The Sound of Diesel Musing

Trevor Harden: A Year in Song - Hilton Head Monthly

2011-10-29T06:50:00.000-04:00

Trevor Harden: A Year in Song - Hilton Head Monthly

Click to check out my interview with Hilton Head Monthly regarding my year-long songwriting project.

A Little Inspiration

2009-06-14T23:59:00.001-04:00

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, It is between you and God;
It never was between you and them anyway.

Author Unknown

Getting the hands dirty

2009-01-17T18:11:00.001-05:00

Screw bread machines... This is way more fun.

The Secret Beauty of Their Hearts

2008-12-04T09:35:00.005-05:00

Then it was as if I suddenly saw the secret beauty of their hearts, the depths of their hearts where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach, the core of their reality, the person that each one is in God's eyes. If only they could see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time, there would be no more war, no more hatred, no more cruelty, no more greed... I suppose the big problem would be that we would fall down and worship each other.

[Christian mystic, Thomas Merton]

Use it or lose it

2008-11-01T09:43:00.006-04:00

The days come and go like muffled and veiled figures sent from a distant party, but they say nothing, and if we do not use the gifts they bring, they carry them as silently away.

[Ralph Waldo Emerson]

Utter

2008-09-03T21:40:00.002-04:00

The nature of God is a circle

of which the center is everywhere

and the circumference is nowhere.

[Empedocles]

There is a field...

2008-08-24T20:44:00.003-04:00

out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing,

there is a field.

I'll meet you there.

when the soul lies down in that grass,

the world is too full to talk about.

ideas, language, even the phrase each other

doesn't make any sense

[RUMI]

[shared with me by blogger friend, Zafu]
[photography by Kevin Schnepp]

Gators and Turkeys and Lizards... Oh, my!

2008-08-18T21:56:00.005-04:00

One of the biggest differences from living in "the Lowcountry" of South Carolina as opposed to the Midwest is the wildlife - and since our development is so new, rural and mostly undeveloped, we're quite literally in the middle of the wild.

Here are 10-11 wild turkeys that I see every Sunday morning. They're actually quite large when you see them up close.

Then, of course, there's the alligators (picture not taken in our development, though there is at least one gator in our area).

Besides that there are wild boar, snakes, lizards, crazy prehistoric-looking birds, armadillos, foxes, and God-knows-what else lurking in the wilderness.

Every day is like living in a zoo. Minus those... cage things.

Into the Wild

2008-04-02T07:21:00.005-04:00

As I've said before, I've always been a fan of adventure movies. So watching "Into the Wild" - a story about a young man rebelling against the status quo by giving his life savings to charity and trekking to Alaska to live in the wilderness alone - was quite a pleasure. Stunning cinematography, a touching story, great acting and commentary on themes such as freedom, forgiveness and materialism made this one of my top films of the year.

"When you forgive, you love. And when you love, God's light shines upon you."

"Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness... give me truth."

Gone Beyond

2008-03-10T07:36:00.007-04:00

Beyond the senses are their objects, and beyond the objects is the mind. Beyond the mind is pure reason, and beyond reason is the Spirit in man.

Beyond the Spirit in man is the Spirit of the universe, and beyond is Purusha (God/Godhead), the Spirit Supreme. Nothing is beyond Purusha: He is the End of the path.

The light of the Atman, man's Spirit, is invisible, concealed in all beings. It is seen by the seers of the subtle, when their vision is keen and is clear.

[from the Katha Upanishad]

Most of the time I'm content to stay within the realm of the very first level - the level of the senses. There's not much depth - just getting by in life, spinning from this project to that project, feeding my belly and doing things that feel good.

Oh how much we miss when we choose not to delve deeper. As Deepak Chopra says, perhaps Jesus' condemnation of "the world" and worldliness is not so much a disdain for the things of this world, but rather an invitation to see outer things as a trap that keeps us from going within to deeper realities.

This is why the Buddhists say:

"Gate, Gate, Paragate, Parasamgate, Bodhi Svaha"

or

"Gone, gone, gone beyond, gone completely beyond, oh what an awakening!"

Bonk

2008-02-27T07:03:00.003-05:00

Last night, while putting up my books after teaching guitar lessons, I spun around and slammed my head into a wall-mounted bookshelf. I mean I really creamed myself. It was so intense, I dropped to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

Reaching up to my forehead, I found my fingers covered in blood. Not only did I get a big knot on my noggin, I split it wide open as well.

