Music surrounds us every day, and there are some songs that colour our day in certain hues of blue, while other days they can be uplifting orange.
When I was a kid there was a revolution of music that covered the gambit of emotions in such a way that there was no way you could avoid it. When you turned on the radio, when you played your music on the stereo or drove your car there were songs that painted the moment.
I remember “Wear Your Love Like Heaven” by Donovan. Colors of the mind. There were all sorts of beautiful images that made up music during that renaissance of rock. There still are if you are listening for it. Sure music is to dance to, its to make love to, dream to, relax to and generally absorb yourself in it. But truly listening to it and letting it start that “movie” in your mind is just as unique. “Here Comes The Sun” “Good Vibrations” Back then they drew pictures as the rang their way out of the speakers to the ears.
Today to, so many great musicians are creating pictures and moods in the songs they create. Everyone has their favorites. I am not going to rattle them off because there is so much passion in the choice. Often some artists just capture the motions of your life. I have always been a fan of a band called Copeland, Aaron Marsh makes modern art with his music. Although the band has disbanded. I can tell you after decades of music listening, they hit me. I am sure that there are artists that are like that for you. What are they?
One of the coolest thing is that music breaks down so many boundaries. No matter where you live in the world, there are rhythms, melodies, songs of praise, songs of war, songs of love and loneliness, No harm diving into it. They can lift you up, bring you down, connect you to the past or bring you toward the future.
Recently this video was taken at Olympic Stadium in London. Some may say that Sir Paul should have done this song in the opening ceremony. but honestly it wasn’t his song to sing (even thow he was in the group). What is so very cool is that people of all countries (many Brits I am sure) are involved. One World singing such a simple command. Beautiful.
I have always loved music. From as far back as I can remember I had something in my life that would play music. A portable radio (they called them “transistor” radios for a while), a record player, a boombox, a Walkman, a CD Walkman, an I Pod and a smartphone. I always loved my stereo system ( because at one time they had mono systems I guess). There was always music playing around me. In the background, in the foreground 🙂 in the car, at the beach near our house, at friends houses, parties, late night on the back porch.
There was one thing that really changed how I listened to music and made the difference on what I listen to today. I will show my age by saying this but for a while in time the “record album” was part of a renaissance of modern music that made listening to an artist or group different from before. It wasn’t just about one song (although that may be one of the reasons to listen to the album), it was about the complete experience of understanding the artists and their music and the atmosphere it brought when you would play several songs in a row by the same artists. Sort of why they called it an “LP” – long play record.
Since it was hard to skip through/scan through songs on a record without picking up the needle (amazing a sharp little thing that scraped along a groove in plastic), it was easier just to let the “side” play. One half of the album would play out its 4 or 5 selections and you would listen. And somewhere along that time you would get to know the artist better, and actually appreciate the songs that weren’t likely the hit-single playing on the radio. In some cases they all folded together into something that felt more like a drawing or painting of a mood.
And even now, as I scan through songs on the Internet or program selections or shuffle a playlist I still stop to wonder about those “other” songs. The one or two I missed because they were part of a more complete picture in sound. I could even get nostalgic about how the album cover and art were part of the experience. Don’t get me started about those albums that would include the words to the songs, or “liner” notes from fellow musicians who wanted to speak to the listener about their heroes and peers.
I am too much in a hurry now to sit through a whole album (or at least one side). Sometimes when a song doesn’t grab me in the first 10 seconds I hit the forward button and go on. Letting songs pass by without a passing thought.
Don’t get me wrong. Theres something to be said for technology allowing us to experience new and different artists online, streaming or downloading musicians you may never have heard before – when record companies had to pick and choose for you. But that album from the artist that fought their way to the label had character as a “physical thing” to be collected, and replayed and shared with friends as an experience.
