I have a favorite musical rift. For reasons I have no bothered to try and figure out, it touches me deep within. I listen to it and feel connected with the world and a community far larger than myself. I feel hope and a sense of things possible. It is a sound that is magical, mysterious, and beautiful.
The primary place I have heard this rift is on an original jazz album by a Vietnamese artist. It occurs in two different songs, fitting it while being slightly different from the music before and after it. Out of the blue, I recently heard the rift on another CD that I have had for some time. While not as obvious as the jazz album, a new-age album from the US in a single 15-20 second spot shares a sound that comes from the same place.
When I heard the rift, I paused. As I did, I found myself coming full circle, back to a space of beauty, wonder and hope.
As I think of the loops in my life, I realize there are good ones as well as dark ones. As much as I enjoy the musical loops, there is a side of me that wishes the bad loops on those that have set traps along my steps. As I read, I realize that my thirst to get even has been shared by others across the generations. Way before my time, one writer said what I was thinking; “Surprise them with your ambush – catch them in the very trap they set, the disaster they planned for me.” (Psalm 35.8)
Letting go of the negative is not easy. I keep reminding myself of the following.
Being consumed by what others have done to me only ensures that their work continues.
Taking time to plot my revenge takes me away from the time I have for what is most important to me.
In letting go, I give space for Life to deal with what needs to be dealt with.
I like good loops; bad ones are for letting go.
