Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October ~ Day 5 : Art and Morality
As you get older it sometimes gets harder to find the beauty in life. Much of what the youthful mind found as “large” and “wonderful” becomes simply stale and overlooked. The artist teaches us indirectly by calling us back, back to the world of beauty and order.
Day 5 Guide:
Make a commitment to reverse the habit of blindness that robs the beauty from your life. In order to reawaken your senses and your desires, make the effort today to discover things that bring newness and restoration to your mind. Visit an old place that rekindles memories of earlier times that were sweet and simple. Take note of something unusual or interesting; snap a picture or write about something that connects you to the greater things. Make it a mission to place resting points in your day --times to get your mind off of the problems and on the greatness.
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 6 : Interpretation
One day, while driving to work, I was surprised to see a new sign staked in the yard of an old familiar house. It was a public notice posting news of the home’s imminent demolition. I was then struck to see an old man in the yard slowly raking a few leaves into a small, neat pile. Why was he raking? What was the point? The house was going to be demolished; it seemed so pointless.
Obviously, the old man’s interpretation of the task was vastly different from mine. I began to imagine just what his thoughts must have been. To him raking the leaves must have been terribly meaningful. My mind, though, kept thinking of the seeming senselessness of the chore. But maybe he felt a special significance in his role as the property’s owner and steward and that until the end he’d continue on as he’d been doing for years. Or possibly this was his daily exercise and his opportunity to be outdoors on a nice autumn day. Whatever the case I knew just then that I wanted to possess this old man’s perspective. I wanted to think like him -- to find beauty and purpose in my life even in view of such as an imminent demolition.
Day 6 Guide:
Today consider the various roles you play. Maybe you’re a teacher influencing the minds of young people or a parent who loves his or her children. Maybe you’re a warehouse worker packing boxes in a shipping department or a receptionist answering telephones. Think of the small things associated with the roles you play and make the effort to find in them their significance and their beauty. Maybe it’s in your tone of voice on the telephone or that little bit of extra help you give the struggling student. It could be in the way that you package or label items in a shipping box or in that thousandth little hug that you give your child before he gets on the school bus. Think of the things that on the surface may not really seem to matter and then elevate their rankings in your mind.
Today, I want you to think that that thousandth little hug is, in fact, the most important one and that your tone of voice on the phone is helping to alter someone’s life. I want you to think that the opinion of a person opening your package and finding things neatly ordered and arranged is the opinion that will influence the course of future business.
“We can do no great things; only small things with great love.”
-- Mother Theresa (1910-1997)
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 7 : Education
Have you ever felt that your life was in some ways guided by an unwritten set of rules? I have. And it’s easy to fall prey to these seeming ways of the world. It’s good, at times, to challenge the code and go against the grain, to find out what’s on the other side of wall. Reading is one of the best ways to make discoveries and open new vistas in your mind. Reading helps you to break the rules.
Day 7 Guide:
Identify someone in whose life you might have an interest. It could be someone that you’ve heard about, admired, or it could even be someone that you despise (Hitler, for example). Search to find a good, concise biography about that person, something you can read in a week or so. www.amazon.com.
Before you begin reading quicken your mind with these questions:
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How did this person break the rules?
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What seems to have been the key(s) to his/her success or failure?
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What qualities about this person do I admire?
Take notes or underline and write in the margins as you go.
--- Levi
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Days 8 - 10 : Knowledge
What do you want to be when you grow up? It’s one of the most common questions asked a child. And it is a good question since it reveals a child’s basic interest and the value he places on his or her observations.
I think it is the conception of what you want to be that drives your action and path forward. But does that question really have meaning for the adult -- one who has already decided on a particular career or field of work? Well, yes I think so. But maybe the better question for the adult is, what do you want to be like?
The ability to change and improve depends, in large part, on one’s particular attitude, level of interest and understanding of life. By holding to the philosophy of cynicism, for example, one is not as likely to improve or change as one who is open to other opinions and is willing to make changes.
Days 8-10 Guide:
Answer the following questions about yourself:
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Am I satisfied with my outlook on life? How would I best describe it? (Be honest with yourself on this one). What do I think of other people? The universe and/or God? How do I feel about fairness and justice? Has the world been fair to me?
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Is mine an inviting and open attitude? Am I willing to make changes?
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Am I satisfied with who I am? What do I want to be like?
