I know that there is a place after death that Odin resides in, I haven't looked into them much beyond the correct spelling of the words, while finding out as much other information as I could.

I started to look for inspiration for the cover of the album, which tells the story of life in a new world after intergalactic travel. When looking online I kept coming back to this image and decided that I wanted the sphere to play a part in the album cover. It made me think of a new environment, a new sphere of life. 

I then cut the sphere out and started playing around with idea's. Below you will see what I have recently put together, this is not the final album cover, it will change 100 times!

Last night (24th June 2018) I couldn't sleep. I was suddenly prompted to look up Asgard! So I finally googled it and went straight to Images. And I lay there with my mouth wide open in shock. Here is the Sphere I chose: 

The images used to describe Asgard look SO MUCH like the sphere I had chosen! Let me re-iterate - I had NO PREVIOUS IDEA OF HOW ASGARD LOOKS. 

And so the journey continues... I wonder how many other cool occurrences will happen? You'll have to read part 4 HERE to find out what happened last year on a train from Sydney... 

VIKING: A Strange Revelation Ring (part 2 of 4)

So, I found out in late 2017, that I was 99% European, and the breakdown was my immediate parents and grandparents were English, Irish, French & German (and all traced to Viking Settlements - Viking and Norman) and 1% was "unknown" (which suited my StarViking theory! Ha!), these cultures were represented as far back as the mid 1800's, and from that point onwards as far back as they could register - I am Scandinavian! Yes! Knew it!

This was a breakthrough for me. Being someone who has known absolutely nothing about her past, family or cultural history. I have always felt displaced. Without anchor. And getting back to my tribal and cultural roots is very VERY important to me.

Anyway, as you read previously (and if you haven't please have a look as it is the precursor to this blog post! go on get!) you will see that there are already a few interesting turns of events regarding my StarViking Journey of discovery.

But onto this story! We decided to find me a newer wedding band, one that suited my style and purpose. I needed one that was thicker and stronger so that if I forgot to take it off while working with metal, or drumming, it wouldn't break like previous rings!

We only had a budget of $100 - 150. And after looking through two jewelery stores I was starting to realise that I was only able to get really thin and pretty bands, nothing VIKING enough for me!

We stopped at one last shop, one that has since closed! And asked for any silver rings. I looked at about 6 and didn't see anything that worked. My youngest daughter Kels reached up over the counter and without looking, she tapped a ring and said "this is the one" - and ran off! I looked at my husband and then picked up the ring and ... gasped.

If you look below at the photographs you will see why!

The large S and smaller S curling out of it, for Savanna and I. 
With the smaller B within a D shape (D/B) up to the right, for Doherty-Bigara!

Bottom left is a lower case cursive F and above it on the left is a capital K all curly, the top of the F is the bottom of the K. 

Also, please note the StarViking S on my gown, pinned last month...
And that special ring that found me... same S...

 I don't know about you... but that's pretty damn incredible! I bought it immediately!

I will share another really strange StarViking occurrence that just happened last night HERE.

VIKING: A StarViking Journey (part 1 of 4)

I am currently working on my third StarViking Album called "Nature" and have started playing around with Album cover designs.

My 2016 Album DEITY was where I first felt connected to the Scandinavian Culture and to the incredible star scapes visible from my home each night. The name STARVIKING came about quite organically and it was only after learning more from people who would come up to me after a performance - they told me about the Pleiadians bear in mind, I had no idea what they were talking about!

It was all very interesting, I knew nothing of my ancestral heritage, only that our Norwegian family doctor (from birth until I was about 20) had always insisted that we were Norwegian. He said he would bet his life on it. 

For my Deity Album Launch in late November of 2016, I was joined by talented violinist Amba Mezzone and poet Elijah Stevenson. They dressed up with me, having such fun creating intergalactic characters for the launch. It was a beautiful evening. Sound was provided by Stevie Ray Swansbra and Adam Jackson at The Lounge Room. 

