"Some things that happened for the first time
Seems to be happening again
And so it seems that we have met before
And that we laughed before, also loved before
But who knows where or when"
It seems that a beautiful piece of music has the ability to penetrate the soul. Actually, my thinking must be broader than that. Beauty and creation penetrate the soul. It is as if our hearts are each encased in a shell much like an egg. A wonderful melody, a beautiful sunset, a child's laugh, a blossoming tree strikes at that shell and sends a shaft of life pouring in. The hole created does not just allow beauty in light in, but it also pulls out the best of who we are. It calls us to create. It calls us to show off the best version of who we are, to show that to the world.
I believe with all my might that God's image in man demands that he answer the call to create. God's process of creation involved creativity, beauty, and the spoken word. Then he looked at his creation and called it good. We, his divine image bearers, are intended to perpetuate his creative process. Unfortunately, the marred creation means we are marred creators. We get lazy and comfortable. We criticize our own handiwork, and we criticize the handiwork of others. We fear reactions. We shell up our hearts and our creations.
But then every once in a while, you hear a jazz musician that breaks the shell. She stares you down, and her energy and confidence and beauty pull out the creator and thus the creation. For a brief second you forget the fear, the reactions, the critics, the laziness and comfort. For a second you envision your creation and call it into being.