Questions like these reveal just how interested you might be in improving or changing yourself. You might discover that your particular sense of life isn’t conducive to change – that in order to make changes you first have to alter your philosophy of life.
Spend the time to really get to know yourself, and I think you’ll discover that your level of interest (which is your motivation for change) depends on what you want to be like.
---Levi
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 11: Growth
Looking back on my childhood I remember one of the first things that I’d do when I got home from school was to call a friend and ask if he could come over and play. I can’t remember exactly when I stopped asking that question. When did I graduate from play and onto something else -- something maybe less imaginative? I guess at some point along the way playing just seemed too childish.
It was then that I guess I was ready to live life for what it was and not for what it could be. The games of pretending and make-believe became just that, games, and I was eager to move on. It was just a part of growing up.
But memories of that time and of the largeness of life that only a child could feel still flicker in my memory as faint reminders of life’s wonder and its character as total possibility.
Day 11 Guide:
Think of your childhood. Do you remember your first friend? Do you remember some of the games you played? Write about one of your childhood memories as if to once again claim the state of mind that saw life as large and full of possibility.
The capacity to view life as such isn’t lost in the adult, only suppressed and hidden beneath the trials that so often color the days. But a rest from those burdens is possible.
Restoring the perspective of life as one of unlimited possibility requires that you somehow first change, or move, the things that control your experience. In essence, you need to heighten your positive experiences and diminish those that hold you captive. Here’s how to start:
Identify the things that bind your spirit, the things that always seem so important and necessary:
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Worries or concerns
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The constant daily chores
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Pressing deadlines
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The noise: news, media, politics, etc.
Make an equal list of the things refresh your spirit:
In upcoming segments I’ll guide you on how to use the elements on your lists. But until then, think of what you can do to change your overall experience by adding emphasis on the things that refresh your spirit. Also, consider ways to release yourself from unnecessary burdens. Try things like quitting reading the newspaper for a week and instead reading a good book. Turn off the television and take a walk during the 6 o’clock news.
-- Levi
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 12: Emotion
Leaving my business in the afternoon I travel west to go home, and so on a clear day I’m usually driving into a sunset. But even then, it’s so easy to overlook its beauty. I’m still wrapped up in the day and bound by my thoughts and concerns. Consciously, I know how important it is to free myself from the bindings that were so important during the day, but even yet, finding the desire to make that change is often times hard.
The change that I’m speaking of is really one of a return to the feelings of connectedness with the world around – the feeling of love or the apprehension and rapture of beauty. It’s a change of mood and spirit and really, a move back toward a more vulnerable state of mind.
I think it’s good to soften your perspective at the end of the day, just as the sun’s position in the late afternoon sky tends to soften its light. You might even say that the natural rhythm of the day itself gives off cues as to when to make the change.
Day 12 Guide:
Consider the rhythm or cycle of your day. When do you feel most apt to find (or to make) a change in your emotional perspective? When are you most likely to recognize beauty?
Use this time of day as your cue to make the conscious effort to restore emotional connections. Do whatever you can to invite the spirit back -- play music, take a walk, light a candle.
I believe that most people do long for these connections but then hold the opinion that satisfying the desire on a daily basis is unnecessary. I think it is.
Take the position that it is just as essential as completing the many tasks and chores that you face daily.
-- Levi
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 13: Memory
Sometimes I think about my old bedroom in my childhood home. The image that recurs to me is that of a typical summer day and the sunlight streaming through my windows. The diaphanous, yellow curtains would typically be drawn and the sun’s filtered light would so paint the room with the color of happiness. That memory for me is liberating and warm. I feel safe when I think of the space.
Recollection is probably the most common way for us to acquire the energy of beauty since memory itself has a way of removing the impurities of actual events and rendering images blemish-free. I liken this automatic function of the mind to the artistic process of selectively recreating reality. I think the greatest art captures the essence of things and abstracts from its subject anything that would frustrate the viewer’s apprehension of it.
Day 13 Guide:
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Recollect and document five images that speak to you of serenity and comfort. Maybe it’s the recollection of your sitting in your mother’s lap or of Christmas morning. Maybe it’s of a favorite family vacation spot or of a dog that you loved.
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Recollect and document five images that speak to you of energy and power. Maybe it’s the recollection of your first date or of highly competitive tennis match. It could be the memory of acting in a stage production or of riding on a motorcycle.
