Requiem for Aurora

In the end of January 2010, my grandmother passed away. I wrote a song "Be Set Free" as she was laying in the hospital with no hope of returning to us. Last Saturday we said our goodbyes and laid her to the ground. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust... And I felt I was not yet finished living through all my emotions, that there were parts of me that still haven't quite realized what has happened. At times it seems like I'm drifting through a surreal fog. Letting go is never easy. Dying is the end of one chapter but it is also the beginning of another. Life on earth is simply a test we must pass.

The inspiration for "Requiem for Aurora" came to me from the second name of my grandmother: Aurora. The name is of Latin origin, meaning "dawn". It seemed to hold in the most precious thought, the salvation of a soul, it's journey from earth to the infinite light - and the composition wrote itself. I was just an instrument, as I always am. Music helps me deal with emotions of many sorts, and in this time of loss, it has helped me more than perhaps anything else. Rest in peace, Helvi Aurora - and above all, be with God.