So this is another school project I did. Since I already did all the work, I decided to post it. This particular project was to listen to Ludvig van Beethoven's 5th symphony...
...and write about what the piece means to me, what I feel/think/see/etc. when I listen to it. I only did the first movement, since I did not want to go into this kind of detail for the rest of 'em.
So, here it is:
The initial beats are lighting and thunder, which start a down pour upon a wounded man lying upon a battlefield filled with corpses. After the rain begins, he has flash backs about everything that brought him to this point. The following “creeping” feeling of the orchestra is the man remembering the events coming together for the war he is now in. The bridge begins the memory of the events which brought the redcoats to the very steps of the man’s plantation; ending with pistol aimed at his face and all his property burning.
Beginning on theme one, the man remembers even farther back, before the ball, when he took his wife to a ball. The sounds of the violins are the man remembering slowly dancing in a beautiful hall before the war. When things pick up to the happier, faster paced tune, he is remembering more and more of the fast paced, carefree dance. Not long after those events though, the man begins to cycle through other events that lead to where he is now. As the Exposition repeats, he goes through a similar cycle of memories; from the events leading to the war, the burning of his plantation and killing of part of his family, to the times before the war.
The near confusion in the Development is the man being swarmed with different memories. From his anger that made him join the war, to those happy times before the war. His memory jumped from dances, to tired marching, to happy evenings with his family, to confused battles. Memories of pain, hunger, happiness, and sadness seem to attack him at once.
The Recapitulation is the very passionately angry memories of the man seeing the destruction of his plantation. With the quiet and slow oboe solo, the man remembers crying as he held his wife’s lifeless corpse in his arms, as the soldiers marched off with all his possessions burning.
The following crescendo for the bridge is the memory of sadness turning into anger and hate for the man. He remembers setting his wife’s body down, standing up and watching as the redcoats marched away. With the trumpet blasts the man is brought once again to the memories before the war; including the last dance he had. He had brought his whole family to an extravagant ball as one final time to have carefree fun before the fighting began. His memories begin once again with the slow, blissful dancing as he sees his wife smiling face. Memories of the dance speeding up and becoming more intense come along with the crescendo of the music, until he is spinning quickly and carefree with his wife in his arms, with his sons and daughters surrounding him all dancing carefree as well.
With the Coda comes conflicting memories of that final dance and this last battle; the joy of his family, and the hate of his enemy. Images of his smiling wife and his smoking rifle flooded his mind. Memories come harder and faster, making the emotions in the man boil as he lay on the battlefield. Finally, as the orchestra switches to the darker tune, the man is left with just the memories of his hate. Marching, firing, reloading, watching as enemy soldiers fell, and the blood of allied soldiers splattered his face and clothes.
Memories slow down, but become more focused as he sees the soldier that killed his wife and family and ordered the burning of the plantation. The music builds and intensifies as the two fight towards each other, and a few longing memories appear to the man. The following deep, powerful notes known from theme one are the man and the soldier meeting on the field of combat. They fight hard, the man burning with anger and hate. Combat ends with the soldier firing his pistol and the man stabbing him with a bayonet in time with the powerful closing notes. Along with the sudden ending comes the man suddenly falling into unconsciousness, having remembered all the events that brought him to this point.
This post will be a little less about my thoughts on things, and more about my experiences. It will also serve as a warning. I will tell you a bit more about me here. And about some troubles I went through.
If you have read my blog at all it should hopefully be very obvious that I am a Christian. However, it is only recently that I have felt so strongly about being a Christian (I'm talking about in the last few months before writing this). The reason is because most of the message I had heard all my life, about Jesus Christ dying for my sins, had been watered down so much. I would hear it repeated again and again that He died for my sins, but without the background behind any of this being explained, it all seemed very unimportant (for lack of a better word) to me. Yes, I knew what everyone said was true, but it carried very little meaning.
Whenever I went to church or heard someone read from or quote the Bible, it was almost always out of the New Testament and from many of the same passages. The meaning behind these passages and even the entire New Testament was never properly explained to me. What do I mean by properly? I will get to that shortly.
I did study the Old Testament, and I also knew most of the Bible stories as well (or better than) other kids. However, it was treated as something to talk about and "learn" from on Sunday's or neat little stories to tell kids before bed. Oh boy, have my perspectives on those stories changed!