One of the songs from the album SUBMERGED made it to the top 30 in the Australian Songwriters Competition 2017. Which was amazing! 

I created starscape music for the moments in between songs, to keep the mood of the event rolling along. In early 2017 I realised that the music was enough for a stand alone album, so I produced AMBIENCE: StarViking Instrumentals.

In 2017 I produced my DIVINE Album, the continuation of the StarViking storyline. At this point I realised that the music could be turned into a full musical event, and I started to compose with this in mind. I started to dream about taking my musical to Sydney Opera House. The album was in production for about 18 months, as I tried to fit it into my every day life as a mom, wife and businesswoman! Louise Sawilejskij the GM of the Rhythm Hut, kindly allowed me to do the final mastering in the hut hall - so I could blast my songs as loudly as possible! 

I have entered the song A NEW WORLD BORN into the Australian Songwriters Competition 2018. 

The album launch was at the eclectic Rhythm Hut in Gosford, and with the help of my growing StarViking family, Sam Tracy (Poet) Elijah Stevenson (Poet) Dancers, Stage and Wardrobe Assistant Luciane Sperling, Sound and lighting by local High School Tutor Francis Doherty-Bigara and the volunteers at the Hut. We transformed the hall into a sparkling, magical, creative space. I had a large screen to the side of the stage with spacey lyric videos running alongside the performance. I loved that people could see the lyrics and hear them too. 

2018 was the time for the last of the Trilogy of DEITY: DIVINE NATURE albums, NATURE (You can hear the works in progress here: WIP and it has been such an awesome experience! 

I have performed the top tracks from both albums at various events, fairs, concerts and markets in 2017/2018.

To find out a really really interesting and weird thing that happened to me regarding the Nature album... have a look at part 2 HERE. (part 3 and 4 are linked as you go!)

READERS: Almost 250,000 Views on Sandy Ramblings!

After an incredible weekend of performances and music, I was so surprised to see my view counter when I popped over onto my blog! Yay!

I remember celebrating 60,000 views and in the blink of an eye we are at almost 250,000 views!

Thank you to everyone who returns to browse this rambling blog. It is much appreciated! I am appalling at posting regularly, but I suppose having a busy and happy life is a good enough excuse!

Take care everyone and have a wonderful 2018!

RECIPE: Spinach and Broccoli Soup

I'm on a mission since April, to put good food into our bodies. I've been juicing and making better choices, which has resulted in Savanna choosing to live almost completely vegetarian, Kelsey is starting to ask for freshly made Veggie juice. Makes me happy!

Unfortunately we all do end up eating convenience foods sometimes - but we're trying to make wiser choices when doing so, choosing water instead of soda for example, or smaller simpler food options.

Tonight Kelsey and I made Brocolli and Spinach soup. I used curry powders, cinnamon, salt and pepper for flavour. And after slow cooking the vegetables and whizzing them up, we added a small dash of fresh cream, parmesan cheese (a half spoon of cinnamon as demanded by Kelsey "to make it perfect") and then we served up. The taste was better than I hoped for being my first time making this soup.

I wanted to look at the goodness inside each of the soup components and it was lovely teaching the girls and reading out the vitamins etc that they'd just eaten.

It was tastier than fancy butternut pumpkin soup! 😂😋 #vegetarian #yummy #soup #recipe

MENTAL HEALTH: Living With Depression and Generalised Anxiety

The stigma is still real.

If you have a minute. READ the attached article. It's one of the best descriptions of what life is like with depression and anxiety. 

I'm hard-working, colourful, sometimes fun, sometimes serious, emotionally empathetic, hardy, powerful, anxious, focused and sometimes without warning and often after months of awesomeness... I am very depressed. Like I have been for almost 4 weeks. The last time I was down was in January. So it's been a good run I suppose. 

Seeing people's eyes glaze over, and seeing them distance themselves minutely when I share my apologies for being non communicative this past month. This depro season was triggered when I subluxated both forearms, shoulder, rib and pelvis from H-EDS in the same week. I made two ballgowns sewing mostly by hand, with two dislocated forearms. A bit of depression is understandable really. 

