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“After one utterly extraordinary rendition of “A Love Supreme,” Coltrane stepped off the stage, put down his saxophone, and said simply, “Nunc dimittis.” (These are the opening Latin words for the ancient prayer of Simeon, sung traditionally at evening prayer: “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation.”) Coltrane felt he could never play the piece more perfectly. If his whole life had been lived for that passionate thirty- two minute jazz prayer, it would have been worth it.

He was ready to go.

Incredible.

When I read the above story, I immediately had to download several copies of “A Love Supreme”, including a high-resolution version, copied directly from the vinyl record and clocking in at a whopping 800MB of space.

I recently read a quote along the lines of “If you live for the moment of victory, you’re missing the point. It never lasts long enough to count.”

I’d have to agree with the statement. When I look at the moments of ‘victory’ in my life, I realize the battle in getting to that point is what makes the moment much sweeter, rather than the temporary feeling of triumph.

During a recent conversation with my younger brother, Joshua (11), I was shocked to hear of his intentions to quit wrestling. His reason? “The boys aren’t kind.” And I instantly realized the void of a Rocky’esque talk at a much younger stage of my life.

There are lessons I’ve learned, as a growing man, that have taught me many tough realities in life. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” is often misinterpreted as “What you do to others is what you can expect others to do to you.” and I disagree entirely with the statement and it has caused unsurmountable amounts of damage that have taken hard years and months to recover from.

See, I thought being a ‘nice guy’ meant being a tame guy, allowing others to walk all over me. No woman wants to go out with a wimp, much less take one to bed with her!

Taking a stand and living in a way that is infused with strength, respect, honor, and self-confidence is something that will only benefit those around you and make you a more valuable asset in your relationships.

It was the the people who were not afraid to be disruptive in the marketplace that made an impact. They weren’t the types to bend and relent to the force of societal norms or rules. Instead, they had a vision and they made their vision a reality.

It’s why I’m writing this blog – thanks to Christopher Latham Sholes, the founder of the QWERTY keyboard and typewriter – on an Apple Computer – Thanks, Steve! – and to the founding team at WordPress.org.

Shake things up a bit.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tWLqFmaNdQ

 

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