Images such as these are doorways to controlling your experience. They are the passages in your own Joyous Gard.
I’ll talk more later about how to use these images.
© 2004 Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 14: Retrospect
Like many people, I am especially sensitive to music. In fact, memories of my earlier days are mostly colored by the music of that time. I’ll bet you’re no different. Old songs take you back to those earlier times, don’t they?
Listen to lyrics of Chicago, from their song “Take me back to Chicago”:
Take me back to Chicago
Lay my soul to rest
Where my life was free and easy
Remember me at my best.
Take me back to Chicago
Where music was all I had
I tried to be good as I could
And sometimes that made me sad.
Take me back to Chicago, to Chicago
Why don't you take me back
Take me back, take me back
To Chicago.
I still dream of the Lake of peacefulness
The warm summer breeze
'Cause my life was so much simpler then
Street corners and Tastee Freeze.
I find that listening to music lights the corridors of my memory and helps me to understand the course of my life. I look for the common threads and the roads that led me to the present. Life, as I see it, is more of a tapestry than a series of disconnected and random events. I think it’s important to consider life’s meaning and the hidden drive that seems to be pushing you toward an intended purpose. Apprehending such a beautiful design is wonderful and is possible only when you take the retrospective view.
Day 14 Guide:
Today, consider the common threads in your life and try to answer this question: “What are the characteristics of my life and my overall sense of life that have held with me for as long as I can remember?”
Identify the things in your life that have set you apart from others around you -- the things that have made you feel different, not a part of the group. Consider both the psychological and physical characteristics that have separated you, possibly making you feel isolated or alone -- things such as fears and phobias, shortness of stature or obesity. Consider also the generally positive characteristics such as a clearness of vision, a desire to lead or the ability to pinpoint the root cause of a problem.
Try also to describe your general philosophy of life. Are you optimistic about the future? Do you feel that your life is part of a greater plan? Or does uncertainty and the seeming randomness of life’s events make you uneasy?
© 2004 Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Days 15-17: Humor
A man walks into the doctor’s office.
“Doctor, my wife is sick; she’s been coughing and sneezing all night. Can you prescribe some sleeping pills?”
“So, she’s having a hard time sleeping?”
“Well, probably so. But the pills are for me”
There’s nothing like the delightful surprise of humor. The unexpected and sudden turn of events seems to enliven and energize the human spirit. Humor begs for a release, the chuckle or the guffaw. Most everyone seems to enjoy a good laugh.
The surprise of a well-told joke is most always fun, even though the listener knows that the twist (or the punch line) is coming. In fact, the joke operates much like a children’s Jack-in-the-Box: the story-line winds the box, and the punch line releases “Jack.”
Laughter is medicine for the soul. But not only that, it’s good for the body, too. Best selling author, Norman Cousins, wrote about this in his book, Anatomy of an Illness. He claimed that it was with laughter that he healed himself of what was considered to be an incurable illness.
I’m fortunate to have grown up around laughter, seeing clearly how the anxiety of routine problems can be mitigated by a humorous twist of perspective or a view to the bright side. I’ve come to believe that humor can play an important role in most every serious situation. Think about it. Is life really worth living if you can’t laugh?
Days 15-17 Guide:
Your mission these next few days is to find the humor. Identify two or three actual situations that, on the surface, don’t seem humorous. Then, even though you might be muddled in the situation yourself, dig within your faculties to see its twisted and funny nature.
While not immediately apparent, there’s always something humorous about a dead car battery or an alarm clock that doesn’t go off. There’s something funny about a burned roast or coffee made too strong.
The key thought today? Lighten up!
A man walks in a restaurant by himself and sits down at an empty table. He orders two meals, one for himself and one for his imaginary friend. Amused by the situation, the waitress giggles to herself and reports to her supervisor that she’s waiting on a lunatic. But she accommodates the man’s request and serves the two meals. She then quietly observes the man eating most of both meals and when refilling his coffee says to him, “It looks like your friend wasn’t very hungry.”
“No, but he would like a cup of coffee to go. Any by the way, would you please put these on separate checks?”
© 2004 Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 18: Visions
I can think of nothing more important in the world than love, the mysterious connection that binds us in so many ways. The romantic love of Romeo and Juliet was so meaningful that one wasn’t willing to live without the other. The love between parent and child is one of safety and nurture, of a feeling of being at home in a big, strange world. Such a force as love takes us beyond the edge of life’s daily trials and onto the stage of greater things.
