I had the pleasure of meeting Phil Hansen (@Philinthecircle) at the recent Sustainable Brands conference in San Diego. Phil is an artist who had to overcome, well, I should probably leave the story to him. I’ll just say that I was inspired by his talk, and that I think you’ll come away from watching this with a new perspective on limits.
Enjoy. (I sure did.)
I’m proud to post this on Father’s Day as my pop (and mom) taught me to believe I could do whatever I wanted in life. There was a time I lost sight of that, but since I’ve renewed that belief (in no small part due to the support of my wife) my life has been on a different trajectory where possibility abounds. I encourage you to cultivate the same outlook. To paraphrase John Marshall Roberts (another incredible speaker at the Sustainable Brands conference), you have to remove your own inner barriers to change.
David Roberts of Grist puts together a highly anticipated mix tape around the holidays that shares his favorite songs from the year. The 2012 selections were no disappointment.
Tonight’s track comes from side 2 of that mix. (Here’s the link for side 1.)
It’s a lovely song, and the words, the words, the words…
(I recommend listening once and then re-winding for a sing along.)
Same Love
When I was in the 3rd grade
I thought that I was gay
Cause I could draw, my uncle was
And I kept my room straight
I told my mom, tears rushing down my face
She’s like, “Ben you’ve loved girls since before pre-K”
Trippin’, yeah, I guess she had a point, didn’t she
A bunch of stereotypes all in my head
I remember doing the math like
“Yeah, I’m good a little league”
A pre-conceived idea of what it all meant
For those that like the same sex had the characteristics
The right-wing conservatives think it’s a decision
And you can be cured with some treatment and religion
Man-made, rewiring of a pre-disposition
Playing God
Ahh nah, here we go
America the brave
Still fears what we don’t know
And God loves all his children it’s somehow forgotten
But we paraphrase a book written
3,500 years ago
I don’t know
And I can’t change
Even if I tried
Even if I wanted to
And I can’t change
Even if I tried
Even if I wanted to
My love, my love, my love
She keeps me warm
She keeps me warm
She keeps me warm
She keeps me warm
If I was gay
I would think hip-hop hates me
Have you read the YouTube comments lately
“Man that’s gay”
Gets dropped on the daily
We’ve become so numb to what we’re sayin’
Our culture founded from oppression
Yet we don’t have acceptance for ’em
Call each other faggots
Behind the keys of a message board
A word rooted in hate
Yet our genre still ignores it
Gay is synonymous with the lesser
It’s the same hate that’s caused wars from religion
Gender to skin color
Complexion of your pigment
The same fight that lead people to walk-outs and sit-ins
Human rights for everybody
There is no difference
Live on! And be yourself!
When I was in church
They taught me something else
If you preach hate at the service
Those words aren’t anointed
And that Holy Water
That you soak in
Is then poisoned
When everyone else
Is more comfortable
Remaining voiceless
Rather than fighting for humans
That have had their rights stolen
I might not be the same
But that’s not important
No freedom ’til we’re equal
Damn right I support it
I don’t know
We press play
Don’t press pause
Progress, march on!
With a veil over our eyes
We turn our back on the cause
‘Till the day
That my uncles can be united by law
Kids are walkin’ around the hallway
Plagued by pain in their heart
A world so hateful
Some would rather die
Than be who they are
And a certificate on paper
Isn’t gonna solve it all
But it’s a damn good place to start
No law’s gonna change us
We have to change us
Whatever god you believe in
We come from the same one
Strip away the fear
Underneath it’s all the same love
About time that we raised up
Love is patient, love is kind
Love is patient (not cryin’ on Sundays)
Love is kind (not crying on Sundays)
Love is kind (not crying on Sundays)
Love is kind (not crying on Sundays)
Love is kind (not crying on Sundays)
Love is kind (not crying on Sundays)
I’ll end a blitz of posts with a nice spot of music. This one tends to shift me into a sedate mood which I think could be a good thing for a lot of folks this week. I hope it hits you well.
Pro Tip: Do not break bottles over anyone’s head…. Ever.
It’s looking like a limb torn off
Or altogether just taken apart
We’re reeling through an endless fall
We are the ever-living ghost of what once wasBut no one is ever gonna love you more than I do
No one’s gonna love you more than I doAnd anything to make you smile
It is my better side of you to admire
But they should never take so long
Just to be over then back to another one
But no one is ever gonna love you more than I do
No one’s gonna love you more than I do
But someone,
They could have warned you
When things start splitting at the seams and now
The whole thing’s tumbling down
Things start splitting at the seams and now
If things start splitting at the seams and now,
It’s tumbling down
Hard.
Anything to make you smile
You are the ever-living ghost of what once was
I never want to hear you say
That you’d be better off
Or you liked it that way
But no one is ever gonna love you more than I do
No one’s gonna love you more than I do
But someone
They should have warned you
When things start splitting at the seams and now
The whole thing’s tumbling down
Things start splitting at the seams and now
If things start splitting at the seams and now,
It’s tumbling down
Hard
I’ve got a mountain of half written posts that I’ve started recently, but am now back in school, so it may stay a bit thin around here for a while. For now, here’s a soul filled tune from Ray Lamontagne. The song, and Ray’s intro, speak to the crazy way we go about life. Speaking of which, it’s never a bad time to reconsider your approach.
Hold You in My Arms – Ray Lamontagne
When you came to me with your bad dreams and your fears
It was easy to see that you’d been crying
Seems like everywhere you turn catastrophe it reigns
But who really profits from the dying
I could hold you in my arms
I could hold you forever
I could hold you in my arms
I could hold you in my arms forever
When you kissed my lips with my mouth so full of questions
It’s my worried mind that you quiet
Place your hands on my face
Close my eyes and say
Love is a poor man’s food
Don’t prophesize
I could hold you in my arms
I could hold you forever
And I could hold you in my arms
I could hold you forever
So now we see how it is
This fist begets the spear
Weapons of war
Symptoms of madness
Don’t let your eyes refuse to see
Don’t let your ears refuse to hear
Or you ain’t never going to shake this sense of sadness
I could hold you in my arms
I could hold on forever
And I could hold you in my arms
I could hold forever
I received a request to share this infographic with my dear readers. I’m sure you’re all aware of the horrors, but I thought it was well done and am all for promoting the cessation and elimination of the practice.
Dystopian Present 