About Me—Roshana Ariel

What a tangled web we weave … I mean, what a beautiful tapestry we create!

The author at 3. Family photo.

I grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota, the youngest of five kids—three girls; two boys. My dad was the head of the music department at a small fine arts college nearby. My mom was a medical librarian. They were both musicians … my dad conducted the choir and my mom was the organist in a beautiful Episcopal church with stained-glass windows and statues of the saints, with candles glowing and fragrant incense wafting into the space.

I began taking flute lessons when I was in second grade and took a year or two of piano lessons just to have a working knowledge of chord structure and basic music theory, a requirement in our home.

I played flute all through school and into college, and ended up playing in bands and as half of a duo later on. Remember Chicago’s “Color My World” and Jethro Tull’s “Aqualung”? They were part of my large repertoire.

Venus, the band I played in, in Hawaii. Photo by a friend.

Delusions

When I was 20, I met my first husband. He was a trip. He kept talking to God like God was walking down the street with us. Even though I’d grown up in the church, I’d…