Worry. There’s one thing that seems to be able to consume so much of your life in so many ways that it can become such a fixation that little else matters. Whether it involves work, your family, your friends, your health, your finances, what others think of you, what you will do today or tomorrow… and on and on.
It’s not that you can’t be concerned, that you cannot plan things and be careful to manuever those things that can get in your way. We all have to go through our lives with eyes wide open and watch for the obstacles we can avoid. But taking “worry” to a point in your life that it stops you from experiencing what God has given you is just not a good course to take.
When my wife and I had our first child, every thing had changed about worry. We would worry did he have enough to eat, enough sleep, were we paying enough attention to him? If he would sneeze we would imagine the worse and always be consulting books or family and friends.
Over the years we have learned that there are only some things we can do as parents, and we have to be concerned about our children (we love them), but we are going to leave it up to God as well. We have to plant the core-things in them that they need to make it through life, but in the end we cannot be standing next to them every step of the way.
When I was diagnosed with cancer, I know that it was something that would need God’s help. My wife has been there to help me through. Even as she has been my angel (because I believe God sent her to me so many years ago), I know that some of it is built on faith to take it one day at a time. Worry could easily consume every minute of every day.
Worry will make you older faster, it can replace the good things in front of you with an awkward view and dangerous perspective. It can consume so much of your life and in exchange repel others around you. So the end it seems, life is the experience and all that goes with it.
As Jason Mraz says below in a song about his friend who fought cancer, “The remedy is the experience.” Don’t let it control your life. Be strong.
Well i saw fireworks from the freeway And behind closed eyes I cannot make them go away ‘Cause you were born on the fourth of July, freedom ring Now something on the surface it stings I said something on the surface Well it kind of makes me nervous Who says that you deserve this And what kind of god would serve this? We will cure this dirty old disease Well if you’ve got the poison I’ve got the remedy
The remedy is the experience. This is a dangerous liaison I say the comedy is that it’s serious. This is a strange enough new play on words I say the tragedy is how you’re gonna spend The rest of your nights with the light on So shine the light on all of your friends When it all amounts to nothing in the end.
I won’t worry my life away. I won’t worry my life away.
Well i heard two men talking on the radio In a cross fire kind of reality show Uncovering the ways to plan the next big attack They were counting down the ways to stab The brother in the be right back after this The unavoidable kiss, where the minty fresh Death breath is sure to outlast this catastrophe Dance with me, because if you’ve got the poison, I’ve got the remedy
The remedy is the experience. This is a dangerous liaison I say the comedy is that it’s serious. This is a strange enough new play on words I say the tragedy is how you’re gonna spend The rest of your nights with the light on So shine the light on all of your friends When it all amounts to nothing in the end.
I won’t worry my life away. I won’t worry my life away.
When I fall in love I take my time There’s no need to hurry when I’m making up my mind You can turn off the sun but I’m still gonna shine and I’ll tell you why
Because
The remedy is the experience. This is a dangerous liaison I say the comedy is that it’s serious. This is a strange enough new play on words I say the tragedy is how you’re gonna spend The rest of your nights with the light on So shine the light on all of your friends When it all amounts to nothing in the end.
I won’t worry my life away I won’t worry my life away I won’t and I won’t and I won’t
“So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” Mathew 6:34
Some days can seem to drone on for a long time. As the summer days in Texas grow longer and the heat lingers on, it gives me pause to stop and thank God for all the people he has put in my life. They have all created a mosaic of memories and experiences that allow me to get to this point and see what I see. It amazes me. Even on those bland and simple days , where nothing eventful of note has left its mark, there is always the reflection of the events and people that have been before this moment.
I miss many of them, but they had their own roads to take and lives to travel. I am better for having them in my life’s paths, and hopefully I helped be a piece of who they are too… Not all of them were the greatest of friends, in fact some were foes. But they all made a difference.
