I was at one of my favorite Yoga classes recently on Saturday morning, we had gotten through most of a 75 minute very grueling/demanding and Hot yoga class with my dear friend and instructor Allison Scaramelli. We were all lying on our backs and one of the songs she had playlisted started and I felt this sense of familiarity about it, you know when you hear the beginning of a song that you have heard so many times before, and you have that tickle of love and familiarity for it? Who is this? I know this artist, and this song...........!
It was "Connected" one of the tracks from my newly released album "Gratitude" I had given Allison a copy of the CD a few weeks after the album was released on 1/15. I always give a CD to all yoga instructors, as I feel they do so much for me personally, not just teaching the class, but expanding my awareness, tuning my mind, body, and soul with their skills, experience, and amazing instruction. I wonder if everyone feels that way, or is it just me? I doubt it, I think that people do feel that way, but are just way too busy, and not everyone gets a chance to express that, or sincerely thank the instructor for the contribution that was just deposited into their bank of life!
As I listened to the track play, It started to become a very unique and special experience, as it was being shared with my Yoga community, many of the people in the room are like family to me, I see them every week, and although we don't often get to share more than a few pleasantries, there is a bonded, almost spiritual connection between us, it is that very special commitment that all of us share in that makes this room go beyond just an exercise experience, it connects the heart, mind, body, and soul all in complete synchronicity, and stretches the bonds of love almost beyond human experience.
As was lying there listening to the song, I remembered all of the work, the rewrites, the recutting the vocal (dozens of time's) changing the key multiple times, rewriting again and again, my approach to music is much like I do everything in my life, I approach everything as though this will be the last time I ever write or sing a song, play a note on the guitar, greet someone on the street, give a smile to a stranger, offer someone a kind word, now that's the stuff life ought to be about! For if I get to the last chapter and I have not made my indelible mark now matter how small or large, in this world, then I have not embraced my gift wholly and unselfishly.
As I listened to the song in the company of my fellow yogi's I recounted the tale of this story, of "hero to zero" with this man who had the whole world at his fingertips, then watching it all collapse around him in utter destruction of a life that he "thought" would always continue as it had.
In closing, although the content of this song was about Jesus entering into one man's life who had "everything" (or so he thought) and then was locked up in jail facing hopeless circumstances, the timeline of the song goes from humble beginnings to "Wolf of Wall Street" and then turns from incarceration and hopelessness into strength, resolve, and limitless possibility, once this person realizes that there is a much more superior power working to solve all of his worldly problems and circumstances from another realm, he embraces the Lord and commits to changing his life completely.
Thank you Allison for shining some light on this story, and honoring "Connected", and the "Gratitude" album, it's a full length collection recorded on music row that is made up of short personal stories, some mine, some others, and some hatched out of thin air to achieve my three main objectives in life, to *Love *Inspire, & *Entertain.
xx James~
please share this with someone who might need it~