my favourite rock
we've all got one, right?
Hello! Once again Thursday rolls around and it’s time for me to GET DEEP ask you this:
Are you a sentimental person? I am, and always have been. I always find it incredibly hard to do a clear-out and throw things away. I love collecting little bits of paper with notes people have written to me, and objects which hold emotional significance, even if they may not be of any value to anyone else.
I think when I am of the furniture-buying age (which is probably my age now, but I am not of the furniture-buying salary), I want to buy some sort of apothecary dresser, which will hold all of my sentimental papers and trinkets and…. rocks, naturally.
Today’s newsletter is about one rock in my collection, the one which is my favourite.
When I was sixteen or seventeen, I asked my friend to bring me a piece of Canada. She was going on a ski trip over the holidays to Banff, and had asked if I wanted a souvenir. It wasn’t any secret at the time that I was obsessed with the Great White North and wanted to go there as soon as humanly possible. This desire was fuelled by a figure skater from Ontario at the 2006 Winter Olympics, being asked to dance by a boy from Calgary at my first ‘proper’ teen party, and listening to Billy Talent on repeat.
It was clear in my teenage mind: had to go to Canada! All my dreams would come true if I moved there! The land of mountains and lakes and maple syrup!
So when Christina asked me what I wanted, I said to her that I just wanted a rock. I wanted a literal chunk of Canada so that I would have something to tether me to it, so that I would have to go there.
I imagined the moment I would finally arrive, fresh off a plane, after years of waiting. I would take that totemic rock and throw it back to the land, finally reunited with the continental plate once again. plink-plonk-plonk!
To her credit, Christina picked up a rock when she was in Banff, and put it in a suede, purple pouch, and handed it to me at school when she returned. I still remember the lump of it it sitting in my blazer pocket for the day.
The rock was nothing special. It felt kind of chalky, and had a dull shimmer. It was grey. But it was that perfect size to hold in your hand, and it had a bit of weight to it. And it was just what I wanted — a piece of a place that I wanted to go to. Now I was connected to it. I had a bit of Canada in my pocket.
I don’t think Christina ever told me where she picked up the rock. It could have been on a mountain, it could have been in a car park. Either way, it became the first rock in my collection that I’ve held on to for years.
Some of the songs in the upcoming album are tied to certain places. There’s one about Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh, one about Seattle, and one about Coulee City in Washington, USA.
Last time I was in Edinburgh I made a point of walking up to the base of Arthur’s Seat and grabbing a small chunk of basalt to pocket. Now I had a rock for the song.
I asked my friends on Instagram if anyone in Washington could send me a rock, which would cover the two songs that I had written about that state. Thankfully, Katie obliged. I can’t wait to have a small piece of the West Coast in my hands soon.
It’s a dream of mine to visit the Pacific Northwest. I have a recurring fantasy of walking through a wildflower meadow in Rainier National Park, with the mountain looming beyond the pines. Maybe with a little rock from that part of the world in my hand, I can get there one day soon.
Do you have a favourite rock? Is it from a place which is special to you?
things i liked
✶ This is my new ‘I am a cultured lady, cooking in my beautiful kitchen’ song:
✶ You are the lady of my heart.
✶ I bought a ticket to go see Nickel Creek in September when they come to London! Their latest album is such an intricate joy.
✶ Niall Breen makes some cute comics but it’s these weird ones which really butter my toast:
That’s my little story for this week. I hope you have a great weekend! And maybe pick up a new rock for your collection if you’re somewhere interesting.
You can support this project directly by taking a minute to do one of these things:
buying a ‘Gneiss Guy’ tote bag on my Bandcamp
listening to my music on Spotify and adding it to your playlists
forwarding this newsletter to a friend!
and if you haven’t already, subscribe:
Til next time! Be good,
Olivia 🌈✨🏔🎶