I am also thankful that I have my family. Through the laughter, the tears, the frustrations and triumphs we work through them together as best we know how, with God’s countenance and grace to watch over us. I haven’t seen one of my sons in nearly nine years, and I pray that he is learning this to be true. But I love him still. I am fortunate for my three other children and my wonderful wife that have been in my life these many years.
As the US recognized Fathers Day this past weekend, I want to hope that I have reflected some of the greatness of my father on my children. I think I have. I am fortunate to be able to say that, (when so many don’t wish or want it so)…my children never really got to know my father before he died- but I see him in them. Such precious little time with their other grandfather was hopefully enough to see the man he was and what pieces of him exist in them as well.
So I continue to be amazed. And I hope you can reflect on the mosaic of your life that has brought you to each day, and be amazed along with me in the light it produces. Be good with what makes you who you are today, share it with your family and friends, and be joyful for what adventures lie ahead in the time here on Earth.
I’ve been alone most of my life
I’ve never known what it was like
To end up somewhere and not have to pack
To be among friends I know have my back
But now I’m here where I belong
I’ve finally found a wife and a home
And a family that matters, means more to me
Than anything I have ever believed
And when we are gathered together
Tell me how blessed can somebody be
Give thanks, break bread, say grace, bow heads
For all of this love that surrounds me
We laugh, we cry, stand together that’s why
It’s all being part of a family
Tried it before, never felt right
I never dreamed that someday I might
Be part of something bigger than me
It makes me feel humble, finally I see
All that we have is each other
And that’s all that I’ll ever need
Give thanks, take time to say that I’m
So grateful for all that surrounds me
We laugh, we cry, stand together that’s why
It’s all being part of a family
Measuring the passing of things can sometimes bring sadness, because it serves as a reminder that we are all getting older. It’s a fact of life we cannot deny, and as long as we are alive on Earth it is a reality we will experience.
Over the years I have changed my view of things. When I was younger, milestones like birthdays, anniversaries, and those significant days that help to provide keepsakes that will live in our memories…were all fleeting by at a very high-speed. Perhaps friends and family would gather together, while other times life just got too busy to really make time to celebrate or pause. That seemed okay because after all it seemed, “it was just another day” on the calendar to mark time.
As I have gotten older (not “old” by-the-way) I have become much less cynical about the milestones, they need to be observed. They need to be cherished for the place they signify on the timeline of our lives. Sure some of that can generate melancholy that can just bring the tone down on the very thing we should be celebrating. But it doesn’t have to. And if we let it , we are missing an opportunity to be thankful for the occasion to count it. What are we observing/counting anyway?
Our milestones (however small or significant) are there to provide us the chance to remember. Remember the good, the bad, the joyful times and the struggles that we have lived through. It is part of life, so in fact we are celebrating life in all of its detail. We are also celebrating the people and loved ones in it, and that simple fact that God is there to surround you in the moments each and every minute of them.
So this weekend my wife and I will celebrate 33 years of marriage. I used to think that sounded like something just old people would be happy about, but I don’t consider myself “old”. I enjoy the same humor, same music, same movies, same books, same food, same need for relationships and life’s validation as my children and their friends. I can feel older since my body has certainly begun to show wear. I can know that I am wearing out because of a date on the calendar, but it is the collective experiences I have had over the last 33 years that make me the richer person for it. I love my wife and the children we raised as the most Earthly rewards either of us could ask for. I look forward to eternity with them someday.
I am also positive that someday it will end, and as someone who fights cancer everyday there are special anniversaries to celebrate with my loved ones and with God. They are everyday milestones. It’s the reason and need to keep going and enjoy the passage of time. Like the ads say “celebrate more birthdays”.
So it seems – everyone has milestones to pass along the calendar of our lives. Some we may not observe but should, others may pass with little celebration. For some souls, time is too short and they leave us behind to keep time. For those of us that get more – we need to grab hold of the minutes and make them be the best.
Here’s a song that says it all from one of my favorite musicals, RENT.
Tracks In The Dust 