Thought for The Day - Look before

You leap
You dance
You cross the street

Caution, attentiveness, aware, measuring your surroundings. Certainly, you may change your mind when you consider the risk. But isn't it better to be "safe than sorry?"

Life is full of risks and and chances. I couldn't tell you how many times I've watched people walking the street, face in their phone, heading toward a crossing! And the number of drivers I observe looking down at a phone makes driving a riskier venture. People jump into relationships without any thought for their feelings or without knowing who the other person is. And in our society, we always put money before nearly everything else! We will take a job - or try to get in a field - based on the expected income.

As opposed to concentrating on what's going on around you, to be cautious, spend an equal amount of time examining your motives, desires and expectations. What trends do you blindly follow because "everyone else is doing it?" Every person has an "inner compass," a self-identified gauge that will point them in the right direction; ignoring it is what puts most of us in harm's way. Open your eyes and look at your real motives and desires; that's where you will find your path and your peace!

Thought for The Day - Upstream

The Beginning of... 18 x 24 pastels

Johnny Hartman. For the vast majority of the world, that name doesn't "ring a bell." A male vocalist of the Jazz era, with his most 'notable' work in 1963, when John Coltrane recorded an album of ballads featuring Johnny. Absolutely beautiful, velvet voice; smooth as butter creme! And this is where the "rub" occurs: with talent like that, why isn't he world renowned?

It's a mystery; there are people around us with great intellect, great talent, a great personality and yet, many with less of the former are carried on the shoulders of the media and adoring fans. People stand in lines, Google names of their favorite poets, artists, singers and the "great minds," to catch a snippet of their lives. Why? How does it change or affect their lives?

Each one, reach one. To the one you reach, the singular person who cant wait to read your words, hear your voice, you are a star. And be true to you, what talents and contribution you bring to the world. No one person is the center of the universe; we all have our place in it and play our part.

When I heard Johnny Hartman's recording of "Lush Life" some years ago, I couldn't get enough of his voice! I searched iTunes to find more of his music, but what I had at the time was the extent of his available recordings. In that song, there's a line where he says "I'll live a lush life in some small dive,  where I'll rot with the rest of those whose lives are lonely too." I imagined him performing in small clubs in New York, leaving the clubs just before dawn, sitting in a small diner, a cigarette in hand and hovering above a cup of coffee. He does this before making it to a small apartment and crashing until 1:00 in the afternoon. I imagined his life, the typical small-time performer, considering what 'day-gig' he could take up to make ends meet. I imagined there were those who showed up in the small clubs where he performed who just wanted to hear someone as lonely as they were and whose 'success' was as menial as his. I imagined the cigarette smoke hovering above the heads of the patrons like a dark cloud. But what I didn't consider was, here I sat, listening to his voice, loving every rise and fall of it, some 40 years after that recording. What I didn't consider is Johnny did what he loved and doing so, he reached "at least one."

Peace and Blessings