This is where my warning comes into play. Many, if not most of all Christians, are doing this. They are making these stories, these very valuable and historically true and scientifically accurate stories, seem only as children's tales. They are also making the Old Testament unpropotionately weak. And worse yet, the biggest problem I had to overcome, was the fact that othe Christians were unknowingly downplaying the Almighty's power. That is part of the reason I myself rarely use the terms "God" or "Jesus", is because they were the only terms I heard most of my life, and they have lost meaning to me. As hard as that is to admit, it is true. So instead, I choose to use other names for our Creator.
Now what I mean by downplaying the Almighty's power is the fact that it is not mentioned enough, and when it is, not emphasized enough. Yes, I know that in church miracles are spoken of all the time! Jesus rising up from the dead, turning water into wine, feeding thousands with almost nothing, and several others. The problem is, at least it was for me, is that no one put nearly enough empasis on any of these. The sermon would always lead into how He loves us and died for us, and all that. Since I already knew that and had heard it dozens of times (and had already accepted Him), it was difficult for these to have lots of meaning for me.
There were the periodic sermons that would spark an interest when someone really went into the power of the All Powerful, but it didn't happen enough. And I hardly remember at all anyone making the "children's tales" in the Bible seem as they truly were, miraculous examples of the power and might of the Lord of Heaven's Armies!
This doesn't make any sense at all! When you look at the Bible, first off you notice it starts in the Old Testament. Also, it starts by showing the Almighty's power! What happens first in the Bible? Creation. Everything from nothing, because of a supernatural act on the part of the Creator. In the Old Testament (which is far larger then the New Testament), you see example after example of the Almighty's power and justice. You also see some of His love for us and some glimpses at His mercy. His love and mercy are shown most in the New Testament, through the Messiah. However, that is after thousands of years of history and well over half of the Bible. Everything else, all these examples of His undeniable power, lead up to this.
So why all my life did people ignore everything leading up to the ultimate example of love and mercy in Christ? After all, the All Knowing didn't. Why then do we?
Well I can tell you this, it kept me a weak Christian. So please to not make the same mistake. Do not ignore the power of the Almighty! Speak of it first and foremost, and those who listen will always hear. Heed my warning, maybe others will be saved years of learning as I have.
Now, everything really hit me all at once just a few months ago. I was on vacation and was reading some books, one in particular was a commentary on the book of Job. Unlike other commentaries talking about the faith of Job and such, this commentary showed how the book of Job was "one of the most historically and scientifically accurate records of the ancient world". It focused more on the power, wisdom and knowledge of the God of Job. That was the biggest turn-a-round points for me. I devoured that book! Then I devoured the actual book of Job, rereading large portions several times. I had never read the Bible so passionately.
Within weeks of each other, event after event occured which made me more passionate about the Bible and my Christianity than ever before. I even began studying the Bible to help me better write my own books! In a period of several weeks, I felt more fear than I ever had before. And by fear, I mean fear of the Lord. I caught glimpse after glimpse of just how powerful He was. One example may be found in the first chapter of Genesis. During the creation account, it is said that "He [God] created the stars also". With that little sentence, the Almighty describes Himself creating most of the universe! Our little planet earth, which is so small it should hardly be given any thought in the Milkyway Galaxy, and that one galaxy out of so many hundreds of billions of others that it shouldn't be given any thought; this little planet was deemed so much more important than the rest of creation that the rest of the entire universe was pretty much described as "He created the stars also"!
I still have not fully grasped the signifigance of that one sentence, but the more I understand it the greater it is! The fact that He would create so much, yet choose this one little speck in the corner of the universe as the location where those who He made in His own image reside, is just astounding. This fear of Lord has put things into better perspective for me. There are times where anything beyond the moment doesn't matter. It doesn't matter what I have, how long I'll live, where I'll go when I die, or even if I'm a "good person". There are times where I am simply frozen in sheer awe at His power. Those are the best times of worship I have ever had. Where I am simply overwhelmed with the knowledge of how insignifigant I am, in terms of power. Compared to the universe and all that the Creator controls, I seem as nothing!
Now, I am still studying farther and have more and more revalations of His power since these events. I mainly study the Old Testament, to learn the history and signifigance of the New Testament. Reading of the miracles and power surrounding those such as Noah, or Abraham, Jacob, and others has been a great experience for me. And for once, I read these stories not as children's stories, but as HIStory. Some days I still struggle to actually pick up my Bible, but when I do pick it up, it is with great enthusiasm.
Overall my warning is to make sure that things to not repeat. Christianity once seemed almost boring for me. Everything in the New Testament was dull. Now that I am studying the Old Testament and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, it is constantly giving new life to the New Testament.
