Find your inner Iggy!

As a freelance theater professional, I often fall into a time-wasting portion of life called "between gigs" or *coughcough* fun!employment... We are so used to rushing around, from gig to gig, fitting to fitting, shopping, pulling, buying, sewing - that when I have at least a few weeks before my next gig even begins to get underway, I have no idea what to do with myself.

After a day or so of playing catch-up with all the neglected-during-work-chores, I find myself utterly bored. So I schedule some plans with friends, I start a new workout routine, and I browse the internet looking for more gigs. But let's be real, it doesn't take all that time to daily see if there's any new job posted on the all of three sites that jobs for people like me might be listed. There's only so many times I can refresh my facebook newsfeed and only so much Netflix marathoning that can occur before I want to gouge my eyes out.

So I start little crafty, personal projects, and do what any good Catholic girl who seriously needs to get out of the house does... off to daily Mass! Today happens to be the feast day of St Ignatius of Loyola. Pretty much everyone knows St. Iggy as the founder of the Jesuits (which he is), and the author of The Spiritual Exercises.

St Iggy (all his friends call him that, okay??) was a soldier until about the age of 30, until he took a cannonball to the leg! He was pretty badass like that. While laid up at home, surely questioning this turn of events and what it meant for his career, he picked up a book about the saints!

 

So, unlike me, Iggy was productive with his time "between gigs" and decided that he was going to change his career focus and become a soldier... for Christ. (Spoiler alert! He does it!). In any case, despite not being educated (he went back to grade school!), and under fire from the Spanish Inquistion (which no one expected, right? No one ever expects that), Iggy gathered a bunch of his dudes, and founded the Jesuit Missionaries. His friends were a little reluctant at points (See: Frances Xavier), but this group of men founded a group that thrives on to this very day - there are over 22,000 Jesuits now!

So basically what I am saying, is that boredom can force the mind to get a little creative and dream big AND the bonus message is that a small group of friends, focused on a goal, have the power to achieve anything. Both are things that theater professionals and those involved in youth ministry alike need to remember.

Here Comes the Train Upon the Track

Tonight I saw the movie "Begin Again", which is directed by John Carney of "Once" fame.

I was first introduced to John Carney's musical world thanks to a trip to NYC. My friend and I had tried to get tickets to see Newsies, but when it was sold out, we jumped at the tix for the Tony-Award Winning Broadway adaptation of Once. Not going to lie - I was totally and completely enthralled for the entire two+ hours of the performance. I laughed, I cried - I had only agreed to going because Arthur Darvill was starring in it.

Boy, am I glad I did. I gobbled up the film shortly after that, and I'm wicked happy that I was able to see the new film in theaters. Something about Carney's films takes me away, transports me into the world that I want to see through my headphones. There's a bit about two characters spending an entire date, walking around the city, sharing music.

Beautiful new music is shared with us from these films, but this isn't an in your face "Chorus Line" - the music is from the character's souls, but is also very very real. Its a fantasy that speaks to me, and certainly I am not alone, in thinking that sometimes music can convey our feelings better than our words can.

It reminds me of a Frank Turner song (it always seems to, doesn't it?) The song is "I Still Believe", and the lyrics are:

And I still believe that everyone,
Can find a song for every time they've lost and every time they've won.
So just remember folks we not just saving lives, we're saving souls,
And we're having fun.

It makes me wish I had even an ounce of musical talent, if I could write a song for every life situation I come across, if I could help someone live a little more fully through it.

Because really, when you come down to it, these movies are simply about two souls saving each other with music.

How awesome is that?