Some dudes get cool scars from UFC fights and bar brawls. I get one from a damn bookshelf.

For what it's worth, I got to learn from my wife how to seal a minor gash with superglue and butterfly wings. And here I thought that stuff was for fixing cracked dishes and broken toys. Turns out it was used in Vietnam for sealing wounds. Huh.

The Third Jesus: Book on the Way

2008-02-19T06:45:00.003-05:00

It's been a little while since I've been excited about a new book that is being released. I don't tend to be ahead of the curve that much and only pick up books that have been out for a while. That said, I happened to open an email from Amazon.com about some new releases and found this. As a fan of Mr. Chopra's work (generally) and as someone who is always looking for fresh and ever-widening ways to understand my Christian faith, I'm very much excited to dive in. Watch for a review in the coming weeks.

The Third Jesus: The Christ We Cannot Ignore (Deepak Chopra)

From Amazon.com's book description:

"Who is Jesus Christ?

In The Third Jesus, bestselling author and spiritual leader Deepak Chopra provides an answer to this question that is both a challenge to current systems of belief and a fresh perspective on what Jesus can teach us all, regardless of our religious background. There is not one Jesus, Chopra writes, but three.

First, there is the historical Jesus, the man who lived more than two thousand years ago and whose teachings are the foundation of Christian theology and thought. Next there is Jesus the Son of God, who has come to embody an institutional religion with specific dogma, a priesthood, and devout believers. And finally, there is the third Jesus, the cosmic Christ, the spiritual guide whose teaching embraces all humanity, not just the church built in his name. He speaks to the individual who wants to find God as a personal experience, to attain what some might call grace, or God-consciousness, or enlightenment.

When we take Jesus literally, we are faced with the impossible. How can we truly “love thy neighbor as thyself”? But when we see the exhortations of Jesus as invitations to join him on a higher spiritual plane, his words suddenly make sense.

Ultimately, Chopra argues, Christianity needs to overcome its tendency to be exclusionary and refocus on being a religion of personal insight and spiritual growth. In this way Jesus can be seen for the universal teacher he truly is–someone whose teachings of compassion, tolerance, and understanding can embrace and be embraced by all of us."

Once (again) / Lies

2008-01-04T14:13:00.001-05:00

This is one of my favorite songs from the movie "Once." The verse chords and melody are simple, the pre-chorus is a little quirky, and then the chorus is flat out amazing. Great songwriting, great choice of lyrics. Enjoy.

----------------
Now playing on Trev's iTunes: Glen Hansard - Lies
via FoxyTunes

Kirtan Plugged

2007-12-14T08:57:00.000-05:00

What do you get when you cross indian/sanskrit chant/kirtan (ala Krishna Das) and jammy guitar-based '90s Brit rock?

Kula Shaker's "Govinda" (live).

Adventure and the Hero's Quest

2007-12-11T10:03:00.000-05:00

Last year while watching Peter Jackson's retelling of KING KONG (starring Naomi Watts, Jack Black, etc.) I had a revelation: I love adventure movies.

In fact, if you recall, King Kong is broken into 2 main parts: the traveling to the island and discovery of all that lived there and then, later, the taking of King Kong back to the States. I found myself entranced with the first half and bored with the second. Star Wars, Indiana Jones, The Goonies, The Lord of the Rings, The Fisher King, 2001 - all stories that steal us away on an adventure.

There's something about discovery, magical lands, long journeys, and the process of uncovering the veiled that I find both primal and fascinating. Alan Watts talks about the zen concept of Yugen: "To watch the sun sink behind a flower-clad hill, to wander on and on in a huge forest without thought of return, to stand upon the shore and gaze after a boat that disappears behind distant islands, to contemplate the flight of wild geese seen and lost among the clouds."

And though I'm not always in this mindset, I've had fun in the past "playing" my day as though it were an adventure story: seeing each person I came in contact with as a fascinating character that would change the course of the story, looking on my environment as a magical place, taking on apathy, temptation or other distractions as dragons to be slain, and treating goals as if they were grails to attain.

It is for this reason that I've finally picked up Joseph Campbell's "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" (though I've read plenty of other of Campbell's work) and have begun making my way through it.

