Simple Man

I was listening to the song Simple Man. It was originally down by Lynard Skynard but most rescently by Shinedown. I have to admit I like the cover Shinedown does better than the original. Hit voice is perfect for the song. Anyway I was just thinking about the song. Alot can be said about the phrase, "Be a simple kind of man"....Its incredible to think life can have so much meaning by keeping it simple. It seems that so many people go through life with so much going on that they lose track of who they are and what they are doing. Life is such a beautiful disaster. Most people think that simple is bad but on the contrary it can be an amazing thing. I personly try to keep my life as simple as possible while still accomplishing my goals. I think that it is really important to take your time in life. Stress and worry accomplish nothing. Dont allow life to get so complicated that its turns into a obligatory chore. Do what you love and what you know makes you and those around you happy. Live Love Laugh and keep things simple....

Of course this is just my opinion and I am sure that some one has something to say and I would love to hear some feed back.

Real Life?

Throughout life everyone has choices to make. Each choice is a step towards defining character. Each choice becomes habit and each habit forms our character. Making choices is a constant decision to do the wise and honorable thing. Although stupid choices will be made, the thing that counts is making a point to learn from them and push on making smarter decision as we go.In my life I have made many smart and many dumb choices. Each of which has had a direct affect on my life and the course that I am taking in my life. I have made choices that have put me into the will of God and choices that have pushed God away. I have made choices that have hurt my family and brought us back together again. Each choice I have made has either had positive or negative repercussions. The over whelming factor in making choices, at least for me, is asking myself wear I am headed in my life and is this choice going to take me there. Throughout the past year I have made choices that have led me into a rut of running from my dreams and my beliefs. I have realized through this time of decay that life comes down to a basic facts. In life we have one purpose that everything that should revolve around, and that is the fact that we were created by God for God and unless we are living under him and his word there will always be a void, an emptiness in our lives that nothing else can fill. Under this umbrella of God the rest of the facts that should run our life come into play. As humans in this world there is only a persons honor, word, morals and beliefs that count. So many people go through life with no morals and no character. In my experiences in life I have came to an overwhelming conclusion. Those who go through life with few morals, and no honor they end up getting into a slum of endless bad choices that lead them down paths of drugs and crime. Not all of them turn to drugs and crime, but those people; although upholding some morals and self control, still end up unhappy and with a lot of baggage when it is all said and dun. I am not saying that those people have no hope I am simply saying that they must live with honor and faith to have hope. Honor is an unspoken code that people live by in their lives. It is a code of strength, truth, morality and selflessness. During everyone..s life there comes a time when a decision has to made how they are going to live there life. The decision come early for some and others have to live outside of this choice for a while until they come to the point of brokenness and understanding and buckle down and honor this so called code. For me personally, I have found living by this code harder that I had expected. I have always lived my life with some morals and character but I cant say that I have lived my life with honor under Gods authority. I have ran away in pursuit of acceptance and fun. All that the world has to offer or at least what I thought it had to offer. I have partied done drugs, lived lustfully and the end of unhappiness in the long run. I have ran away for so long that it seems that getting back to were I was is almost untouchable. The key word in that is ..almost... Nothing in this life is ever easy and the more we run from what we are called to do and the more we run from honor and morality the harder it gets to go back to it. Living a life that is purposeful and productive when your coming from a life of selfishness and unproductively is very hard. For me it means giving up life long friendships. Personal one on one relationships with people I love and care fro deeply. Knowing the consequences of both sides of life and weighing them out I just don..t see how I can go any other way but pushing for honor under the umbrella of God. Not everyone believes in God and in his love but for me I know He is real and that he is the only answer because he lives in me and is working to bring me back to the life I was mean to live. Everyone believes in something. It might not be God but everyone must come to a point in their lives were they decide what they believe, were they are going in life and how they are going to get there. Living life with no purpose or beliefs is like embarking on a journey with no clue of how to get to ware you want to go. It doesn..t make much since does it? Everyone must know were they are going and how they must go to get there. For me its becoming an honorable God fearing man over all and a psychologist secondly. I know that I must put the immoral un-honorable life style behind me in order to reach my goals. I..m not called to always please myself. I..m called to live selflessly with the most live I can possibly give. One deciding were you want to go in life, how you need to live to reach that goal and what you must do to live that way you must forsake everything in the pursuit of this goal. Nothing is ever easy and living a life that pushes you and challenges a person daily is no easy task. But accomplishing your dream and becoming the person you no you want to be and were made to be is more rewarding than all the fighting to that comes a long with the unproductive life style. All the pain and regret that comes from no pushing yourself is not worth it. Nothing is worth giving up the love of God and your dreams of who God made you to be and what you want to become.Once life decisions are made and the path that your taking is set comes the hardest of all the choices, friends. Friends are the biggest influence in life. I once heard someone say ..show me your friends and I will show you who you are and who you will become... I could not agree more. Each person long to belong and to feel accepted and many get this acceptance from the first source that gives it to them. Making a choice to live strong and let those who are pushing for the same kind of life style that you are is huge. Everyone needs someone to hold them up and encourage them but if the encouragement is the wrong kind then you will fail in reaching your true purpose. Look at all those who are in jail or on drugs. Everything and everyone in their life is based on there habits. Look at there friends and most likely they are in the same point in life as those in jail and on drugs are living. Choose friends wisely on the basis of reaching your lives goal.With all that said there is one final thing that I have noticed that must be done in life is dying to yourself. Now I know that with all this talk of pursuing your dreams and making something of yourself your are thinking that I am totally contradicting myself but really think about it. The Bible says that selfishness is the root of all-evil. Now I know that not everyone beliefs in the Bible but if you look into it you will find that this statement is true. Why do people do drugs or fall into promiscuity. They do it looking to make them happy at any cost. They are pushing to fulfill their needs and their needs a lone. When some one stops being selfish and lives life with the interest of others in mind life becomes much more productive and meaningful. Say that instead of doing drugs to make them happy that those on the pursuit of happiness put there energy into finding satisfaction through helping others, conserving mother earth, spreading the gospel or simply trying to make the world a better place for all. None of the drugs, sex or negative ness would come into play. Living a meaning full life outside of the realm of selfishness is nothing but rewarding. If history was not full of those who looked outside themselves and pushed for selflessness then the world be a horrible place with few accomplishment and meaning. Those writers, inventors, preachers, lecturers, doctors, instructors and those of all other works of life that have devoted themselves to the betterment of mankind have made the world better place to live and dream in. Everyone has a dream but the dream must have others in mind in some way for it to be meaningful. If everyone were self-absorbed then this world would be even more angry and selfish with undertones of envy and jealousy at every corner.The basis of my thoughts is not to say that those who have not made up there minds on there dream or those who live in the things that I have spoken bad about are in the wrong per say but they are in the dark. They are missing out on the greatest journey in life. The journey of fighting instead of just being is meaningless. The chance to really dream and live instead of just merely existing is worth dreaming for. The chance to live a life that you can look back on and smile upon and have others do the same is worth more than anything. Bring the world back to the place of dreaming, of living. Bring yourself back to the light, the light of your heart and mind uniting and living in freedom. Life is wonderful thing and this world is so vast that not living it to fullest seems almost incomprehensible. Live to the fullest.As for me I am pushing for the dream, the light and I refuse to give in anymore. In the past and even up to this day I have not done anything that I..m writing about. That all stops now. I..m pushing and striving to love a life of meaning and purpose beyond that of which most understand. A purpose that I not only dream of but that I was created to live. I..m going to push to please my father in heaven and in doing so accomplish my dream. I will make it, I will push until I reach my dream and my dream is this. That I will be known as a man of moral integrity, honor, love, selflessness and a man after Gods own heart who never says die and lives life in the light of my purpose and meaning. We as a race are nothing without hope and dreams. So what is yours and how will you change in order to obtain it. Think about it!

