Music seems to be very mystical. I'm always astounded by the way it can fill an otherwise still room with the most vivid, nearly tangible emotions. Depending on which emotion it is, the style of music can transport us to another place, it can cause us to change shape, or even disappear. At its best, it can take the musicians creating it and transform them into one organism.
If we reduce music down to its elements, those being (for our purposes) sound, rhythm, melody and harmony, we can see how it relates right down to the very basics of our humanity. We need life, first and foremost, which is kept thriving by the cycles in nature and governed by the order of the universe. Most every entity is greater than the sum of its parts. This is especially true for human beings. A human being, soulful and alive, is all those processes physical, mental, & emotional working in concert. The pieces are useless alone, and yet something is still missing within the mechanism of the pieces together. Music is still just a theory in this stage. It takes something more transcendent to bring music out of the void.
Creativity.
Something spiritual is necessary here. It is a giving and receiving. Just as I pointed out how music transforms a group of musicians into an entity, they must first create and nourish this thing before it gives back to them. The essence is out there, always. We give it form.
I saw Once for the second time this morning and can certainly say it is another favorite, a new favorite, of mine. It will be hard for any film to top Into the Wild for its depth of meaning as it relates to my life. But Once comes as close to that meaning as I can expect. I love, love, love how John Carney juxtaposes the down-and-out natures of the lives of both Guy & Girl with the purity and heights reached by the music they make together. This is an example of sublimation at its finest. Girl, while incredibly well-adjusted, is the picture of functional destitution. She is very poor but makes enough to feed her daughter & mother. Guy, while quite secure financially, is bereft of all social graces and romanticism. He has everything he needs, save for a crucial kick in the pants that is now necessary after losing his lover. Together in music, the Girl and the Guy live out their ideal selves in their ideal lives.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Monday, March 17, 2008
Ireland Forever
A quick entry today, in commemoration of St. Patrick's Day 2008. It has always made me uneasy to think of myself as being defined by the geographical location of my ancestors' birth. At the same time, however, I cannot deny having a particular affinity for all things Irish. I have always felt that one of the greatest mistakes an American can make is to not realize they are an American. I love who I am and I wouldn't have it any other way. While it may be literally true in this case, I don't think the grass is greener on the other side, figuratively speaking.
However, when I hear those familiar melodies of traditional Irish folk music, I feel a deep connection inside to all those people and all those events that contributed to putting me where I am. I cannot deny that the Irish fiddle & flute and the Uilleann pipes strike a chord within me. I envision some kind of cinematic flyover across the ocean as the mist and clouds give way to lush, green fields appearing right before my eyes. Admittedly, it's a grand, romanticized vision, but it's mine nonetheless. Perhaps certain traditions from certain cultures do that for all of us.
Whatever it is, it is a blessing to be a part of, and as I learn more and more, the connections between the me of today and my ancestors of the past become eerie. After all, my family name means: "sea warrior".
All best.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Soon, I'll be doing a full write-up of my impressions of the film, INTO THE WILD, which I give my highest recommendation. See it in the very near future, if you can. I don't want to spoil anything for those who are looking forward to it.
However, when I hear those familiar melodies of traditional Irish folk music, I feel a deep connection inside to all those people and all those events that contributed to putting me where I am. I cannot deny that the Irish fiddle & flute and the Uilleann pipes strike a chord within me. I envision some kind of cinematic flyover across the ocean as the mist and clouds give way to lush, green fields appearing right before my eyes. Admittedly, it's a grand, romanticized vision, but it's mine nonetheless. Perhaps certain traditions from certain cultures do that for all of us.
Whatever it is, it is a blessing to be a part of, and as I learn more and more, the connections between the me of today and my ancestors of the past become eerie. After all, my family name means: "sea warrior".
All best.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Soon, I'll be doing a full write-up of my impressions of the film, INTO THE WILD, which I give my highest recommendation. See it in the very near future, if you can. I don't want to spoil anything for those who are looking forward to it.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Strength, perception & reality
Just by reading this blog, someone may find it odd that I write this: perception is very important. It has a major effect on all of us in many of the things we do. Expectations are closely related with perception. Psychologically, our expectations of certain results have quite an impact on whether or not they will occur. Of course I believe that getting caught up in how other people might judge me is a bad idea. But, I also know that the best probability I have of projecting a certain image of myself is to perceive myself that way first. If I do that, and if I expect that of myself, chances are I will go beyond perception and actually be that way. Funny how that works.
