At the time, I said, “That’s true! Not just of song writing, but life!”
And that has got me thinking about these little truths we realise about the creative process, or other specific processes (like business practice, entrepreneurship, relationships, teaching, learning, time management, or ANYTHING – you name it!) … It seems to me that any solid truth about any process can be traced back to a principle that can be usefully applied to pretty much any other area in life. And that’s what makes truth so powerful.
For example, take JFK’s famous line, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” This exhortation has resonated with people through the decades, since JFK made it famous. And the principle behind it can be shaped into any number of other similar phrases such as, “Don’t think of what you can get. Think of what you can give.” Or, “Don’t try to sell. Try to serve.” Or, “Seek not to be understood, but to understand.” And so on and so on.
So I’ve been thinking about what all these principles have in common. And to me, at the root of all good principles is love. But that’s not a very helpful idea because the concept of love has been bastardised, warped, manipulated, and loaded with all sorts of crap by the media and ads that aim to hijack the idea for profit. So forget about love and let’s get more practical, more specific.
And to get more specific, I’m going to get more vague.
For me, at the root of all principles that resonate most profoundly, is growth. Stretching. Getting bigger not smaller. Being open and vulnerable instead of shielding and protecting myself. And for me, this is about checking my heart, to see if I’m grasping things closer to me, or whether I’m opening my hands, stretching them out in offering to others.
Like when I play live, what’s that about? Is that about, “Here I am, this is what I’ve written” in a “me vs others” sort of way? Or is it, “There you are! I’m so pleased you’re here. And I’m happy to freely share what I’ve got” in a “here we all are together” sort of way? If my heart is in the first place, I feel smaller, defiant and defensive. If my heart is in the second place, I feel bigger. I feel free. I’ve been performing music since I was a child. And I could (and probably will some day) write an awful lot about what I’ve learned. But all the lessons I’ve learned about performing are lessons I’ve learned about life in general.
People try to boil down right and wrong into lists of rules, laws and guidelines, but at the end of the day, no list of rules can cover every possible response your heart might have to any given circumstance. And your heart, with ego and fear stripped away, is the best guide for what’s right for you. Only you can find that. With courage. And often with the help of others!
So anyway, there are my thoughts on life, love, and truth right now …
Please leave a comment below … would love to hear what you think or what your experience has been … 🙂
Love,
LeeSun xx
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