Expression

Through the sheer coincidence of the artists' schedules, I attended two concerts this past weekend.  (Lest you mistakingly think I am a cool hipster, you should know that the last concert I saw before this weekend was more than six months ago.)  I simply couldn't pass up the chance to see Matthew Perryman Jones and Sandra McCracken, both in small and up-close settings.

I think one thing that makes the "listening room" style concerts especially appealing to me is that the artists take a few moments to explain their songs and share a little background with you.  While every quality song can speak for itself, there is something endearing about that brief, spoken intro that makes it feel more like a conversation between friends than a concert.  And somewhere in the middle of listening to melodies and my stream-of-consciousness thoughts, I had a miniature epiphany:  it's all about expression.  This almost obvious realization made me feel connected to the musical world and other artsy worlds in a new way.  While I do know how to play piano and dabble in guitar, I would not describe myself as a musician.  I am a writer; I write to express myself.  There are days where I feel in my core that I have to write--I'm desperate to process my thoughts in my journal or occasionally a blog (case in point).  Musicians express themselves though the beautiful combination of notes and lyrics.  One of my friends is an artist and expresses herself through visual art.  Her paintings tell a story about her current state of emotion just as much as the written word.

The musician, the writer, the artist--these are just a few examples.  While the methods of expression may vary, I think we were all meant to be communicators in community.