Often we start out on a journey believing we have a clear understanding of our destination. Though as our trip unfolds we may start to realize Life has a way of allowing opportunities to venture down paths with breathtaking beautiful scenery. More often though...we humans are in a rush, and feel the best route is the shortest distance from point A to B at the speed of light, many times missing possible joys & rewards.
Sometimes we get lucky, and an event slows us down so that we get a taste of the riches around us. The sad part is these times seem to be something we can't always plan or predict.
Life slowed me down recently. from a constant focus on designing & building cabinetry. A profession that has many times just been directed at getting the job done and trying to leave the client smiling from the results, then rushing right on to a list of wants & challenges of the next project.
One constant distraction from the world of creating & building has been the search for my great-uncle John Bartee. So a few months back when my body made me listen.... No longer could I continue to fix bleeding hands & fingers with duct tape, or a bad knee with a brace, and ignore all other health issues just to complete a day's work. I had to finally realize what was going on inside me could do two things... kill me or lead me to a stroke unable to care for myself. I could deal with death, though it's a done deal... it's a new beginning. But the possibility of being unable to have the freedom to explore and live yet you are still breathing, well that just didn't seem to be like something I wanted to try out. I stopped right that second... and allowed Life to retake control of my journey.
And it was weird the stuff that I had searched to find answers for about John's life had a chance to finally find me. Now my body had created a situation that allowed me the opportunity to sit down and pull out all the notes & research in an attempt to make something out of them.
This blog seemed like a format that would allow me to take one subject at a time and organize what I had found, without being overwhelmed with the challenge. I didn't know that it would also start to unveil what I had learned about myself.
I am not a Writer... At my expense, I failed to learn sentence structure and punctuation while in school, and I am aware that this fact alone probably drives readers away from my words. But still I try to convey the thoughts and images that reside within my heart & mind even if I am my only reader.
The search for John has opened many new doors I may have never walked through. One new door I have arrived at is that of Chris Albertson... His blog, Stomp Off opens a reader and listener to the many lives, and voices of the music world. In my previous post I tried to express my ideas about John's music... the world in which he lived as it has started to make itself known to me.
Through Chris... I feel I have been shown the lyrical Voice of Life's Music... Susannah McCorkle... A name that had cross my path years ago, but apparently I was too busy planning my life to truly hear her. She not only gives Music a voice with her ability to vocalise the poetry of her lyrics, but she breaths heart felt emotions into her songs, allowing us to be a part of them. Watching a partial interview she did with Charlie Rose one can easily see she was her Music. The music she felt guided her journey, allowing the influences of others, travels, and language all to be a part of her voice.
I can understand how a person's life could have been enriched by crossing paths with her, sharing a conversation or maybe just a glance into her eyes... she was a beautiful person in so many ways... I so thank technology for creating the means to save her feelings for us to enjoy... She truly speaks for the emotions of life in her Music.
The Love of Susannah McCorkle is truly a part of Life's journey that I think we all should allow ourselves the time to experience.
Start your experience now... feel Susannah's love of music.
My Beginner's Playlist:
Felcidade (Happiness)
No More Blues
One For My Baby
Something to Live For
Nuages
Laughing At Life
The People You
Never Get To Love
Along Too Long
I'm Pulling Through
Sabia
If I Only Had A Heart
Better Luck Next Time
P.S. I Love You
Susannah McCorkle - An Interview with Charlie Rose / May 1990
The Music of Life fills Everything...
Update 8/8/2010: After posting the above I found the following broadcast on NPR's Fresh Air with Host Terry Gross on May 25, 2001.
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