Also, my hope and prayer for eveyone who ever reads this is that they will also one day be able to experience what I am experiencing. This closeness, understanding and fear of their Creator. Not fear of retaliation or harm, but a fear composed of awe and wonder at something so much greater than ourselves! That is what Christianity is about! The most powerful being to ever exist, who created the universe and defined the laws of physics, who caused time to begin and to one day end, who can wipe out everything that exists with a mere thought; Christianity is about this All Powerful Creator wanting to know us. To know me...
I have been listening to this song, State Of Emergency a lot recently. It was brought to my attention because of the government class I've been in. We would talk about many different subjects (gun control laws, corruption, abortion, ect.) and then I would come home and listen to this song. The lyrics would really jump out at me. The lyrics were so strong to me that I even shared them with my government class. One of my class mates suggested I put it on this here blog, and I thought that was a good idea. So, here I am! Thank you, you gve me another post.
Anyway, here's the song:
And here are the lyrics:
[Verse 1]
We used to think that our ignorance is bliss
But we can't keep on thinking that this moment doesn't exist
There's people fighting and fighting and fighting
For all that they own
It seems we twisted reality again
Looking for the opportunity for us to dig in
We're getting deeper and deeper and deeper
Into the unknown
(We've got to open up our eyes)
[Pre-Chorus]
How long will we close our eyes to the youth?
How long until we recognize the truth?
How far will we let this go?
[Chorus]
It's a state of emergency
It's time we see
There's a need to take action
This is a state of emergency
We're too blind to see
All of these simple distractions
[Verse 2]
All our attention is directed to the mirror
We want to forget that people live in terror
We're their only way out and the time is right now
We gotta grab a hold of this moment
[Pre-Chorus]
How long will we close our eyes to the youth?
How long until we recognize the truth?
How far will we let this go?
[Chorus]
It's a state of emergency
It's time we see
There's a need to take action
This is a state of emergency
We're too blind to see
All of these simple distractions
[Chorus]
It's a state of emergency
It's time we see
There's a need to take action
This is a state of emergency
We're too blind to see
All of these simple distractions
[Verse 3]
How far do we let it go
Before we all take control
We are the hands
We are the feet
So we gotta go
Stop waiting for someone else
To take control
(Take back the control)
We could be their last hope
[Chorus]
It's a state of emergency
It's time we see
There's a need to take action
This is a state of emergency
We're too blind to see
All of these simple distractions
[Chorus]
It's a state of emergency
It's time we see
There's a need to take action
This is a state of emergency
We're too blind to see
All of these simple distractions
That should be all of them. It is a very powerful song because of the lyrics alone. The actual music itself just adds to the emotion very well, even the beginning guitar. It introduces the emotion. But once the lyrics come in, it becomes very powerful very fast.
"We used to think that our ignorance is bliss" If I were a preacher, I could probably do a whole sermon on that first line. Heck, I could do a whole sermon on this song if that were the case! But this first line speaks so well about people today. It even fits along with what we discussed in that government class I was talking about "you may not care... until it effects you!"
"But we can't keep on thinking that this moment doesn't exist" This just makes me think of people who are "just doing their thing". Or who don't care about what others are going through, or about much else at all. Which... kinda describes the average American, on both of these lines I just quoted. Heck, most of this song describes the average American.
"There's people fighting. . . for all that they own" Many of us think we are just fine, and try to further ourselves, but we forget that there are people who struggle to own anything. The rich hardly give the poor a thought. Those above rarely care about those below.
"It seems we twisted reality again" This is another one of those lines that really gets me, especially the "again" part. This so well describes what most everyone does. What the health industry has done, what the fitness industry has done, what the politicians have done, ect, ect, ect... We have made things more complicated then they really are. We have hidden the truth, or given half truths, or fit the truth to what works for us so much, it's become normal. We keep on twisting reality.
"Looking for an opportunity for us to dig in" Wow, that line just burns. Once again, that is so very true. I'll use just one single example of this, because I want to keep things simple. The health industry wants money, so it has "twisted reality" to make people think that they have to buy all their fancy equipment, food, pills, medicine, services, ect. to remain healthy. They simply want to make money off our (well, others, not mine) suffering. That is why obesity exists (in part), because those up top want to "dig in" on the profits.
"We're getting deeper. . . into the unknown" We keep on digging in so deep, twisting reality so much, being ignorant and forgetting about the importance of things, that we're getting ourselves in deep. America, the "land of the free" is over 14 trillion dollars in debt. "The borrower is slave to the lender", yeah, land of the free indeed...
