(no subject)
Just went to a bluegrass show down in DC to meet up with Josh and Layne and Anna and Salvador. What a great union of worlds. Someone new asked me what my plans were for after I graduate, and I said "...maybe an astronaut? or a cowgirl?" Man, I thought I needed direction before, and now whatever I did have has completely dissipated, and I don't care! I'm going to fiddle while my personal Rome burns. Speaking of fiddling, I finally admitted my fantasy of being a back-up singer in a bluegrass band to someone else. I've really found a lot of joy in playing my guitar this summer--and no, I have made very little progress in terms of technical prowess. Bar chords are still beyond me. But that is very much alright.
Salvador has spent a lot of time doing arts and culture activism and heritage stuff--has learned a lot of Mexican folk music and old instruments. And I realized talking to him that my definitions of what make the world go round have changed so much...if you'd asked me two years ago, I would have said that the msot important job a person could have was a lobbyist. Later on, I thought that community organizing was the most worthwhile endeavor, then humanitarianism, then eco-activism, blah blah blah...and deep down, although I never would have articulated it as such, I kind of believed that art was selfish and that people should really get down to business and do something that actually creates change. I am so completely full-circle--I really do believe that music affects people in a profound way. And not even just when lyrics speak to you--just as a force for building community. When people say that awful phrase "music brings people together," they are exactly right in that it causes people to meet others they wouldn't have otherwise or to foster a different kind of experience than they'd felt beforehand. Human beings are not an exact science--charisma, writing, nature, film, music, friendship--there are so many things that we can't quite explain that powerfully influence the way we behave. I might have to revert back to my old 'intentionality' philosophy of old.
I have learned so much this summer--I feel so much older. I feel like deserve a lot more respect than I had been paying myself.
Salvador has spent a lot of time doing arts and culture activism and heritage stuff--has learned a lot of Mexican folk music and old instruments. And I realized talking to him that my definitions of what make the world go round have changed so much...if you'd asked me two years ago, I would have said that the msot important job a person could have was a lobbyist. Later on, I thought that community organizing was the most worthwhile endeavor, then humanitarianism, then eco-activism, blah blah blah...and deep down, although I never would have articulated it as such, I kind of believed that art was selfish and that people should really get down to business and do something that actually creates change. I am so completely full-circle--I really do believe that music affects people in a profound way. And not even just when lyrics speak to you--just as a force for building community. When people say that awful phrase "music brings people together," they are exactly right in that it causes people to meet others they wouldn't have otherwise or to foster a different kind of experience than they'd felt beforehand. Human beings are not an exact science--charisma, writing, nature, film, music, friendship--there are so many things that we can't quite explain that powerfully influence the way we behave. I might have to revert back to my old 'intentionality' philosophy of old.
I have learned so much this summer--I feel so much older. I feel like deserve a lot more respect than I had been paying myself.