When I am open, and say "it's been a very hard few weeks and I'm still not completely well..." Depression and Generalised Anxiety are awful. Unwanted and often unexpected... 

When a friend or colleague shares vulnerably with you that they're struggling, it doesn't mean you should step back or run a mile. Just be there and support with kind words and a squeeze of a hand. Too often people are so quick to share their #RIPs followed by a slew of depression helpline numbers, but in practical every day settings, people don't know how to act when they find out a friend or co-worker is depressed or anxious.

Spend time finding out. Google what to do, what to say. Get empowered to help those around you who may need it from time to time.

Without warning I will be back on top of things, but for now I don't answer the phone. I am forgetful. I cry. I annoy my family. I create some of my best music and art. I am dark. And you know what? That's ok.

I'm still a fuck'n shining Queen 👑

My name is Wil Wheaton. I live with chronic Depression, and I am not ashamed. | WIL WHEATON dot NET

http://wilwheaton.net/2018/05/my-name-is-wil-wheaton-i-live-with-chronic-depression-and-i-am-not-ashamed/

Uthando Lwakho live Performance Sandy Bigara

Uthando Lwakho, my original isiZulu Love Song, written for Toya Delazy inspired by her song Memoriam for her departed Mother #RIP www.youtube.com/watch?v=5waHSthGQwM this song is for all people who have to say goodbye, and who cannot be together because of religious, cultural or physical reasons.

UTHANDO LWAKHO

Ooh, Yeah…
Uthando Lwakho, Uthando Lwami,
Uthando Lwethu... Ngunaphakade!
Uthando Lwakho, Uthando Lwami,
Uthando Lwethu... Ngunaphakade!
Ngiphakamisele phezulu sthandwa,
kuze kukhanyi llanga. llanga. llanga…

Choir and Instrumental Ooh oh…

Uthando Lwakho, Uthando Lwami,
Uthando Lwethu... Ngunaphakade!
Uthando Lwakho, Uthando Lwami,
Uthando Lwethu... Ngunaphakade!
Ngiphakamisele phezulu sthandwa,
kuze kukhanyi llanga. llanga. llanga.
Uthando, Uthando, Uthando, Lwe… hold THU!

Ngiphakamisele phezulu sthandwa,
kuze kukhanyi llanga. llanga. llanga.
Uthando, Uthando, Uthando, Lwethu!
Ngiphakamisele phezulu sthandwa,
kuze kukhanyi llanga. llanga. llanga.

Ngani wami, thandekhayo, hlala nami,
Hlala nami, hlala nami… (hold)

Ngiphakamisele phezulu sthandwa,
kuze kukhanyi llanga. llanga. llanga.
Ngiphakamisele phezulu sthandwa,
kuze kukhanyi llanga. llanga. llanga.
Uthando, Uthando, Uthando, Lwethu!

Translation:
"Your love, my love, our love...
Forever!
Lift me higher.
Hold me dear one,
until the morning comes.
I am with you,
Love me,
Stay with me,
Stay with me,
Stay with me"

With thanks to Mpumy Ndlovu for the translation of lyrics in 2014.

DIARY: Teacher From Hell

Adults, Coaches, Teachers.

Children will never, ever forget a kindness.

They will never ever forget a wrong doing either.

I've just told Kelsey about a terrible experience that I had at high school, moments before writing one of my June exams in Matric.

A teacher who was kind and loving towards me in public on Sundays during church, and an awful villain towards me from Monday to Fridays (without provocation) unexpectedly called me up onto stage moments before our exam, and lambasted me and embarrassed me for wearing earrings that were not regulation sized. When I quietly informed her that I had worn them for 5 years without removing them she escalated to shouting and belittling me in front of my peers. Before informing me that I would have detention (my first) and sending me back to my desk.

With shaking hands and knees I somehow made it through the exam with tears landing on the pages. Mid year exams.