"We've got to open our eyes" This just seems like a statement to me (well... it kinda is anyway). Or even almost a plea. We can't keep on thinking that ignorance is bliss, we must acknowledge that this moment exists.
"How long will we close our eyes to the youth. . . until we recognize the truth" To my understanding, this is what the song was written about. About the youth, the younger generation. The whole song, as I believe it was originally written, was saying that the youth are in a "state of emergency". They need our help. We've allowed their morals (and therefore, all of ours) to slip.
"How far will we let this go?" This line might be the one that hits me the hardest. Hence, the reason I named this post after it. This is such a strong question. How long will we allow ourselves to sit back and be comfortable? Staying comfortable is what allows corruption to slowly seep in. We've been letting that happen to long! How long until we decide to step out? How far will we let this go? How far will you?
"It's a state of emergency" This is the answer to the question. If there's an emergency, what do you do? You act immediately. Well guess what, everything is in a state of emergency! We must act now! This song was written years ago, yet Pillar (the band) said this of the state of things then. It's even worse now! How far will we let this go?
"It's time we see there's a need to take action" Yes. Yes, it's time we do. This line says so much. This one simple line says more than long speeches, fancy campaigns, and neat little slogans. Simply, "there's a need to take action".
"This is a state of emergency, we're to blind to see all of these simple distractions" Cars, cellphones, computers, internet, movies, food, parties, and much, much more. These are the simple distractions. We can't see past them, and that is why "we keep on thinking this moment doesn't exist" and why we need to "open our eyes". We are so worried about our own little world, that we can't see past it. We are to blind to see past them.
"All of our attention is directed to the mirror" BAM! Right in the face of Americans like myself, right there. We think so much about ourselves. We only worry about ourselves.
"We want to forget that the people live in terror" It's a good thing the mirror only reflects our face back to us, and not reality; because this statement is so true. There are wars, kidnappings, murders, and so much more going on, but we just party away. Or worry about getting to job on time. Or making sure the paint on our car is in good shape. Or maybe even about "the game". We push aside the hard truth, or as my class mate quoted the "inconvenient truth", if I remember right.
"We're their only way out and the time is right now" It is us, those who have the power and ability, who can fix things. Being comfortable won't fix anything. As a matter of fact, fixing things will be very, very hard. People will lose jobs, people will die, people will be hated. The very fundamental core of society will be shaken. But how far will we let this go before we realize this? Change will happen... whether we like it or not. For good or bad. I would rather good change happen sooner rather than later, when it will be less hard (since it won't be easy).
"We gotta grab a hold of this moment" Not tomorrow. Not next year. Not in some future generation. Now. It may be to late if we wait any longer.
"How far do we let it go before we all take control?" Many of us just live life, and grumble a bit at the laws that pass that take away our freedoms. We "sympathize" with the poor, or the abandoned. We have issues with the weakening morals of the country, but we don't want to "offend" anyone. When will we take control? When will we take action?
"We are the hands, we are the feet" This line applies most heavily to Christians, since we are the "body" of Christ. It is our job to act. Yet... many churches and believers have twisted reality, live in ignorant bliss, pretend that the moment doesn't exist, and are to blind to see past their simple distractions. They want to stay in their comfort zones. But it is us, above everyone else, who should be stepping out.
"So we gotta go" Once again, telling us to act on this emergency. When you're house is on fire, you don't wait until your flesh is melting before you consider getting off the couch. No. You get going! There is no reason not to in an emergency!
"Stop waiting for someone else to take control (take back the control)" This line also applies most heavily for Christians. This nation (America) was found as a Christian nation by Christians. This is a state of emergency now! How far will we let this go? We do need to take back the control! The country will grow weaker, and weaker until we do. If we do not, the country will consume itself. Our inaction could be the beginning of the end. Because a country as big as America destroying itself will effect the world.
"We could be their last hope" This line applies in so many different ways, I don't even know where to begin! We could be decades away from the end for all we know. Someone you know may be hours away. The lives of those others around the world may not have much longer. There may not be anyone else to help them. There may be no one else to help us.
I listened to the song probably more than a dozen times while writing this post. I still haven't tired of it. It is a very powerful song.
So how far will we let this go?
How far will you let this go?
This is a state of emergency, we gotta take control.
a lot recently. It was brought to my attention because of the government class I've been in. We would talk about many different subjects (gun control laws, corruption, abortion, ect.) and then I would come home and listen to this song. The lyrics would really jump out at me. The lyrics were so strong to me that I even shared them with my government class. One of my class mates suggested I put it on this here blog, and I thought that was a good idea. So, here I am! Thank you, you gve me another post.