Your Song

If you’ve been reading my musings this month, you know I love to try new things; that I’m not real comfortable in my comfort zone. This winter, Enter Stage Left (ESL), a small theater in the town of Hopkinton, Massachusetts, offered its first ever Song School with local singer/songwriter Barbara Kessler. Knowing I didn’t want to become a Thoreau statistic and “go to the grave with the song still in me,” I signed right up.

Writing a song brings new meaning to “living more dangerously—be it emotionally” because it requires you to reveal the “flawed” side of yourself, the real side you’ve been trained to hide: the deep ache over a love no longer returned, the pain of feeling like a societal failure, the despair over an injustice, or the fear of knowing that life is one big unknown.

Take these lyrics from Bonnie Raitt’s Nick of Time:

When did the choices get so hard?
With so much more at stake.
Life gets mighty precious when there’s less of it to waste.
Hummmm...scared she’ll run out of time.

Or from James Taylor’s Fire and Rain:

I've seen fire and I've seen rain
I've seen sunny days that I thought would never end
I've seen lonely times when I could not find a friend
But I always thought that I'd see you again

Writing a song makes it possible for you or me to contribute something permanent to a world fast becoming impermanent. Your song can become a palpable reminder that you once lived, loved, longed and learned.

Writing a song has also left me with a newfound appreciation for singer/songwriters. Most of them know they will probably not become as famous as Carole King, Billy Joel, or Joni Mitchell, but they keep writing songs anyway because they need to have their stories heard.

Do you have a story you need to tell? A song you need to sing?

If you live in the greater Boston area and want to learn more about singer/songwriter Barbara Kessler and her Song School, please stop by  Barbara’s web site or by ESL’s web site for info on upcoming events, including Barbara’s next open mic night for singers, songwriters or just plain music lovers.

Muse thx

Giulietta