EVERGREEN

A few Decembers ago I was going through a dark season. I was struggling with depression and it was Christmas.

There were lights and jingle bells and parties and carols and busy malls and laughter, and I couldn’t really feel…anything. As I looked around there were other quiet corners of the world that were in darkness too. We were in the middle of the Syrian Refugee Crisis of 2015 - The conflict in Syria drove more than four million people to seek sanctuary in neighbouring countries, making it the largest refugee crisis for a quarter of a century. In some ways the stories of families running for their lives, looking for shelter and help where there was no room seemed all too familiar - almost biblical.

Still in a bit of a fog, I went to the piano. That day, I wrote “Evergreen”. I didn’t start with any answers. I didn’t figure the storyline out until the song was finished. Sometimes songs are gifts that you can’t take credit for, and this was one of those gifts.

When it was done I knew what I had to do. I threw together a rough recording and uploaded it to this site. I gave it away as a free download and invited you all to join me in donating to Syrian refugees. Together, we gave $1200 to them.

Today I sat in my studio and revisited “Evergreen”. Christmas this year has been easier for me, but that’s not the case for everyone. From your emails, DMs and conversations I’ve had with many of you, the truth in this song connects with so many of us because life is rough sometimes - even at Christmas.

Here’s a new version of “Evergreen”. It’s still not perfect. Probably not good enough to win a Grammy, but that’s not really the point.

I hope it brings you a little comfort if you need some. It’s free and it’s yours. All I ask is for your email address so we can keep in touch in the future.

Much Love & Merry Christmas,

- Greg