An interpretation of the Lord's Prayer by Rob Levit

This is my interpretation of this very moving prayer, try your own, it is a revelation to oneself and will connect you to the Spirit! Plus, it's creative. You may use it freely, anywhere, anytime (just gimme a little shout). Joy in your day, joy in your journey!
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Our Creator, who dwells within the depths of the heart and is all life –

We rejoice in your spirit and presence!

In this moment, all that you are is manifest throughout creation.

Your love flows and the word lives – living water, bread of life.

Feed us the gifts of spirit – faith, hope and love.

As you forgive us completely, we forgive ourselves and brothers and sisters without condition – we ask nothing in return and are glad.

Show and teach us the path of compassion and patience so we do not behave compulsively and without regard to our neighbors.

Remove the veils of darkness and bigotry and other silent patterns of destruction we use to block your light.

The world you have created is beyond words in its magnificent possibility – all is light, all is love.

You are the visible and invisible, now and forever

The light, the spirit, the peace – deep gratitude.

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The Original, still beautiful!

Our Father, who art in heaven,

Hallowed be thy Name.

Thy kingdom come.

Thy will be done,

On earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses,

As we forgive those who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation,

But deliver us from evil.

[For thine is the kingdom,

and the power, and the glory,

for ever and ever.

Amen.]

What is healing? Some thoughts.

A friend of mine and I had an exchange on what healing is. I wrote the following:

Healing is not about the healer or necessarily the person being healed in the individual sense. Healing is often the lifting of our perceptions so we may see the unseen -- that which we have consciously or unconsciously denied. There is no blame in healing -- veils of perception are gently lifted so we can see and experience our own value and the value in others. In fact, our value cannot be revealed unless we offer ourselves completely to the healing process -- that means seeing and activating the value in others through listening, teaching, acting, being.

Music and the arts, which are "living compassion" are conductors of that energy. As healers, we are mere conduits for that energy. There is nothing special about what we do. Healing energy is available to all and in all -- some folks just somehow get connected with it and therefore seek to give it away sooner so that all may have. When we give that energy up, God instantly replenishes it. There is no hoarding or withholding of creative energy -- it is ever-renewing living water. It's a river without end, an ocean without bottom: healing energy.

Healing is the continuous sharing of creative and positive energy at any/all levels with or without the outcome we desire. That's why there's no fault or blame in sickness -- as long as we love and share joy then that is in and of itself healing. We can call illness or hurt a blight or we can call it an opportunity -- physical healing is one manifestation of success but so are renewal of family relationships, inner peace, revelation of personal gifts and expression. Let's not limit what healing can be or mean with our limited understanding.

No sooner do we heal others we are healed ourselves. No sooner that we are healed then we can heal others. The healed become the healers instantaneously.

One body, one mind, one community, one world, one Universe, one beyond . . . a divine dance! Illusions of separation -- vanish.

2008 so far . . .

This year so far has been mostly quiet -- but a good quiet -- as a calm sense of peace and purpose overflows and pervades my life. This year has been spent mostly in personal prayer and meeting with people to build a community vision.

As I move into late winter and then spring, I know the days will become crazy and hectic again on the outside but the center holds -- rich, fertile, deep. 2007 was a big, bold, bright year and I expect nothing less from 2008. It's just I was extremely fatigues at the end of the year, more than I realized and I am enjoying some time at home now -- watching less television, reading more books, listening to music and being more helpful to my wife.

The Holy Spirit, The Life Spirit is indeed preparing me for something special, I know that. That path will be in service, in building and sharing my talents on a wider level. That is why I am not rushing anywhere and am paying attention to what that "still small voice" is telling me. 2008 will be and has been fantastic and yet I absorb each moment with adoration and patience. Spring will arrive soon enough!