"A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man." (Joseph Campbell)

----------------
Now playing on Trev's iTunes: Sting - I Was Brought To My Senses
via FoxyTunes

Quote

2007-12-07T14:23:00.000-05:00

"If I were to begin life again, I would devote it to music. It is the only cheap and unpunished rapture upon earth."
[Sydney Smith]

Life-Altering Music

2007-12-06T09:43:00.000-05:00

While at a stoplight in my wife's car earlier this week, I began fumbling through our CD stash and stumbled upon Jeff Buckley's album Grace.

I've listened to this album plenty in the past, but something really struck me this time. The CD rolled over to Track 4 - "Lilac Wine" - and, maybe it was the mood I was in, but I was quite literally blown to smithereens with tears in my eyes. I realize this isn't his original composition, but it might well be the most moving piece of music I've ever heard in my life.

In an age of overproduced, computer-tweaked, soul-less pop shit-music, I found myself engulfed in Buckely's raw emotion, musical simplicity and extraordinary talent. I had it up so loud I could hear every breath and subtlety in his voice. Listen to that vocal control throughout, but especially in the last line. Completely breathtaking.

The lyrical poetry is amazing and the arrangement is sweet and heart-felt. A thousand churches don't contain the depth of spirit that's in those four and a half minutes.

----------------
Now playing on Trev's iTunes: Jeff Buckley - Lilac Wine
via FoxyTunes

Last night, nothing; Now, this

2007-12-05T11:10:00.001-05:00

Now playing on Trev's iTunes: Jimi Hendrix - Changes
via FoxyTunes

A new commandment I give you: Love one another.

2007-11-24T10:45:00.000-05:00

While driving home last night and scanning the radio stations for something to listen to, I stumbled upon a preacher on the local Christian radio station. He was talking about Islam so I thought I'd take a listen.

In front of what seemed like a very large congregation - not to mention anyone listening over the airwaves - he was doing his damnedest to both negate their faith and make them look like "the bad guys."

The majority of his message was how Islam flourished because they were converting people "by the sword" and how violent their scriptures are. Similarly, anytime he got to a passage where it said Allah is "forgiving and merciful" he had to make a comment like "well, ya, only if you do what He says."

What he failed to mention was his own tradition's horribly violent past, including similar conversion techniques (the Crusades and Native Americans ring a bell?) and graphically violent scriptures (anyone read the Old Testament?)

I'm not dogging Christianity or Judaism. It just sucks that people of power are able to turn groups of people against other groups of people using false information and misguided truths.

Perhaps the appropriate way Christians can learn about Islam is to invite Muslims to speak at their worship services. God forbid we actually seek to understand each other and reach common ground.

Thanks

2007-11-21T10:22:00.000-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. I'm certainly thankful for all the friends I have through this little online community.

Here's to your own Thanksgiving being significantly better than Big Bird's...

For the true video game fan...

2007-11-15T21:32:00.001-05:00

This video probably won't mean much to you unless you grew up with the Nintendo and are familiar with the theme songs and imagery from Super Mario Brothers, Zelda, Tetris and more. But if you are familiar, check out this absolutely amazing Cal marching band doing a Video Game Halftime show.

As one who spent my high school both playing Nintendo and marching around a football field with a snare drum holder on my shoulders, this video just plain rocks. (NOTE: I didn't realize this until the end, but it is filmed from the back... everything is upside down)

Psalm 23

2007-11-15T09:34:00.000-05:00

Putting aside my mild uneasiness with teaching kids to quote scriptures from memory that they don't even fully understand yet, this video is just too cute.

Self-Discipline

2007-11-14T10:41:00.000-05:00

My favorite definition of it is this:

Self-discipline is not the suppression of desires (or an attempt to keep us from doing what we think we want), rather it is choosing your highest/deepest desire instead of your superficial desire(s) in that moment.

I can't tell you how many times going at it from that angle has helped me stay on track.

Halloween Prank

2007-11-01T10:29:00.000-04:00

As I've mentioned before, Halloween is my favorite holiday. If, however, you decide to prank your friends, please make sure that you're not in arms reach.

The Dark Side of the Pumpkin

2007-10-30T11:27:00.000-04:00

One of my good friends (and the drummer for the Pink Noise band I'm in) is a fantastic "pumpkin artist." Each year he has been making cool pumpkins for my daughter and besides doing one for her this year, he also made this... sweet!