A common problem for many PWDs (i.e. people with disabilities) occurs socially within dating. Often, these people have issues with getting others to acknowledge them as sexual beings. Quads and paraplegics have to convince others that their bodies still work, albeit differently. A woman must overcome the external impression that she is being taken advantage of. Surprisingly, these issues are often self-imposed as these PWDs are simply worried that the able-bodied individuals they meet are thinking this way when, in reality, many of them are not. It can be very difficult to figure out how to project a date-able image to others.
The first step in this specific problem is for those affected to make an internal adjustment on their impressions of themselves. I went through this exact thing, myself, and it is frustrating. I remember fighting the urge to tell a woman I had just met that, well, you know. The uncertainty and the patience required are difficult to get used to, and it is difficult. Most social situations do not make it easy to get your point across without acting inappropriately. I had to understand that I could only control what I could control. To project myself as a sexual being, I had to perceive it that way, and then leave the outside perceptions up to everyone else.
Eventually, I made my adjustment and I learned the same patience for that scenario as I did for any other. The major roadblock for anyone in that situation is body acceptance. For as long as I can remember, I had a major phobia of a tracheostomy. I can honestly say that I would get emotional just thinking about the potential of me having one. I had the strength to overcome every other change in my appearance, but it took me years and years to accept what that might bring should I ever decide to get one. I did it, though, and the strength it took made the rest pale in comparison.
This has been a good thing for me, as I realize I will need someone extra extra special. So that means I'll get to meet someone extra extra special. My approach to this stuff is essentially my approach to everything else. I think we all need to be strong at some point in our lives. In order to do that, however, we must be able to feel strong. It's kind of an obvious "2+2" thing, but how can we ever have strength when we need it if we don't think we can feel strong?
I've always had powers of observation, and I've been able to maximize my understanding of a thing through a limited amount of experience with it. I have looked down the barrel enough times to realize that I am a very strong person. When I go through things now, or think about potential experiences, I am able to tell myself in good faith that I know I will be able to face it. But there's no substitute for the real thing, and my faith in myself is strongest after I survive literally. It doesn't matter what I survive, just that I survive.
I believe that my adventures are a prime example of how perception and reality depend on one another. To really find myself in an optimal position, I cannot allow myself to be ruled only by the way things are, at the moment. However, in order to remain grounded, I must be vigilant as to how much stock I put into perception, from within and without. On the flip side, my goals will be achieved only when I have the courage to first perceive, and then to be, the thing that I want to be.
A common problem for many PWDs (i.e. people with disabilities) occurs socially within dating. Often, these people have issues with getting others to acknowledge them as sexual beings. Quads and paraplegics have to convince others that their bodies still work, albeit differently. A woman must overcome the external impression that she is being taken advantage of. Surprisingly, these issues are often self-imposed as these PWDs are simply worried that the able-bodied individuals they meet are thinking this way when, in reality, many of them are not. It can be very difficult to figure out how to project a date-able image to others.
The first step in this specific problem is for those affected to make an internal adjustment on their impressions of themselves. I went through this exact thing, myself, and it is frustrating. I remember fighting the urge to tell a woman I had just met that, well, you know. The uncertainty and the patience required are difficult to get used to, and it is difficult. Most social situations do not make it easy to get your point across without acting inappropriately. I had to understand that I could only control what I could control. To project myself as a sexual being, I had to perceive it that way, and then leave the outside perceptions up to everyone else.
Eventually, I made my adjustment and I learned the same patience for that scenario as I did for any other. The major roadblock for anyone in that situation is body acceptance. For as long as I can remember, I had a major phobia of a tracheostomy. I can honestly say that I would get emotional just thinking about the potential of me having one. I had the strength to overcome every other change in my appearance, but it took me years and years to accept what that might bring should I ever decide to get one. I did it, though, and the strength it took made the rest pale in comparison.
This has been a good thing for me, as I realize I will need someone extra extra special. So that means I'll get to meet someone extra extra special. My approach to this stuff is essentially my approach to everything else. I think we all need to be strong at some point in our lives. In order to do that, however, we must be able to feel strong. It's kind of an obvious "2+2" thing, but how can we ever have strength when we need it if we don't think we can feel strong?
I've always had powers of observation, and I've been able to maximize my understanding of a thing through a limited amount of experience with it. I have looked down the barrel enough times to realize that I am a very strong person. When I go through things now, or think about potential experiences, I am able to tell myself in good faith that I know I will be able to face it. But there's no substitute for the real thing, and my faith in myself is strongest after I survive literally. It doesn't matter what I survive, just that I survive.
I believe that my adventures are a prime example of how perception and reality depend on one another. To really find myself in an optimal position, I cannot allow myself to be ruled only by the way things are, at the moment. However, in order to remain grounded, I must be vigilant as to how much stock I put into perception, from within and without. On the flip side, my goals will be achieved only when I have the courage to first perceive, and then to be, the thing that I want to be.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Travel
Most people enjoy a good trip. In some way or another, travel holds appeal for almost everyone. Some people are all about the destination, so they just want to get wherever they're going. Others actually enjoy the journey and include it as a part of the experience. That debate is for another time. Both approaches are encompassed by the concept of travel.