Enjoy The Music

Find more music like this on Annapolis and Anne Arundel County Creatives

Rob's Artist Statement

Artist’s Statement

I. These paintings came in two massive heaves – virtual paroxysms of creative energy. The smaller size batch was created over a two week period at the end of Summer 2007. The large size batch was created between Christmas 2007 and January 3, 2008. I’m glad it’s over because the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual focus required to paint this way isn’t exactly Big Fun. I paint on the floor and it’s actually exhausting. When I go to bed after a day of painting I see lots of bizarre lines, colors, and squiggles that keep me up. My body is sore.

II. So what’s the point? Because I love the way colors dance and flow! Because I love the way what I thought was going to happen didn’t happen. There is no plan here. I have no idea what the paintings will look like and often, when I feel I am getting comfortable, I will destroy what’s on the canvas. Our garden hose was a frequent tool – several of these paintings were amply sprayed down. A sprayed down canvas will often reveal new and exciting textures – a place to start over. Renewal, destruction, resurrection of an idea.

III. I love water. Water is life and so somewhere in all my paintings is water. The little paintings are first soaked with water. I use watercolors. I use blues, greens, and purples. Water replenishes and refreshes. Water heals. Water is life. Living water.

IV. Painting is making the invisible visible. Painting is translating thought into action and back again.

V. When I was in elementary school my art teacher sent me to the principal for making a colossal mess with glue and paint and getting the counters messy. Things haven’t changed much – I still make a huge mess and usually I don’t get into trouble, except with my wife from time to time because of the paint stain on the carpet in our basement.

VI. To me, these paintings are landscapes – but of what? They are interior landscapes. They are the topology of my mind and spirit. Each of us has an interior topology. My goal is to share that topology and map with you. I do that through my music, art, words, and actions. That is my life. I am interested in your topology, too.

VII. Tools of the trade: Acrylics and watercolors – all are mixed directly on the canvas or paper. There is no pre-mixing. Paper towels, hose, scraping tools, brushes, Modge Podge, heart, soul, and lots of water.

VIII. My paintings are music: color first, energy and motion second, form third. I’m interested in: How does spontaneous creation, aka improvisation, become a composition? The great composer Schoenberg described composition as “frozen improvisation.” This is action frozen in time, unlock.

IX. These paintings are about process. Engaging the materials as if for the first and last time. Nothing is rejected. Everything is useful. All is good.

X. When I improvise music I remind myself – finish the line. Let it run its course. I feel the same way when I paint. Get out of The Way – let the painting paint itself, let it run its course.

Rob Levit January 2008

The Compass Metaphor

The Compass Metaphor – What guides you?





North – Your highest aspiration(s)

What is your vision and ideal in terms of connection with something greater than yourself?

South –Your connection to the present moment

What, more than anything, keeps you grounded and centered?

East – Your connection to the future

What will be your greatest legacy and contribution to the positive growth of humanity? Does what you do now positively shape the lives of others?

West – Your connection to the past

What story from your past would best describe who you are and what you offer as a compassionate and caring human being?


©2007 Rob Levit

Teaching Music

Teaching Music

Teaching a student is a balance between creating a structured environment and freedom to explore. Two questions that are useful with my students are:

1. What can this information or skill be used for now?

2. What could this information or skill be used for in another context or later on?

One question asks for application thus stressing skill-building and technique. The other question asks for creativity because the application is broadened. I ask students to keep both of these questions in mind as the two pillars of learning.


A music lesson is a microcosm of the larger community.

The music community a microcosm of the world. Teaching concepts must apply to what a student is interested in now in order to maintain interest but also contain seeds to grow and expand into something greater – something the student may not see as valid or useful (yet). Learning must be applied creatively and practically beyond the lesson and music community to be considered successful in the long run. We are preparing musicians but we are also preparing artists and citizens: People that can help transform lives.

It is imperative for students to develop performing opportunities in diverse contexts. Even if a student does not endeavor to be a professional musician, performing in many contexts creates confidence, adaptation to environments, and the ability to plan and practice for many life situations where conditions may be less than perfect. Developing the "performance mentality" is excellent training beyond the arts arena. In a liberal arts environment, musical studies add value to the broader context of a student's life. As a private instructor who has prepared students for college and life beyond music, I am keenly aware of this – I want to add value to a student's overall education.



