Notes of Fire

     Music comes in so many, many ways. This world is wrapped in song. The birds have it, the wind has it, the road has it, the rain, the trees, the city. People make music in hate, love, passion, anger, joy, and in an absence of reality. We listen to music and it makes music inside of us. It brings people close together.
     My favorite part of a race is when the people stand to sing. Whether it be the National Anthem or "My Old Kentucky Home", for those few moments we are one. Thousands of people are brought together because they are all thinking of the same thing. If all those thoughts could be made into a song, it would be more beautiful than anything ever heard, because it would be unison and thoughts that have no malice, no greed, and no superficiality.
     In some ways, music has been twisted and desecrated. But really, all that it is is emotion. Whether those emotions be worthy or not, they are there. And those emotions are passed to the listener. A song that was made with a hearty dose of desperation makes you feel desperate. A song created with joy will pass joy on to you. Music is powerful. Remember that.
    If I could somehow soar to the past and bring back one thing, it would be gatherings where people come together to dance and sing. I wish I had a giant eraser that I could lift it up and wipe away all self-consciousness, so people wouldn't feel scared or awkward to just life up their voices and sing. Together. Oh, what joy that would be.

A sentimental moment

       I sometimes think my pointshoes are my best friends.  Think about it--they've witnessed every blister, every bloodstain, every tear, every hour where I've counted the long minutes to the end of rehearsal so I can run on them to plunge my sweaty face in an icy stream of water. Something in me seems to wilt when we're apart. I worry about them, because if they fail, I fall.
 

       I believe I've heard it said that a woman's shoes were her best friend. This might be more true than many of us realize. However, I tend to be skeptical that any article of footwear could be as intimate as a pointeshoe. Just saying. They are the only kinds of friends that were made to be destroyed every few weeks.

       Well, I'll be glad to have them back. We've been separated for far too long. 

Pinecone

It started with a pinecone. A measly, prickly pinecone. An' it just about killed me.
Now, I'm not sayin the pinecone was the thing that could have killed me. It would take more than that to even put a dent in my hard skull. The problem was, that pinecone fell to the ground, and just had to grow into a pine tree. And then there was a thunderstorm. And...it was partly the dog's fault. He just had to go outside. In a thunderstorm.
The tree fell on me.
Dang.
After a week in the hospital and several months of casts, I came away with a very important life lesson: Never, ever, trust a pinecone.

That was a blurb I wrote last year. Still makes me laugh.

What. A. Week.

     Remember those times where life decides to throw itself on you in it's best attempt to kill you? Yeah. Welcome to my world. 

     The week started just fine. Balmy weather, almost 80, shorts, trees to climb, not too much school to darken the horizon. For a time, I was happy. Sigh. Then, it began to snow. And my world came crashing down around my ears. For three long, sad, days I was cooped up inside a cage of drywall and siding, struggling against a tide of dishes, laundry, and Algebra, stretching out to the light with all my strength. 

     OK. I'm definitely being melodramatic. I know I have something that makes housecleaning and Algebra little ants to be squished ruthlessly. I have assurance that my life will be joyful, loved, and protected. I had nothing to complain of. But it was all I could do to not fall on my bed and sob. Well, that's exactly what I ended up doing. After I had sniffled and wept my way through half a box of tissues, I finished my email to a friend. The message she sent back was, well, a lifeline to a drowning girl. (If I'm going to be melodramatic, might as well commit to it.) What she sent me was a list of God's truths, with bible verses to support them. And guess what. I started to feel better. Yes, God was there, I was not caught in a horrible pit of lightening sand straight from the bowels of the Fire Swamp, and I was ready to ask forgiveness. That's one wonderful thing I've learned about God. He doesn't wait to give forgiveness. You ask, you receive, praise God. 

      I have a bit of advice. I've learned, slowly, that the best way to stay attached to God is to repeat to yourself His word. Here's what Martin Luther said on the subject: "If you grasp hold of God's Word in your heart and cling to it with faith, the devil cannot win. He has to flee. If you can say, "My God has said this, and I can stand upon it," you will find that the devil will quickly leave." And guess what. It works. When you find yourself in a situation of temptation, or doubt, or fear, start repeating God's promises. It's a lifeline to a drowning Christian. 

      My week went from good, to bad, to oh, help! I learned something very, very important, though. Funny how all my bad situations seem to end up good. 

Romans 8: 28
And we know that for those who love God all things to work together for good, for those who are called according to his purposes.