Marching in Time
Most humans have noticed the odd coincidences in life that seem to hint at something more going on in the universe. There is definitely a zeitgeist and it seems to me that there are definitely such things as fate, destiny, karma and a little bit of magic.
I learned about synchronicities through a book I read which was actually fiction but seemed to tap into something very real yet unseen. The book was called "The First Verse" and I highly recommend it. In the book, the three main characters play a game which is actually a sort of divining which does exist in real life, culling meaning from passages selected at random from various sources of literature. In "The First Verse", it's mainly from books, but other signs are also taken in. When several signs point to the same thing, or when several things happen at once that are related, they call it a synchronicity. After reading the book, I have indeed noticed more synchronicities in the real world than I had before.
Here is the latest one.
As some of you know, I do volunteer work on Tuesday nights as part of a homeless outreach team in Hollywood. We go out and make conversation with homeless people, offering them a snack and then trying to get to know more about them and their situations. Ultimately we let them know about the assistance that our organization can offer, which includes an emergency shelter in Hollywood, and a regional center where many services are offered. I have been doing this for several months and I really enjoy it, although lately there is some concern that the funding may not be continued for the nighttime outreach program.
Skip to LA Pride, which was a couple of weekends ago here in West Hollywood park. While perusing some of the booths, I noticed one for a gay marching band! I would never have thought such a thing existed. Although I often hated it at the time, I do have many fond memories of Marching Band from junior high and high school. There is something so traditional and feel-good about marching in a parade with a band. I was in several parades back in junior high, including those in Natoma, Kansas which was a very small town near my own hometown, where I went to grade school and where many of my friends and classmates lived. We would also go march in the Fort Hays State University homecoming parade each year in Hays; then when I was 14 we moved to Hays and I marched in the same parade with my high school band. At Hays High, we had a pretty serious marching band and we did some really amazing half-time shows and won some local awards if memory serves. I was named "Saxophone Section Leader" my senior year which was an honor for me.
So, this piqued my interest, and I asked the guy at the booth for more information, which he happily gave me. He said they practice every Tuesday night and they would be performing an annual concert in a week.
It struck me that their rehearsals were the same night as my homeless outreach.
All at once, several days later, I first heard about the funding scare and the possible discontinuation of the outreach program, then thought of the rehearsal times, and then remembered - a very weird synchronicity. One Tuesday when I went out in the outreach van, there was a cassette tape in the passenger seat. I looked at it, and it was a cassette of John Phillips Sousa marches! I thought, how odd that someone would be listening to a tape of marching bands while doing homeless outreach! I even pointed it out to Courtney, one of the employees on the team.
Anyway, over the weekend I received an e-mail from the Freedom Marching Band, saying that I had won tickets for their concert after signing up at the Pride Festival! So, yesterday I walked all the way from my apartment to the subway station at Hollywood and Vine, then rode the train downtown to the Colburn School of Music where I, for the first time ever, saw an all LGBT marching band perform a variety of marches in a concert setting! I almost teared up a little bit when they all came out onstage. Not knowing what to expect, I got a little emotional when many, many people of all ages, colors, and types walked on stage in black tie formal wear carrying their instruments. It was one of those moments when you realize there is so much out there in the world then we can ever fathom.
While I wouldn't say I am a fan of Marches in particular, there is something very feel-good about the upbeat, anthemic quality of the tunes, and this concert in particular proved that there is a lot more to the genre than most people realize. All the tunes they played were considered marches, but they represented a vast spectrum of different sounds, cadences and moods. They did a terrific job and I would love to someday be a part of the band. At this point I am rusty (to say the least) and I don't even own a saxophone, but perhaps my mom will find a good used one on Craigslist for me (hint, hint!).
All this, and the discovery of a gold mine for me: an amazing blog called Paradise Educated which is written by contributors who went to school in Paradise, Kansas and features many old and new photos of the town and the people who have called it home.
I learned about synchronicities through a book I read which was actually fiction but seemed to tap into something very real yet unseen. The book was called "The First Verse" and I highly recommend it. In the book, the three main characters play a game which is actually a sort of divining which does exist in real life, culling meaning from passages selected at random from various sources of literature. In "The First Verse", it's mainly from books, but other signs are also taken in. When several signs point to the same thing, or when several things happen at once that are related, they call it a synchronicity. After reading the book, I have indeed noticed more synchronicities in the real world than I had before.
Here is the latest one.
As some of you know, I do volunteer work on Tuesday nights as part of a homeless outreach team in Hollywood. We go out and make conversation with homeless people, offering them a snack and then trying to get to know more about them and their situations. Ultimately we let them know about the assistance that our organization can offer, which includes an emergency shelter in Hollywood, and a regional center where many services are offered. I have been doing this for several months and I really enjoy it, although lately there is some concern that the funding may not be continued for the nighttime outreach program.
Skip to LA Pride, which was a couple of weekends ago here in West Hollywood park. While perusing some of the booths, I noticed one for a gay marching band! I would never have thought such a thing existed. Although I often hated it at the time, I do have many fond memories of Marching Band from junior high and high school. There is something so traditional and feel-good about marching in a parade with a band. I was in several parades back in junior high, including those in Natoma, Kansas which was a very small town near my own hometown, where I went to grade school and where many of my friends and classmates lived. We would also go march in the Fort Hays State University homecoming parade each year in Hays; then when I was 14 we moved to Hays and I marched in the same parade with my high school band. At Hays High, we had a pretty serious marching band and we did some really amazing half-time shows and won some local awards if memory serves. I was named "Saxophone Section Leader" my senior year which was an honor for me.
So, this piqued my interest, and I asked the guy at the booth for more information, which he happily gave me. He said they practice every Tuesday night and they would be performing an annual concert in a week.
It struck me that their rehearsals were the same night as my homeless outreach.
All at once, several days later, I first heard about the funding scare and the possible discontinuation of the outreach program, then thought of the rehearsal times, and then remembered - a very weird synchronicity. One Tuesday when I went out in the outreach van, there was a cassette tape in the passenger seat. I looked at it, and it was a cassette of John Phillips Sousa marches! I thought, how odd that someone would be listening to a tape of marching bands while doing homeless outreach! I even pointed it out to Courtney, one of the employees on the team.
Anyway, over the weekend I received an e-mail from the Freedom Marching Band, saying that I had won tickets for their concert after signing up at the Pride Festival! So, yesterday I walked all the way from my apartment to the subway station at Hollywood and Vine, then rode the train downtown to the Colburn School of Music where I, for the first time ever, saw an all LGBT marching band perform a variety of marches in a concert setting! I almost teared up a little bit when they all came out onstage. Not knowing what to expect, I got a little emotional when many, many people of all ages, colors, and types walked on stage in black tie formal wear carrying their instruments. It was one of those moments when you realize there is so much out there in the world then we can ever fathom.
While I wouldn't say I am a fan of Marches in particular, there is something very feel-good about the upbeat, anthemic quality of the tunes, and this concert in particular proved that there is a lot more to the genre than most people realize. All the tunes they played were considered marches, but they represented a vast spectrum of different sounds, cadences and moods. They did a terrific job and I would love to someday be a part of the band. At this point I am rusty (to say the least) and I don't even own a saxophone, but perhaps my mom will find a good used one on Craigslist for me (hint, hint!).
All this, and the discovery of a gold mine for me: an amazing blog called Paradise Educated which is written by contributors who went to school in Paradise, Kansas and features many old and new photos of the town and the people who have called it home.
Comments