Date: February 3rd 2010

Dear Cameron,
Every time I have emailed you recently I have forgotten a very important item. Will you please send me a brief paragraph or so by way of introduction for you and Kristina. I want to introduce you with whatever words you would like. Thanks so much and sorry I've been negligent about this. G

Dear G,
Gee... we always love to hear ourselves introduced and discover what attracted people to us... Generally we hear that people appreciate: 1) the fact that we went into Baghdad with musical instruments to make friends with Iraqis at the same time that the US government was invading and bombing (see www.musicalmissions.com ) 2) that we learn and study music and languages -- we sing in something like 8 languages and I speak 5, three of them quite fluently... 3) we are missionaries in REVERSE: we go to LEARN FROM OTHERS, not to spread US culture... 4) the music we carry is extraordinarily beautiful and very exotic... the indigenous middle-eastern music we play is microtonal and based on scales called maqamat that are very ancient... they come from way before the invention of the piano and the equal tempered scales of Europe... people frequently say that they respond to our music from some ancient familiarity as if it was in their DNA... from the point of view of physics, these ancient scales are, in fact, more perfectly in tune, with intervals known to musicians as "just intonation". I have authored a book which presents 45 of these ancient scales to musicians who have the appropriate instruments on which to learn and play them... when we play our "Arabic Trance Dance" events we play for 3 hours straight and facilitate deep spiritual trance... (see www.innernationals.com ) 5) the images we show and stories we tell pave the way for true freedom on planet earth... both internal and external... 6) our support for Iraqi refugee children in Damascus (see www.musicalmissionsofpeace.org ) 7) our support for other American "musical ambassadors" who have traveled, studied and performed in Iraqi Kurdistan and Iran (see www.musicalmissionsofpeace.org ) 8) one of my books, "Spiritual Traveler: Journeys Beyond Fear" begins to address our largest themes: the world is full of wonderful people! Go get to know them! Sing and dance with them! Above all, don't let the prejudices and fears of the politicians deter you from embracing your own freedom and all of humanity.

I hope these ideas help...
cameron