You Are Here

You Are Here. The three words were printed on a t-shirt hanging in a display case at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Although the words were the title of a song John Lennon wrote, and the shirt was in a room filled with Beatles memorabilia, it was a message meant for me. At that moment, it couldn’t have been more clear. I looked around to see if anyone else was seeing the same thing — nobody seemed to notice. So, with a smile on my face, I looked back at the shirt and responded, “Yes, I am.” 

Photo Credit Sam Howzit

I had been seen and acknowledged by a t-shirt and the encounter immediately shifted my perspective. As we wandered from level to level, walking past star-studded displays, I thought about the people who wore the clothes and played the instruments. I saw the black dress Stevie Nicks wore for the cover of a Fleetwood Mac album, the acoustic guitar Janis Joplin learned and played the song Bobbi McGee on, and Tom Morello’s pedalboard and amp (which I only know about because my son frequently shares his music with me — Rage Against the Machine). As I took it all in, I noticed an invisible web of connection. It’s never been us and them, the rock stars and the fans, it’s always been we — shared energy that is more than the sum of its parts. Author Stephen Buhner describes this unseen force in his book Ensouling Language, he says, “From up out of the ground or down from the heavens, out of the imaginal realm it flows filled with mythic substance, and it comes into the world, baptizing not only the audience but the performer.”

I’ve always said that doesn’t matter if I play for an audience of one or one thousand, because when I engage and share my heart with another human being there is always a greater force that results, something new and bigger than all of us. I witnessed this phenomenon first hand when I volunteered with Musicians on Call, where I would go from room to room and play a song for hospital patients. When I started playing and singing the music took on a life of its own and touched hearts and souls in a way I couldn’t begin to understand. All I knew is that it wasn’t about me, I was just a conduit.

Do your little bit of good where you are; it is those little bits of good put all together that overwhelm the world. - Desmond Tutu

I think most of us have asked ourselves the question “Why Am I Here?” I know I have. But that day at the museum, that question was transformed into a statement, and it took on a whole new meaning. I am here and I already know what to do. Follow my joy, it’s that simple. My heart knows the way. When I do what I love, the energy flows, and a bigger force comes in to play. I don’t have to save the world, I just have to show up and offer what I have to give, right here, right now.