As a studio teacher with over twenty years experience, I look for opportunities to capitalize on what a student can already do well and build from there. I do not have a remedial approach to instruction but rather a method of inserting necessary learning (theory and reading music for example) into a familiar and comfortable context. That way learning isn't a form of struggle or punishment. A student can learn difficult new tasks without even knowing it sometimes. We are taught that in order to learn difficult things, we must struggle. That isn't necessarily true but we need perceptive teachers to point the way. Basically, difficult learning tasks – sight-reading, ear-training, theory etc. can become effortless when made fun! Rote repetition, while having a place, is the weakest of methodologies. Repetition can still be a musical and deep experience.

I give students the opportunity to explore their creative side and also provide a clear set of benchmarks and criteria for artistic excellence. What is it that they hope to accomplish? What are their dreams? Now, how do we relate that to the tasks at hand – the mechanics? Start with the heart, the inspiration and work outward. Creativity and expression without the solid foundation is useless. Creativity without a way of directing it is wasteful. My main mission as a teacher: Identify what a student excels at and create the resources to nurture that excellence. Then, teach the student to self-educate and self-diagnose because they won't always have a teacher. A great teacher transmits his/her learning tools to the student so that the student takes the crucial first steps toward self-sufficiency.

Repuation and Credibility

Reputation and Credibility

Building your reputation and credibility is the most important thing you can do for your business yet it really has very little to do with business. Reputation and credibility are personal and are built from the inside out. So how do you build credibility? Here are three strategies to build on what you have and repair what you may have lost:

1. Know your core principles. Each of us operates on three or four inner principles that guide virtually every decision we make. A great exercise is to articulate them in no uncertain terms – clearly and unequivocally. Write them down and analyze them. Are they principles that you can truly live by? Some of the things you may want to think about: How do you want to treat people? How do you want to be treated by people? What do you think people say about you when you aren’t present? What would you like them to say? Write a one paragraph description of how you would like people to describe you when you aren’t around. Then choose to live by that description, without exception. If someone questions why or why not you chose to do something share your core principles with them. Explain to them that your decisions and actions are based on principles not on mood or whimsy. This will earn their respect even if they don’t agree with you.

2. Commit to excellence. Committing to excellence involves two steps. First, it means taking your core principles and making sure that your entire life is organized around them. Each activity you engage in either fits your core principles or they don’t. If they don’t eliminate them. That’s the great thing about having rock solid core principles – they enable you to make in the moment decisions that will have long term impact on your reputation and credibility, for better or worse. The second step of committing to excellence involves accepting total responsibility for what happens to you. People that have low credibility always have someone to blame for why things go haywire, but not you! By taking full responsibility for things that go haywire followed by tangible actions that rectify the situation you will gain instant credibility.


3. Apologize sincerely when you make a mistake or don’t live by one of your core principles. Words and deeds have a long shelf life. Over the course of my career I have said and done some things I am not proud of. At times, I felt that there was nothing I could do about a past mistake and became disheartened. However, I learned the value of a sincere and action-oriented apology, even for things that occurred years ago. A powerful and authentic apology is the best possible way to restore your reputation and credibility to a damaged relationship. Don’t expect things to be perfect overnight. Make the apology followed by an action and then let it go. All it takes is one person to damage your reputation and credibility so if you are able to offer a sincere apology to someone you have wronged followed by an action – like referring them for business, taking them out for lunch, or providing them with a contact you may just end up with a stronger relationship than you had prior to the incident. A sincere apology followed by a helpful action is the most powerful way of restoring your reputation and credibility. Make a list of anyone you need to apologize to. Why do you need to apologize? If you explain it well to yourself then it will be clear with them. Then, pick up the phone and schedule an appointment with that person. Showing a wronged party that you are vulnerable and open to change is an instant credibility builder.