Musical moods...

Well, I'm just chillin at home listening to music, and as I listen to the words of the different songs that are coming on, and its amazing to me how much the music relates to the mood I'm in, and brings out things that I didn't even realize that I felt. And, but of course, that makes me think!?!?

Am I listening to these songs because I am subconsciously feeling the emotions portrayed in the music, or is the music bringing out the emotions inside of me?

For Example... right now I am listening to some slow, bluesy, romantic type music, and it is making me want the words to the song to be true.... "the touch of your skin, just pulls me in... everytime! Baby, i'm so into you... every whisper from my soul to my heart!" - Marc Broussard; The Beauty of Who You Are. I want to be that someone!

Then, Amos Lee's - Arms of a Woman comes on, and I feel like I want to be the woman in which the song is referring to. For those who don't know the song, I strongly suggest you look it up, my favorite line is right at the beginning "I am at ease in the arms of woman, although now, most of my days are spent alone", this part of the song makes me empathize with the singer. I just want to be able to fill the void, and make someone else happy. Well, because that's what I do, I make people happy, or at least I try. I like when others around me are happy, because, this in turn makes me happy. How can one not be happy when surrounded by happiness. They say, misery loves company, isn't the same also true for happiness? I like to think so!

Conversely, when I listen to music a little angrier in nature, it brings out entirely different emotions. Or, as I referenced before, perhaps I am listening to such music because deep in my inner subconscious I am feeling angrier. I don't know. It seems like when I put my iPod on shuffle mode, I can seem to relate to every song that plays. Whether it's Metalica, (hed) P.E, Zac Brown Band, Katy Perry, or Amos Lee it seems like I can find a common point with any of them.

So, the question remains be be answered, does the music we listen to affect our emotions, or are our music choices a reflection of our emotions?

Happiness...

I sit here laying out the short and long term goals that I have for myself, as I do occasionally; and as always one of the things on my list is always "find happiness"... or something to that effect... but really, can happiness be found, or gained, or discovered? Isn't it just something that we either are or we aren't? Isn't happiness a choice?
I think so!

Am I happy? This is a question I learned to ask myself many years ago, when I was indeed NOT happy. There are very few things in life we can control, but our own happiness is one of them. Whether we choose to believe it or not, our happiness is 100% within our control. Now, to me, this doesn't mean that we are going to be happy all the time, just that we can control whether or not we are going to allow a situation to make us happy or not.

If you are in a situation in which you are not happy, change it. The short term consequences may vary and may not be exactly what you want, but if your choice is to be happy, then you need to change the situation you are currently in to allow yourself the potential to one day be happy and enjoy life. After all, we are only given one chance to live each day, shouldn't we live it the best way possible?

I think, all in all, I am pretty happy, there are situations from day to day that I deal with that aren't "ideal", but they work themselves out in the end, and inevitably I choose to be happy in the long run. In all that I do, and all decisions that I make, I question, is this going to make me happy? Why deal with even a few moments of unhappiness, life is too short, and there are so many other things that have the potential to make you happy. Now... don't misunderstand... that doesn't mean that I don't take risks, just that i analyze the situations I am placing myself in, and question the long term consequences.

I never understood how people can go through life completely unhappy, miserable even; That is until I started questioning my own happiness. How can I be happy if I'm not making myself happy. No one is going to do it for me, how can they? One has to be happy with oneself before we can be happy with anyone else. I hear it day in and day out, I just can't find someone to make me happy... it's not because there not looking, its because they aren't happy to begin with! Of course, there is likely someone out there who will WANT to make you happy, but it isn't possible unless your willing to be happy, and that is something that you have to do on your own.

I feel that often times people confuse happiness for other things. You don't have to be smiling to be happy, right? I mean, you don't have to be crying to be sad... You don't have to be screaming to be angry, these are all emotional reactions to our feelings. If you want someone else to make you "happy"... it probably isn't going to happen... Now, if you want someone to make you smile, make you laugh, make you giggle, make you excited.... and those things MAKE you happy, then you have better chances. But, you have to already be in a happy state to have those emotions or emotional reactions.

Well, i could be completely off base, or just thinking uninhibitedly, but those are my thoughts, just another one of my Random Rants... enjoy!