People travel for many reasons, viz.: meditation, vacation, to settle or relocate, for political reasons, to visit others, or just for fun. Trips vary in length and scope, from sailing around the world right down to a day-trip in a car. When I think about my desire to travel, my thoughts always center on one important question.
Am I traveling to escape my world or to expand my world?
In my mind, it is a critical distinction. Any of the aforementioned reasons can be an expansion or an escape. I always think about spiritual retreats, which can either be very good for my daily life, or very bad. Remembering past retreats that I've taken, my most vivid memory is the silence, the peaceful silence. I can't help but refocus my mind almost the instant I step into an environment like that. I make observations about myself, and resolve to change some things while strengthening others.
A good meditation like that does not only learn lessons, but formulates a plan for applying those lessons to daily action. However, sometimes things don't work out as planned, and the retreat simply becomes an escape. I return to the noise of the everyday world and revert back to my everyday self. Sometimes the lessons learned actually make the negative things even worse. They become louder because I was only escaping them.
So it is with travel. It seems patently obvious, but I think sometimes we forget that we are, in fact, bringing ourselves along on the trip. There's no escaping that. I believe that there is an implicit assumption that if we go out into worlds undiscovered, so too will we discover new parts to ourselves, or maybe even a whole new self! Fortunately (in my view), there is no other self waiting for us on the other side of the world.
In fact, those parts of ourselves that we're wishing so dearly for are always there, no matter how deeply buried, regardless of what landmark or mountain range or body of water we're looking at in that moment. Personally, I would much rather find my true self at home and then take that self out to see the wonders of the world, for when I return, I can bring it all back with me. This is the beauty of using travel to expand my world.
When I go forth with all the baggage that makes me who I am -- with the realization that, while I am changed by every experience, no one experience will define me -- I also get to come back with all the new things I learned, memories made, and places made known. The fog of war lifts, and these experiences become a part of the world for me. This makes it easy to channel my lessons into application.
And that is the most important part of the travel. It is ridiculously easy for me to come upon new thoughts about life and say that I believe certain things or that I will do certain actions in a given situation. What is much harder, and much more important, is standing by those beliefs and having the fortitude to do those actions when the situation arises.
Nothing gets left behind.
People travel for many reasons, viz.: meditation, vacation, to settle or relocate, for political reasons, to visit others, or just for fun. Trips vary in length and scope, from sailing around the world right down to a day-trip in a car. When I think about my desire to travel, my thoughts always center on one important question.
Am I traveling to escape my world or to expand my world?
In my mind, it is a critical distinction. Any of the aforementioned reasons can be an expansion or an escape. I always think about spiritual retreats, which can either be very good for my daily life, or very bad. Remembering past retreats that I've taken, my most vivid memory is the silence, the peaceful silence. I can't help but refocus my mind almost the instant I step into an environment like that. I make observations about myself, and resolve to change some things while strengthening others.
A good meditation like that does not only learn lessons, but formulates a plan for applying those lessons to daily action. However, sometimes things don't work out as planned, and the retreat simply becomes an escape. I return to the noise of the everyday world and revert back to my everyday self. Sometimes the lessons learned actually make the negative things even worse. They become louder because I was only escaping them.
So it is with travel. It seems patently obvious, but I think sometimes we forget that we are, in fact, bringing ourselves along on the trip. There's no escaping that. I believe that there is an implicit assumption that if we go out into worlds undiscovered, so too will we discover new parts to ourselves, or maybe even a whole new self! Fortunately (in my view), there is no other self waiting for us on the other side of the world.
In fact, those parts of ourselves that we're wishing so dearly for are always there, no matter how deeply buried, regardless of what landmark or mountain range or body of water we're looking at in that moment. Personally, I would much rather find my true self at home and then take that self out to see the wonders of the world, for when I return, I can bring it all back with me. This is the beauty of using travel to expand my world.
When I go forth with all the baggage that makes me who I am -- with the realization that, while I am changed by every experience, no one experience will define me -- I also get to come back with all the new things I learned, memories made, and places made known. The fog of war lifts, and these experiences become a part of the world for me. This makes it easy to channel my lessons into application.
And that is the most important part of the travel. It is ridiculously easy for me to come upon new thoughts about life and say that I believe certain things or that I will do certain actions in a given situation. What is much harder, and much more important, is standing by those beliefs and having the fortitude to do those actions when the situation arises.
Nothing gets left behind.
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