I made the story funny so that Kelsey would laugh. And then found this woman's page on Facebook.

Five years of hellish treatment from her, numerous hurt feelings and feeling attacked by her words and nastiness... and there she is, smiling and holding grandchildren, sharing posts about dolphin slaughter. I wonder if I was the only one. If something about me absolutely riled her up the wrong way? The way that I sang in choir, laughed at lunch break, danced to class? I have no clue. She didn't know how bad my home life was, how hard it was to get up and smile every day. How we suffered. She just used me as a way to let off steam, or release pent up frustrations. 

I can however say that she altered my way of treating children and teens, always, always show absolute love and kindness to children and teenagers. They never forget a kindness.

I forgive her. But she's still a shit 👌😬😁

SHOWBIZ: The StarViking Soiree II

The StarViking: Soiree II

5th May 2018

8pm

St Mary's Heritage Church Gosford 

Presented by Sandy Bigara Arts and Entertainment 

Ticket Link ➡️ https://bit.ly/2HsP9sR

The second of two very different Soiree's, limited seating will be available for this evening's fantasy art music extravaganza! Held inside the beautiful and historic St Mary's Anglican Church building in Gosford this will be an annual event; with the aim to raise funds for Sandy Bigara's touring, community musical and art projects, and financing her work on the central coast and internationally.

Sandy Bigara will perform this second soiree in the guise of her alter ego: The StarViking. Performing original cinematic operatic jazz pop fusion music that took her to number 1 in Australia for two months last year in the online music charts, and to number 300 globally across all genre's out of over 3.5 million musicians on the music platform.

"If you didn't stay till the end last night - sorry but you missed out on something historical! This lady will be doing her thing at the Opera House no doubt one day! Lucky to have Sandy Bigara Starviking at our stage in Gosford. Mind blown!!" – Lou Sawileskij, GM, The Rhythm Hut

The StarViking performs in hand-crafted intergalactic ballgowns covered with thousands of stitched and appliqued crystals, wearing Valkyrie inspired head gear and covered in lights it's an experience! There will be projected displays, beautiful lighting and hopefully some StarViking characters amongst the audience… The Celestial Poet Elijah Stevenson and The Maddonnaii Poet Sam Tracy will be sharing some solar spoken word with us, and the show will be hosted by The Interstellar Storyteller Lindy Mitchell-Nilsson from Long Story Short. This will be the debut performance of a new StarViking called Galaxy. 

Sandy has been performing since the age of 4, in South Africa she was actively involved in choirs as a soloist and competed as an award-winning vocalist with an average of A+ awarded to her from 1991 - 2002. She was awarded the Aria Antiche Award for classical singing by the Italian consulate and the Association Dante Alighieri and was also awarded the Cantata Primus by her State Choir, as the Prime Member overall representing the state of Kwa-Zulu Natal for 9 years. After touring for 9 years nationally and internationally with the State choir, Sandy became a Music and Drama teacher until she launched her musical educational show company in 2008. Her original shows toured to over 1 million children and then from 2011 – 2015 her theatrical musicals ran successfully for up to 35 shows in a month. Since arriving in Gosford in 2015, Sandy has worked tirelessly to become committed and focused on community musical ventures. These annual soirees will assist her in doing so.

The show will be opened by national and international singer Adam Matthew Johnson, and his lovely wife Lea, they are the unique and creative 'Ohana'. Ohana hail from Narara on the Central Coast of NSW. With Adam playing a Hawaiian made Koaloha tenor Ukulele, and Lea playing a custom-made Cajon they make beautiful music together. They travel to Hawa'ii yearly to learn the culture and find new ways to influence their music. Inspired by such artists as Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, Jack Johnson, The Kuau Crater boys and John Cruz, they are heavily involved in the ukulele scene in Australia and New Zealand and play both modern contemporary and traditional music. Adam is known on the coast for his soothing vocals and ability to create a new and interesting experience with each song. Ohana is a treasure and we are so happy that they have agreed to open for Soiree II this year!