It is on the occasion when you find yourself in touch with such greatness that you are sure of its supernatural and awesome power. You sense a power far beyond the normal grit of daily life that speaks of purpose and design, a power attributable only to God.
Day 18 Guide:
Today, I want you to write a letter to someone you love. It could be a friend, a child or parent, a spouse or girlfriend (boyfriend). Write about the things that so attract you to that person, write about the importance of their love or friendship.
The purpose is to turn your mind towards greater things, even if only for a moment. You want to forge the habit of seeing beyond the day-to-day and into the greater realm of meaning.
© 2004, Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 19: Thought
The way that you view the world, its direction and even the people around you, in large part, colors your outlook on life and your attitude.
It seems that in relating to progress people generally fall into two main opposing camps. There are a) those who think that misfortune follows them and that things never turn out as they should, and b) those who consider life to be a host of open-ended opportunities. The former acts to protect itself from the slings and arrows of life, while the latter takes advantage of life’s situations to forge ahead. Failure is common to both, but opinions as to the purpose of failure are polar opposites.
Day 19 Guide:
I want you to look back at the end of the day today and evaluate your successes and failures. Was it a day of accomplishment for you? Where did you fail? Do you think those failures might somehow help you?
Think of how failure might merely be the hint of an approaching opportunity.
© 2004 Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 20: Accessibility
Arnold Palmer is arguably the people’s choice as the greatest golfing personality of all time. He put a face on the game of golf by giving back to his fans all of the honor and prestige that he ever earned in his golfing career. A four-time Masters champion, Palmer never lets success go to his head and to this day rarely declines a fan’s request for an autograph.
Standing close by this man, you can almost sense his feeling of indebtedness to the throng of fans, which has come to be known as Arnie’s Army. In some ways he is a striking enigma. The dominance of his physical strength, which is obvious in his massive forearms and hands, is immediately tempered by the friendliness of his eyes. He intentionally connects with fans by frequently making eye contact, which he sometimes even follows with a gentle smile or a slight nod, almost as if he is greeting an old friend. And that’s just how you feel around Palmer, like an old friend.
Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, made up what was known as golf’s Big Three, the unbeatable triad of champions. But certainly, of that threesome, Palmer was the one who, in the height of greatness and success, gave back to the average fan the special sense of what is must feel like to don golf’s most coveted prize, the Green Jacket.
Day 20 Guide:
Today, I want you to make yourself available and accessible to the people around you. As a parent, an employer or a friend you certainly will have the opportunity today to draw people closer to you by the way you respond to them. A gentle smile, eye contact, a compliment or a hug – all of these small things will go a long way in making yourself more available.
Be honest in your effort to do this, however. It is almost impossible to hide impatience and apathy. You have only to think of the instance when you’re talking to someone who for the most part is attentive but then makes one glance toward his watch as if he has something else on his mind. Immediately, the connection is lost and you realize that his attention is divided.
While I know that it is not always possible, when someone wants or needs your time give it to him.
© 2004, Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 21: Sympathy
Though I’m not a TV buff, I have watched segments of the show Survivor. It’s interesting to see such a strange mix of people thrown together and having to cooperate as a team in order to complete a given mission. But that’s not really what attracts viewers like you and me, is it?
We tune in to see who’s going to get voted off the team and who’s going to survive. I think we enjoy witnessing the emotions that bind some team members and separate others. It is the show’s perpetual undercurrent of dissention and backstabbing that I think attracts the viewers.
Here’s what one survivor, Jerri Manthey, said in the final few days of her survival tour in the Australian Outback:
I'm finally in a position of power again, and I like it. I am ready to go and vote. The two people that are left are two people that backstabbed me several times. I want them forced to look at what they have become while playing this game to what they are like in the real world.
The survivalist traits of man aren’t pretty, are they? They do little to help us fulfill our ultimate desire to enjoy life and other people. Fortunately, most of us aren’t in a survival mode, and we do have the necessary time and space to enjoy our families and friends, our local communities and even our country.
Day 21 Guide:
Think today of really enjoying your friends, your co-workers and your family. Sure, there are things you’d like to change in people, but try earnestly to avoid the strife and dissention that tends to divide and separate. Make the effort instead to understand differing points of view, and try to develop a sense of how others understand the world to be.
