The title derives from people's habit of always wanting to be better than other people in everything, even in bad things like pain. Why is suffering more something to gloat about? I don't understand... and I'm guilty of this, too.
Anyway.
I am an amateur musician, and tonight I played at a performance. My brother counted the number of songs I performed in, and it came to a total of thirty... thirty songs about 5-7 minutes long in three different ensembles for two hours.
When people ask what my instrument is I answer piano, since I've played it the longest and feel the most at home playing it. However, at this performance I was playing flute, which is held very straight at your mouth, perfectly still, with both arms hovering. The one comment I have to make: I'm sore! My arms hurt from holding the instrument up, my hands hurt from the strain of hitting the keys, and my brain hurts from being concentrated for so long.And tomorrow I get to go back and do it again! Thank goodness there's an after party (alcohol-free and drug-free, as our conductor pitched it to us)... I think I'll need to unwind.
I could complain about this for ages, go on and on about how tired I am, how much time was spent in the prep, etcetera; as a matter of fact I was, moments before pulling up the "NEW POST" screen. But then, all of a sudden, things were shown to me in a different light.
I've always admired saints and martyrs. I can't imagine how difficult it would be to give up one's possessions, status, home, family, life, all for your belief. I'd like to say that I would do the same in that circumstance, but I really don't know. It's a scary thought, and maybe if I was confronted with the situation of confess-in-God or DIE, I'd wimp out and choose the easy option.
Now don't get your leotards in a knot, I'm not comparing my pain to what they go through. In fact, I'm doing quite the opposite. I complain about what I'm feeling, even though I know full well that I could be much worse off. I have been worse off before. It's frustrating how every time a human being goes through an ordeal that's trying in the least, we decide that no one in the history of mankind has felt worse. It drives me nuts. It's one of my pet peeves, intensified because I do it. I'm still groaning about how this actually really hurts to type, even as I'm saying I shouldn't be and that I should be thankful I can still type. I should be thankful I still have arms. I should be thankful I haven't fallen asleep on the keyboard yet, even though I feel like I could at any moment. But... I'm not. I try to be, but I don't think I am.
Humans are so annoying, don't you think?
On the topic of saints, I thought I'd share the lyrics to a beautiful song we sing at my church. It is one of my favourites, mostly due to the second verse which gives me goosebumplies. (It is set up as verse one, chorus, verse two, chorus)...
Shine Like the Sun~Godspede
There's a light that lights the darkness,
and the world cannot contain it,
and the the world cannot explain it.
It is the light of God's creation...
There's a love that flows within us,
and the world cannot create it,
and the world cannot negate it.
It is the love of God's salvation;
and it shines like the sun.
Glory be to our Creator!
Glory to the Holy One!
Glory be to Christ, our Saviour:
the Lord of life, the King of Love.
See him shine like the sun.
There are saints who light the darkness,
and the world cannot contain them
for the love of God sustains them
and they will never be forgotten...
We are blessed to have them with us
and we praise the God who made them.
There is no way to repay them,
and so we simply do applaud them
as they shine like the sun.
Glory be to our Creator!
Glory to the Holy One!
Glory be to Christ, our Saviour:
the Lord of life, the King of Love.
See him shine like the sun.
i do love the song.
ReplyDeleteand by any chance, was the performace Valhalla?
It was indeed, two nights of amazing music and much work. Now that it's over I'm sad... I like to perform :P
ReplyDelete