Virtual Reality…

Images, sounds, sights, taste, feelings. All this week I’ve been doing a lot of mind-clearing, thought provoking, energizing techniques for sustenance. It’s been weird, real, and comforting all in one. I’ve been listening to a variety of music lately, and it all has taking me to various places… in my mind at least. Promoting thoughts, wishes, ideas, and actions. All this week, I’ve been listening to a song a that was sent to me, and I love it! It’s by Sade, and it has a real cool Caribbean melody to it. Every time I get stuck in traffic… deal with bullshit in one form or another, I blast it in my car. It takes me somewhere. It takes me to an island… with the waves gently brushing up to the shore… the warm water flowing in and out between my toes… the warm sand capturing my footprints with every step. I literally can feel the warm sun on my skin… the cool breeze brush across my face. When I hear this song, I’m no longer behind the dill weed that is in love with jamming his or her brakes for no apparent reason… or the jerk ass who decides to cut lanes all of a sudden to get an exit at the last minute. My fantasy is becoming real… sans my Tattoo yelling “de plane, de plane” and Mr. Roarke with his rico suave voice making my Fantasy Island wish come true.
It’s so ironic, because tonight some classmates conducted a training on healthy aging… educating us on how to take care of ourselves and remembering to practice healthy behaviors, so that essentially we can be around to enjoy life in the future. Putting money in the bank as one of my comrades said. That’s a dope outlook and vision. We did activities that included aroma therapy – all of us collectively huffing lavender, bergamot, and litsea cubeba… half the stuff I’ve never heard of before and am probably butchering the hell out of pronouncing, but smells hella good. Again, taking me away for a bit. We then closed our eyes for another activity, while being lead through a deep breathing and deep thought exercise. This was niiiiice. I was able to return to my fantasy island thought again. Hmm…can I make this vivid imagination become a reality?
But back to the music for a minute. I’ve been listening to a lot of other music that has taken me places… to my childhood, to high school, with my crew. Artists ranging from Donny Hathaway, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, and the 69 Boys (Whoot there it is!). Songs that had some substance in a sense. One verse that sticks out to me is: “I love you in a place where there's no space or timeI love you for my life, 'cause you're a friend of mineAnd when my life is over, remember when we were togetherWe were alone and I was singin' my song for you” (Donny Hathaway – A Song for You)A far cry from the nookie poppin’ and rump shaker beats and rhymes that flood the airwaves and our Ipods. Not saying those jams don’t have a place, and can be fun… but where’s the substance like the old school tracks had? Maybe that’s why folks in the 60s and 70s did a lot more progressive, innovative, and empowering actions… unlike today, where folks hardly do jack shit.So folks, remember to take a bit of time for you, and to enjoy and respect yourself, because it makes the medicine that we have to take a lot easier to swallow.