Suspend harsh judgment and consider differing points of view to be merely interesting, not right or wrong.
© 2004, Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Days 22-24: Science
Is there any science that will unravel the feelings of the long-distance runner who takes gold in the Olympic marathon or of the little girl who drops her ice cream cone? Feelings like these are very real, aren’t they? In fact, we spend most of our lives feeling and sensing, wetted by things that science will never really explain.
It doesn’t really help our understanding to say that feelings are the result of the body’s chemical or hormonal balance. Maybe feelings as such aren’t really for us to understand scientifically but rather to simply apprehend or witness. Maybe the real question isn’t so much one of science but of habit and sense-of-life.
The feelings aroused by the sight of a huge, full moon or by the romantic embrace of a lover – these are truly wonderful experiences, aren’t they? But where do they come from? And how do we claim more of them? Ask yourself these questions: What can I do to feel happy more often? How do I control or govern my feelings of sadness or depression?
Days 22-24 Guide:
Today I want you to generate two lists: 1) things that make you happy – a clean house, dinner out, a new CD, going to a movie, etc. 2) things that sadden or depress, you – an overcast, rainy, or all-to-busy day, sickness in the family, financial problems. Be specific. Think of the things that are currently on your mind.
How do you live with the mix of good and bad, with some things that delight and others that sadden or depress you? Balance is key. And maintaining such balance requires a discipline and a diet of sorts.
Sometimes you must feed yourself things that you’re not really craving. In effect, you may need to force yourself to enjoy things. And that takes real discipline since the things that make you feel low are often times chronic. They just don’t go away easily, e.g. financial or health burdens. They seem overwhelming and suffocating.
Making the lists is only a starting point in helping you to identify the vehicles by which your feelings manifest. Certainly, they don’t solve your problems or guarantee your happiness. They only provide clues as to how you might begin controlling your experience.
More on this subject in upcoming articles.
Note: Depression is very real and sometimes a serious condition that requires professional attention. Click to learn more. http://www.depression-screening.org/index.htm
© 2004, Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 25: Work
I think the hardest thing for me to do is to remove the armor of work and indulge in the sweetness of life. In fact, this, as it turns out, is the real work – to consistently find that river of joy that carries me beyond the day-to-day and the stress of tomorrow.
Work has its place, no doubt. But wouldn’t it be great if we naturally returned to that Joyous Gard? If the mind of beauty and inspiration was much more common than that of criticism?
I liken the mind of Joyous Gard to a space orbit, floating, it seems, weightless. But to reach that point of orbit, engines are working and fuel is spent. Listen to the American astronaut Joseph Allen describe his experience in the Space Shuttle:
“ When the engine shut down, I unbuckled myself from my seat and I was floating. I knew we were in orbit. We had to do an orbital-maneuvering-system (OMS) burn to get into a higher orbit. But before we even did the burn I floated upstairs – from middeck, below the flight deck – to look over the guys’ shoulders. I looked out the window and couldn’t believe it. The sun was streaming in, and you could look right down at the Atlantic Ocean. I look at the three of them doing the countdown for the OMS burn and I thought, How in the world can you do that? Look outside!”
Day 25 Guide:
Today, I want you to fire up your engine. I want to help you find your orbit.
There’s nothing you can do about the fact that it’s a Monday, right? Sometimes it's a rude interruption to the relaxation of a nice weekend. And on Monday, more than any other day of the week, you need to feel success. You need to sense the sweetness of accomplishment and discover that even work itself can be a road to finding your orbit.
Organization and discipline should be your key thoughts today. Approach the day standing tall, with your mind focused on taking care of things.
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Make a list of things that you’d like to accomplish today, and then attack that list.
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Don’t let your mind feel the stress of anything beyond the items on your list. Confine your work-thoughts to that list.
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Plan on unexpected events and consider them to be only obstacles not roadblocks.
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Frequently refer to your list throughout the day.
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Make a game out of attacking your list. Even punching through the things you accomplish with a hole-puncher might even give you a greater sense of completion. See how far you can get completing the items on your list.
The highest reward for man’s toil is not what he gets for it, but what he becomes by it.
-- John Ruskin (1819-1900)
© 2004, Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Days 26-27: Hope
I love the transition of ideas from Work to Hope. It is a move to higher things. Hope is the candle that burns and lights the darkened path. Hope restores the spirit in the midst of travail and adversity.
