boldness can be beautiful. last night i saw many examples of this at a show i went to. there was spoken word, singing, dancing - it was a pleasure to be there. as i was watching the performers, i thought about their thought processes. what is he thinking as he stands there and bares his soul in front of all these people, saying these things about his personal weaknesses and fears? does he know, while he is moving and whirling across the stage, using his body as poetry, that we are sitting here watching him? it seems as if he has forgotten about us and is simply present only in the arch of his feet, the reach of his arms, the lift of his leg - it's as if he and his emotion are dancing together in an empty room, sharing intimate passions, mindful only of each other. except we're all sitting here, watching him. where does she go when her eyes are closed and her voice soars and falls like the flight of a gliding bird riding the wind? is her rhythm on autopilot when her hands beat out the rhythm on her drum, or is she feeling each and every collision of her palm to the drum's skin? does she know that as she exudes power and soul with her every movement that my whole body is tense and that i have been forgetting to breath or move or blink because her spirit has hypnotized my own as she dances, and now all i can think about or feel is the emotion that she is seemingly effortlessly able to convey through her dance? how bold must they be to expose that much emotion to us - to let us see what's behind the body before us, and pull back the curtain so that we can witness the turmoil, or joy, or passions in their souls and minds... i love when people are bold enough to let that all be seen - to sacrifice themselves, to ignore their fears and whatever stage fright they may have so that i can be taken on some journey. these artists can be our tour guides to thought and emotion and epiphanies and memories that linger with us and enrich us, but they have to be bold to minister to our spirits this way. this is a boldness i've had before - when i was acting on stage, and when i was singing on stage. even when i grip an open mic, i have to summon my boldness, sacrificing myself for the art - sharing because some things ought not be kept to ourselves. i hope to increase my boldness. i hope to be able to have the same impact on audiences with my words and talents as the artists i had the pleasure of seeing perform last night.
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