Define The Word Music.

A bunck of guys sett up rectifier pedals and stacks "speakers" that tower over the seemingly short frail group of guys . After about ten minutes the stage clears out and four guys all in girls pants walk onto the stage. One of them, sporting a sleevless tuxido T shirt, walks over and grabs his guitar and picks a mellow dramatic courd to mask the silence in the venue. The rest of the band tunes and up and preps to play. All at once the band chimes in and all hell brakes loose. A guy that had to be no more than 100 pounds soaking wet walks up center stage. Im assuming he is going to speak but "O Hell No" .....The little man grabs the mike and lets out the deepest, gut wrenching scream I have ever heard in my life. I thought he was going to loose it. The band came in with some of the hardest metal beats and riffs I have ever heard. They continued this mahem set of music for a bout an hour, which left my ears ringing for a week.
Ok for the record I love music, all kinds of music, but some things I really question. The band I am refering too, who will remain nameless, performed at a local venue in my home town. I love the local band and I am always down for a good metal throw down here and there. Although I do enjoy music that some would call "just noise" lol...I love many other types of music as well. Anyway back to the point. The band that played that night was well for lack of a better phrase...over the top.
Their guitar riffs were random almost to the point of no rythm at all and the drummer..well lets just say he had some extra chemical help with his randomness. The vocals were literally screamed; none of which I could understand.
Its not only metal bands that are rediculouse...Ok what the fuck is with Rap and Hip Hop these day.. I dont care about your Ho or how much money you have. I dont like your car and get some freaking real teeth. Ok...I listen to rap but let me explain what rap I consider music....As cliche as it may seem Pac is one of the greatest and new guy Lecre is awsome as well. Other them and a few select others...rap just sucks.
Ok with that said, What in the hell are we calling music today. Over the past thirty years music has de-evolved into much pot of wanna be individualist. It just seems that the art of writing music for the passion and love of music itself are faiding away. Mozart and Bach...Lynard Skinard and Van Halen.....Stevie Raugh Van and B.B. King...All of these artist...well at least in my opinion loved music and it shows in their work. Now I no not all people enjoy all genres of music but give me a break people....Get some idea of music. I understand that music made for dancing and clubs are strictly for entertainment but as of lately music is horrible.
So how about we re-evaluate what we consider music. Music is an expression of ourselves both literaly and metaphoricaly. It is a huge benefactore in the everyday lives of people around the world. For some it is a means of entertainment and focus on life. While others it has a spiritual and metaphysical meaning. However if you look at music, there is something for everyone and that is beautiful but lets not look away while music is turned into a outlet for anger and greed. Im not trying to say lets boycot bands but I am saying open your eyes to whats happening around us. Yes we all love some outlandish music but holywood just is a money making colaboration of pothetic people. who take andvantage of the ignorance of America as a whole ..Ok ya I know Im an asswhole but some one has to say it....Modern Day Music Sucks for the most part and it will just get worse if we continue to allow it to.
So let me explain what I consider to be true music. True music is not a simple list of things it is and expression of people and life. Its a melody that lifts your spirits or a riff that morns with you. Its a song of praise in your belief systom and a love poem to your love ones. Music is all of these things and so much more but IT IS NOT..a record of your booty calls or a pick up line, a screaming drunk menasury of lyrical blunderings, or a multy million dollar melody with breats attached.. So how about we start realising this and making a difference by not supporting this bull shit of today and making a new what is wrong. Lets redefine music.
Open your mind and appreciate music but make sure what your calling music is just that...music.