Missing Link

I’ve always felt a strong connection to music that I have had a difficult time trying to convey to others.  To many people music is just a diversion – something they put on in the background while they work or get dressed in the morning. With the complete trash that can often be found on the radio, though, who can blame them for this view?    For others, though, music is a very powerful art form. 

I often find myself listening to music and having it transport me to another time and place – either past or future (rarely present, since I am where I am, thanks to the laws of physics).  It makes me feel a variety of emotions, evokes strong memories of times past, and in some cases gives me some idea of what I want for the future.  Of course, my feeble attempt at explaining how music moves me is falling far short of adequacy.

By far the most common reaction I have to music is one of nostalgia – certain songs evoke incredibly strong memories of good times past,   times that I miss, that were simpler and easier and in some ways happier.   This usually happens when I’m feeling unhappy about something (most often work).  I’ll hear a song that I listened to many times when I was younger and it’ll remind me of those days.  It’s not that I want to be a kid again in the true sense, but there are times when I do wish I could return to such a state of innocence. 

An increasingly common reaction I have to some music, however, are images in my head of how things COULD be in the future.  Usually this involves settling down with Ann,  creating a wonderful home with her and raising a family.   It’s INCREDIBLY difficult to explain this.  It’s not a narrative of how things would happen, but more a feeling – of completeness, happiness, satisfaction and success.  Mix a little bit of pride in there as well.   Music just happens to be the catalyst that causes these feelings / the train of thought.  

Once again – I fear I’m doing an abysmal job of describing this.  MOST of you are probably scratching your heads wondering if I’ve had a little too much vodka today.   I promise – I’ve not been drinking (my typing, and grammar, would be MUCH worse than they already are… you’d know.  Spell check can only do so much.)

I do find it interesting, though, how just hearing a song I’ve not heard in a LONG time can bring back a flood of memories that have been locked in the very far recesses of my consciousness.