CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Experts tell us we're living pretty stressful lives, so LeRee Naviaux couldn't have picked a better time to produce a meditative CD intended to bring harmony to the listener.
Her gentle song "In This Moment" calmly leads the listener through a meditative reflection on breath, feelings, smiling, letting go of pain, acceptance, love, joy, peace, being, freedom, stillness, grace and silence.
LeRee Naviaux embellished the CD cases of the meditative song “In This Moment” with decorative bits and pieces she gathered from her home and nature.
"The song starts with breath - to just be aware of breath," she said. "Then to distance yourself from emotions like anger and pain."
When you let go of pain through meditation, explains Naviaux, a retired psychologist, you acknowledge it's there but don't let it consume you.
The melody and lyrics for the first several verses of the song came to Naviaux in 2004 while she was guiding a reflective reading group on Eckhart Tolle's "The Power of Now," a book about spiritual enlightenment. The song came together while she was driving. She likes to sing while she drives.
She wrote the final verses last year, after guiding a group through "A New Earth," another of Tolle's books. In the lyrics, Naviaux suggests listeners smile at ego and let go of pain. The lyrics and music helped calm and center her when she felt frustrated or tense.
"It fits so well. We usually get so aggravated with ourselves, others or situations," she said. "What a change of perspective to be able to smile, instead."
Naviaux asked Ron Sowell, music director of "Mountain Stage" and Unity of Kanawha Valley, Jack Kennedy, choral and music director at Stonewall Jackson Middle School and a pianist at Unity, Heidi Muller, musician and vocalist, and Bob Webb, a recording artist, to produce a recording of her song.
Sowell, Kennedy, Muller and Webb met and recorded the song. They changed some lyrics to make them more singable before Webb mixed the final version for the CD. Naviaux paid for the initial production and promotion costs with a small life insurance policy her parents purchased when she was a child.
Sowell suggested she produce more copies and sell the CDs.
"I can burst out singing, and when I get to the silence at the end, I'm so much calmer," she said. "I wanted to share it."
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Experts tell us we're living pretty stressful lives, so LeRee Naviaux couldn't have picked a better time to produce a meditative CD intended to bring harmony to the listener.
Her gentle song "In This Moment" calmly leads the listener through a meditative reflection on breath, feelings, smiling, letting go of pain, acceptance, love, joy, peace, being, freedom, stillness, grace and silence.
"The song starts with breath - to just be aware of breath," she said. "Then to distance yourself from emotions like anger and pain."
When you let go of pain through meditation, explains Naviaux, a retired psychologist, you acknowledge it's there but don't let it consume you.
The melody and lyrics for the first several verses of the song came to Naviaux in 2004 while she was guiding a reflective reading group on Eckhart Tolle's "The Power of Now," a book about spiritual enlightenment. The song came together while she was driving. She likes to sing while she drives.
She wrote the final verses last year, after guiding a group through "A New Earth," another of Tolle's books. In the lyrics, Naviaux suggests listeners smile at ego and let go of pain. The lyrics and music helped calm and center her when she felt frustrated or tense.
"It fits so well. We usually get so aggravated with ourselves, others or situations," she said. "What a change of perspective to be able to smile, instead."
Naviaux asked Ron Sowell, music director of "Mountain Stage" and Unity of Kanawha Valley, Jack Kennedy, choral and music director at Stonewall Jackson Middle School and a pianist at Unity, Heidi Muller, musician and vocalist, and Bob Webb, a recording artist, to produce a recording of her song.
Sowell, Kennedy, Muller and Webb met and recorded the song. They changed some lyrics to make them more singable before Webb mixed the final version for the CD. Naviaux paid for the initial production and promotion costs with a small life insurance policy her parents purchased when she was a child.
Sowell suggested she produce more copies and sell the CDs.
"I can burst out singing, and when I get to the silence at the end, I'm so much calmer," she said. "I wanted to share it."
"In This Moment" contains one 16-minute song and costs $10. Naviaux turns over all the proceeds to four organizations: YWCA Sojourner's Shelter for Homeless Women and Families, Unity of Kanawha Valley, West Virginia Institute for Spirituality and West Virginia Public Broadcasting.
Naviaux is or has been active in each of these groups. She's sold many CDs at Unity. For months after the CD's production, Naviaux donated $110 to each of the four organizations.
"I'm not a salesperson," she said. "I take no credit for its success other than writing it. It's bigger than me."
People who purchase the CD often write or tell Naviaux what it meant to them. One woman, a teacher at Chandler Elementary School, said she listens every morning as she prepares to go to school. As daily frustrations mount, she takes a deep breath and recaptures the morning's serenity.
"Consider the CD a gift for yourself for peace and relaxation. There's a peaceful center in everybody. Even prisoners feel free when they find it," Naviaux said. "You begin by listening and taking time to find that quiet place inside."
For more information about "In This Moment," call 304-344-9091 or e-mail naviauxld
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