Coffee, Music and a Happy, Sappy Morning
I was in a store this morning buying some coffee. I love coffee, but am on a spouse-imposed quota of two coffee days per week. So whenever I have one of my two coffee-days I get a youthful excitement about me, and just know that good things are bound to happen.
So while waiting at the register for my coffee to be ground, I was already expecting some sort of sappy inspiration to occur. And sure enough, there it was: As I was waiting, the song “With or Without You” by U2 came on the cafe’s radio. I am not the biggest U2 person, but somehow the song hit me in the way that songs do, and a joyful glee came over me.
There are some things in the world that I think were put here so us humans can have it a little easier. It’s like a Divine Whisper saying “I know that being a person is a hard, long haul. So I’m gonna place some sparks of heaven into the world, just so that your body and soul can keep trucking along.”
Music works that way for me. The right combination of acoustic instruments, a calming voice and a pretty song and I’m happy and excited to stick around the world for as long as I can.
Play for me “A Case of You” by Joni Mitchell and I’m good to go for a frolic through the meadow. Put on Ralph Stanley singing “I’ll Fly Away,” and the whole world seems as simple as Bluegrass Music. Or give me anything by Bob Dylan and I might cry because I remember that the world isn’t simple- but if someone can articulate our problems so beautifully then I have faith in our ability to figure them out.
So just a blessing and a hope as we unpack the week ahead of us: May it be a week full of heavenly things, and may the obviously heavenly put us in the mindset to discover the heavenly about everything else.
Happy Appreciating,
Yannai
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January 29th, 2008 at 8:38 pm
hey yannai!
this one really hit the spot for me. i totally resonate with what you wrote. some songs just really do it, and i have this peaceful/joyful and calm smile on my face knowing that everything is going to be ok. its like God is giving you the exact right song at the exact right time and its just perfect. my words are ruining the expirience! thank you so much for your words!
January 31st, 2008 at 12:34 pm
No problem, pal. Thanks so much for the comments.
I hear ya about songs. There’s just a funny thing about ‘em coming when they’re wanted.
So happy you’re enjoying Unpacked!
Thanks man,
Yannai
January 31st, 2008 at 5:36 pm
Hi Yannai,
Love your blog! Another way to describe song (more stuffy, traditional) is that a beautiful song is a perfect marriage of word and melody. Mozart was the quintessentail genius of this, so was Schubert, etc. I’ll try and unstuff myself (a takeoff on your word unpacked) and try to open my ears to your generations list of perfect songs!