It Really Doesn't Matter When You Know Love's Pattern

Even when I'm most at odds with life, I have to admit it has a knack of revealing new, positive things to me when I'm feeling most frustrated with the old things.

Kudos, life.

Having lived 44 years on this Earth, and 28 of those in the Dallas area, I was astounded to discover a legendary talent from this town that I had never heard of until yesterday. His name is Shawn Phillips.

And amazingly, he was originally slated to
play Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar until
schedule conflicts intervened. I don't see it myself.

So Shawn Phillips is a singer-songwriter who first made his mark as a studio musician in the 1960s, recorded some remarkable music throughout the 60s, 70s, and beyond, and retired from touring just last year. He's an amazing songwriter and a virtuoso singer with a beautiful high tenor range.

And when I heard his song "We" on a Rhapsody radio channel yesterday, I was blown away.

I'm a sucker for sensitive, folky, singer-songwriter types. Always have been. That's why I married a history professor. Are you kidding? If  a sensitive, folky, singer-songwriter type had ever looked my way, I would have crawled under the nearest divan, cursing myself as unworthy.

Srsly. I is un.

Anyway, if you know anything about me, you know that my love for and knowledge of popular music, particularly from the 60s and 70s, is annoyingly deep. So I was appalled to realize that Shawn Phillips had flown under my musical radar for lo these many years. I'm listening to him on Rhapsody right now, and he's single-handedly turned the crappiest day I've had in a very long time into something pretty wonderful.

Almost single-handedly.

I'm not here to proselytize about this amazing musician. Look him up on Google or check out his website at www.shawnphillips.com. Really, he's great. But I'm just here to tell you that life has a way of putting stepping-stones across the raging rivers of our lives when we're feeling stranded and a little desperate. Maybe they take the form of a good friend reaching out to help you across, or  random strains of some wonderful music from the other side that you never had the good fortune to hear before. Or something else entirely.

The key is to never close your eyes to what might be out there. Or your ears. Or your heart.

If you hadn't read this post, you never would have known that.

Thanks, Shawn Phillips. And thanks...well, you know who you are.