new discoveries

Humans of New York

Brandon Stanton was working in the financial business in Chicago.  He lost his job and then decided to move to New York and start taking pictures of people on the streets.  He has taken over 3500 portraits of people on the streets.  This is a cool video.  

Rooftops of Provo

Moments

A friend of mine asked me the other day how to enjoy life.  I told her you just have to stop and enjoy the small things around you.  Our lives move forward one small moment at a time.  All of these small moments added together make up the story of our life.  But have you ever thought about how you define a moment?

Bon Iver

This video is amazing.  I am constantly overpowered by the emotion and talent found in every Justin Vernon song.  He has been on my list of people I have to see in concert and he is coming to Las Vegas on April 12th.  I couldn't be more excited.  Enjoy.   

Triumph in C Major

The year of 1808 was a time of change in Vienna.  Not many years before there was the American revolution followed by the French revolution.  It was an era transition and change.  Napoleon was building his empire and by the winter of 1808 had taken control of Vienna.  This created a sense of uneasiness of many, especially for one Ludwig van Beethoven.  All of this was the back drop to the creation of one of the greatest, most recognizable pieces of classical music in the world: Beethoven's 5th Symphony. 
But it didn't start out that way.  The first performance of the 5th was less then ideal. It was winter and the concert hall had no heating.  Without proper practice the orchestra made multiple mistakes during the perform and each time Beethoven would make them start again stretching the concert to over a staggering four hours.  It speaks highly of Beethoven's talent as a composer that the 5th was able to become so renown after such a rocky beginning.
If you are to pick up a copy of Beethoven's 5th symphony from the store the CD cover will read Beethoven's 5th symphony in C Minor.  This is really only half of the truth because you see it only begins in C Minor.
Many scholars refer to this as the triumphant symphony because of the fact that it starts in C Minor but ends in C Major.  Throughout the course of the 30 minute symphony you have bursts of C Major.  By the 3rd movement it becomes a battle between the despair of the minor chords and the strength of the major chords.   I can't help but imagine that Beethoven was trying to make a statement by doing this.  He was trying to say that even though they were living in uncertain times they were going to be victorious.  We will have a triumphal ending in C Major.
I am intrigued by this going back and forth of C Minor and C Major.  Many times in life because of our hardships and difficulties we are living in a minor key, in a fallen state.  The goal in life is to overcome our fallen state, to reach that major key just like the 5th does.
In the last part of the 4th movement Beethoven blares out 5 or 6 strong and powerful C Major chords.  He wants to make sure that his audience knows that the symphony is not longer in C Minor.  We are now gloriously in C Major.  We are going to have hard times in our lives, we just need to remember that if we are faithful and remain strong we will be gloriously rewarded with all the Father hath. 

Listen to the last minute of this to hear the triumphant C Major chords.

Regret: Friend or Foe?

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

-Mark Twain

I have long loved this quote.  I always thought it was a very nice idea.  I pictured myself leaning on the railing of a boat going out to sea, my hair blowing in the wind, and the excitement of a new adventure racing through my body.  I took this as a call to explore the world, to go backpacking through Europe, hiking and camping in the Himalayas and sandboard down the dunes of the Sahara.  I still want to do all of those things but I think this can have a much narrower application to my life with a much greater impact.

There are many simple opportunities that I have pasted up on in my life.  I regret the things I haven't done.  Not asking that girl out, not trying that activity, not signing up for that class.  I am done with not doing things I want because I am scared or because I am safe in the harbor.  I have been playing it safe for far too long, it's now my turn.  I can't live a life of regrets, no one can.  

I can't be passive and expect to get what I want.  The times I have been happiest in my life are when I have worked hard and put myself out there for something I wanted.  It may not have always worked out but I at least I know that I tired.  I never want the feeling that I lost something because I didn't try for it again.  

 

John Steinbeck said, "Nothing good gets away".  But is that really true?  I feel that because of my inaction good things have gotten away from me.  I have lost opportunities that I regret.  But that doesn't need to be a bad thing.  Regrets can be good.  I want to learn from my regrets.  I believe God gave us regrets so we don't repeat the same mistakes over again.  

 

What am I going to do today so I have no regrets tomorrow?