But it’s so easy to lose the feeling of hope, isn’t it? The noise of the day is deafening and makes its solace seem foreign. I believe that hope holds the greatest restorative value to those whose lives provide a rich context of problems, concerns, and anxiety. And that fact alone inspires at least a faint sense of desire that begins to lead one from the rubble.
It is great, that Christian hope of eternal life through Christ. And for many this belief provides even the daily strength that enables a wonderful and positive sense of life.
For me one of the doors to hope opens when I consider the images of common people who demonstrate great victory over struggle. I think of the blind man who is happy and who walks to his workplace using his cane. Or of the crippled child who does his best to smile and be like everyone else. I think of those who face the difficulty of disease with great strength, even those who face death and still find a purpose to life. Images like these erase my problems and instantly reset my priorities. They give me hope in tomorrow.
Days 26-27 Guide:
Today, I want you to look around. Look at the people near you, those with whom you work, or even those strangers who pass by. Find someone who faces adversity with what seems to be an uncommon strength, and then write briefly about that person and the qualities that you admire. Think of that person throughout the day.
The key here is to develop the habit of looking outward. Finding a door to hope is, I believe, more easily accomplished when your thoughts extend beyond your own life.
© 2004, Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Day 28: Experience
In so many ways life is what we make of it. Experience and the witness of life seem so varied among people that surely there’s no sound way to objectively lay claim to what life actually is.
But one thing is certain: life is full of happenings. The stream of life carries with it a constant flow of change, and most of what actually occurs is out of our control. But we are in control of our overall experience and what we make of life. And that’s an important key: controlling our experience.
Experience, as I would describe it, isn’t merely the simple transcription of life marked on the brain. Yours and my experience of similar events are completely personal. Individual experiences carry with them, in addition to the event itself, the mark of one’s motives and desires – one’s sense of life. Experience, therefore, is terribly complex. Even yet, it seems clear to me that we are in control of most of our own experience.
Our hopes and dreams, even our feelings of guilt or a sense of duty, are inextricably bound to our experiences and in our minds become a part of life’s events. I believe it is most important, even urgent, to make the effort to mold a perspective that sees life as meaningful and full of purpose – to see the beauty and the design in life. I believe life to be not simply a chronology of events but rather an aim to satisfy a divine and beautiful purpose; I believe that we all are living inside God’s great plan.
Day 28 Guide:
Today, I want you to think back on your life, as far back as you can remember, and begin to create a mental collage of your experiences thus far. You could even choose today as the start of your personal journal or portfolio. And as you chronicle your life, pay close attention to the common threads. Ask yourself these questions: What is it that I see as common threads in my sense of life? Does my collection speak of one who sees life as favorable, or of one who is destined for failure and disappointment?
Reflection is best cast in the light of a view to higher things.
© 2004, Levi Hill
Joyous Gard: Daily Guide
October 2004 ~ Days 29-31: Faith
Maybe some of you will remember Doc Severinsen, the flamboyant band-leader on Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show. An outstanding trumpeter, arranger and conductor, Severinsen is most easily remembered by his colorful wardrobe, which became his trademark.
Carson’s Tonight Show was all but serious. And Severinsen was the third leg of a terribly funny trio, which also included Carson and Ed McMahon. Severinsen was the standout, the oddball, and Carson loved to make fun of his clothes.
At seventy-seven, Doc Severinsen still blows his horn and is touring across the country playing with different symphony orchestras. He continues to wear his trademark gaudy outfits and stands out especially against the formal backdrop of orchestra members who are typically dressed in black.
Last night I had the opportunity to see Severinsen perform and was struck by that contrast. Standing on the conductor’s podium in his bright yellow jacket and black leather pants, he played the music of George Gershwin and Duke Ellington along with classical pieces from Vienna. In my mind he best characterized the nature of music itself, as an oasis in the desert.
Music helps to inspire and remind me of the things I trust -- of the consistent underlying beauty that surrounds all of us and calls our attention in subtle ways. We need daily to resort to the things we trust and there seek renewal. What is it that draws you?
Day 29-31 Guide:
We all have a tendency to get lost in the tumble and noise of the day, don’t we? But today, make it a special point to listen closely for the call to return home. What is it that leads you there? Music? Prayer? Writing?
I want you to develop the daily habit of dipping into the cool refreshing waters that lead you to your foundation and your trust, your faith.
© 2004, Levi Hill
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