Glory and Sacrifice

Glory is always in front of us. It's screaming out, whispering, dancing in our imagination. It haunts us with all the exoticness of circus acts and dark magic. Untamed--like a liquid-pure fire in the dusty, closet-corners of our hearts--glory lies dormant until a finger to the stove reminds us it's there.

You always hear those stories about that one kid believes he can fly because Spiderman does. So he puts on the halloween costume and nearly jumps off the roof, until his mom catches up with him in the nick of time and screams, "noooooo! Don't do it!"

When true glory comes to me, I wish I had the guts to be that stupid. When it whispers in my ear, "I'm worth it," I want to throw down everything and spend the next ten years chasing it. But people say, "No, that's ridiculous. Don't do that."

Glory is like excellence, but it's not just that. Good jazz bands, exquisite paintings, fast company businesses, even a espresso maker can be excellent. But glory is different. It soaks in truth and life; it seems to be young and old, never tired and never searching. It's depth is bottomless, ageless, and eternal. It just is. When you touch it, you know it, and your life is never the same.

I was driving to the recording studio the other day with my mom, telling her about how music is going with Mike. She said, "Oh you'll be touring before you know it." I said…"Really??? Sometimes I feel crazy pursuing music. Are you sure it's worth it?"

Music has never been my only dream, but now that I'm out of school I feel like I am sacrificing so many good things to do it. I can't live in NY with the people I love. I can't get married soon. Can't have kids. Can't take cool boring jobs that make a lot of money..

My mom got teary eyed. "Of course it's worth it Leah. It's the most profound thing you do."

I stared out of the window and watched the trees zip by. Even if it didn't work out, of course it's worth it to try. Everyone should do what makes them profound.

Everyone should pursue glory, even if it calls for sacrifice. I'm starting to think glory is born from sacrifice.