Aloooha!
So, I mean... I've known for a long time that music is a major part of who I am. Probably a lot more so than for others. But this last Saturday, it really hit me hard just how much of an impact music has had on my life. As I was interviewing for Huntsman Scholars, the advice I kept getting was to be myself. So, I took it seriously. When I was asked what historical event I would want to go back and experience, the first that came to mind was Woodstock. When I was asked what song describes my life, I went with Like a Rolling Stone by Bob Dylan. When I was asked what my favorite quote is, I went with one referring to Bob Marley from I am Legend. At the end of the interview, I took a step back and thought to myself, "Huh... Has music really had that much of an influence on me?" Well, my friends, I do believe it has.
Interestingly enough, there were a few things earlier in the week that helped lead me to this conclusion.
Last weekend, I went with the rest of the SigEp exec board to Newport, California for a leadership academy. We ended up driving all through the night Thursday to make for some extra time on the beach before it started. Driving all night with three other brothers made for some great bonding time. Erik Olson and I talked music for a good while, and we decided one of the greatest musicians of our generation is Dave Grohl. Dave Grohl is the lead singer and founding member of the Foo Fighters. Before the Foo Fighters, he drummed for the grunge band Nirvana. Nirvana's short existence came to a tragic end when lead singer Kurt Cobain committed suicide. After his death, Dave wasn't sure if he'd ever be able to do music again. Eventually, he came to the conclusion that he could either dwell on the past or move forward. Out of this tragedy emerged one of the most impressive, inspirational musicians of all time.
If you have any doubt the impact Dave has had on musicians today or the power of music to bring people together, check this video out. I'm pretty sure I've posted this before, but I just can't get over how cool it is. A thousand musicians got together and performed Learn to Fly as a way to ask the Foo Fighters to come do a show in Italy. A word to the wise, there's a little bit of language when the dude is giving his shpiel about how the project came together, but if you can handle that, please please please watch this.
So that conversation with Erik was great. Dave Grohl is the man.
Later in the week, SigEp had a service event at an old folks home. All we had planned was to go chat with and play games with them. Well, there was a piano upstairs, and I mighta found my way to it. Now, I've never taken any lessons, but I've figured my around at least parts of a few songs. My favorite to play is Billy Joel's Piano Man. One of the best songs of all time, in my opinion. The cool thing about playing that there was the commentary from the old folks. They were able to connect with it. It's crazy to think Piano Man came out all the way back in 1973, but I guess that would have been their generation of music. Ethan Low pointed out that the Vans he and I were wearing have remained relatively unchanged since the 60s. Beautiful music back then is still beautiful music today. As much as we may be a more advanced society now, many things remain the same.
I listened to a lot more Jack Johnson this week than I have in a while. Different artists come and go from my Spotify playlists, but Jack's one that will always remain constant. I don't know if it's because he lives the life I want to live, because of his lyrics, because of his music's calming acoustics, because I can play more of his songs on guitar than any other artist, or what... But there's something about him that's won a place in my heart. His music always puts me in a good place.
It hit me hard this week how music can take you back to moments. The Lower Lights were basically the soundtrack to my mission. Different albums bring back memories from different areas. I threw in their Hymn Revival: Volume III today as I was driving down to K-Town, and instantly I felt like I was back in the bakkie in Thaba Nchu with Elder Agabu. We could have been on our way to teach, to find, to work with members, to Thaba Nchu mountain, to go hang out in Bloemfontein for p-day... Wherever. It didn't matter. It was nice. Each Life That Touches Ours For Good remains to be my favorite hymn. Hearing it today for the first time in a while felt good.
Paying attention to lyrics... That's been another thing this week. There's a group called Nahko and Medicine for the People that Blake found while I was on mission. They are so incredibly good. I don't know exactly what genre they'd be... World, perhaps? They're acoustic, and Nahko writes some of the deepest, most spiritually-profound lyrics I've ever heard. They preach a message of positive, unity, and gratitude. (That seems to be consistent with my other music preferences... Go figure.) It's nice to hear good tunes, but putting good messages along with them... Ah, there's nothing better.
So, yeah. It's been a good, musically-uplifting week.
Before I wrap up though... Why Woodstock? Why Like a Rolling Stone? I think the reason Woodstock came to mind as a historical event wasn't because I want to go get high or live like a hippy or whatever. It's because that was a point in history where music, politics, and the world met in a very real and tangible way. I may be interpreting the lyrics wrong, but I think the reason I went with Like a Rolling Stone as a song to describe my life was because the way I hear it, Bob Dylan was singing about someone on a journey of self-discovery. That comes with falling on occasion and learning that things aren't always as they seem. That's ok, though. It's all just part of this crazy adventure called life.
The I am Legend quote I was referring to goes like this:
"[Bob Marley] had this idea. It was kind of a virologist idea. He believed that you could cure racism and hate -- literally, cure it -- by injecting music and love into people's lives. Two days before he was scheduled to perform at a peace rally, a gunman came to his house and shot him down. Two days later, he got up on that stage and sang. People asked him, 'Why?' He said, 'The people who are trying to make this world worse are not taking a day off. How can I? Light up the darkness.'"
Powerful and true. I'll leave with that. Time to sleep.
Much love and aloha my friends.
Dizzy
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