Growing in Color by Chiemi live @Ward4 #gretschguitars #singersongwriter #growth #fallleaves

I've been thinking about growth lately. We often picture it as moving forward, but sometimes growth is about gathering experiences, reconnecting with parts of ourselves, and carrying the lessons of those who helped us along the way. Here's a live performance of "Growing in Color," a song I wrote in 2023 about those ideas. It reflects on change, mentorship, identity, and the ways people who teach, care for, and inspire us continue to shape who we become. The studio version, featuring harmonies, is available here: 🎵 https://chiemi1.bandcamp.com/album/in... - lyrics below. #livemusic #singersongwriter #gretschguitars Growing in Color The true task of growing Lies not in self-actualization, But in the careful transition From one order of reality to stabilization. Central to this transition Is the limiting of the imagination To more indirect spheres like art In exchange for independence, life apart. Leaves in color signal change, Where we go, what we keep. They fall through seasons in our lives, Revealing who we want to be … who we want to be. If we lose a bit of ourselves In the journey to adulthood, Where do we again find the pieces? Stories, songs, sometimes acultured. Those who mentored, taught and cared, will always be a part of us. Their legacy lives on as we carry the torch, to fulfill our shared vision for the world we forge.* Piece by piece, we assemble our world, Some more quickly than others. Some in ways that make the far away real, And the stranger in reach as a brother. *Expression of sentiment in these two lines attributed to Dr. Leana Wen, from her book, Lifelines: A Doctor’s Journey in the Fight for Public Health (2021).