You're A Good Job

As some of you know, I absolutely adore my children. All of them. From the 15 year old, down to the (nearly) 2 year old, they are a constant source of smiles. I'm often amazed by just how much they emulate the things I do and say. With the older ones, I work diligently to instill in them honesty, integrity and compassion by demonstrating these characteristics toward them and others. For the younger ones, it's delightful when they pick up on a new action... like cleaning up their toys or putting on their clothes. But most of the time, the smaller victories come in the form of them simply following instructions the first time, instead of the usual repeating that takes place ad nauseum.

Through all of this, I will take every opportunity to provide them with encouragement. I've learned that a well placed "Good job!" can go a long way to provoking repeated good behavior. I have to laugh thought at times when Aaron uses one of my well coined phrases. For instance, after I made him a particularly tasty Almond Butter and Peach Spread sandwich, he looked at me and said, "Thanks, Dad. You're a good job!" with a level of enthusiasm that makes everything in the entire world seem just bit brighter.  It was all I could do to keep from laughing out loud. I barely managed a controlled "You're very welcome, Aaron" through my stifled chuckling. Upon seeing his smile from ear to ear, I followed that up with a very sincere, "You're a good job too!"

Everything seems cooler when Aaron is involved.

I Saw You

I saw you.

In a familiar foreign place.

A location I infrequently visit.

But it wasn't until I saw you that I realized why.

I saw you.

With a hardened, fixed expression like a trophy.

You hadn't notice I'd walked in.

And I doubted there would be any recognition.

I saw you.

And I was at once faced with a decision.

To speak and make my presence known?

Or erase all traces of my intrusion.

I saw you.

And in an instant I was frozen.

In a moment that felt like hours.

But instead I silently walked away.

Until I could safely see you no longer.

By Myxl Dove

©2010 Mythic Elf Publishing

I Hate Categories

Society has an obsession with categorizing the world. We categorize people: you're an asian, tall, old, gay, rich, southern, democrat and a nerd. We categorize film: it's a drama, comedy, film noir, oldies, classic, talkie, sci-fi, animated blockbuster. And we categorize music: she's a singer/songwriter, alt-rock, pop, death-metal, conscious hip-hop, trance, dancehall queen. I hate categories. Especially when it comes to music...

I find it interesting that rappers like Q-Tip, Rakim, Common and KRS-One, who are all admittedly Muslim or simply followers of Islam, are considered mainstream, not categorized as religious artists and therefore pigeon-holed into a niche market. Whereas you have people like KJ-52, FLAME, and BB Jay who, because they are "Christian" rappers (as opposed to rappers who are Christian), get lumped into the "also ran" hip hop bin at the record store. I'm not sure what it is that distinguishes the two (other than the obvious underlying beliefs) from being considered part of the same industry. But apparently, not all Hip Hop is Hip Hop.

One of the illest rappers I've ever heard is this dude named shai linne (spelled with lowercase purposely). His skill surpasses most rappers out today. The key difference? His music is Christian Hip Hop. Now before you go all, "uh oh, more religious talk" on me, just hear me out. I'm setting the foundation to make a point that's universal.

Christian Hip Hop has been plagued like most other Christian music as being woefully behind the times. Quality production usually lagged by a decade or more. These artists were barely escaping the late 80's when 2000 came and went. It was even worse for Christian Hip Hop. Some of these folks were laughable at best. If their lyrics weren't completely cheesy and devoid of real theology, their music sounded like it was played with a wooden spoon and a sauce pan.

Fast forward to the late 00's and music production took a giant leap forward as far as the creative process for the general consumer. This caused ProTools and Logic Pro to effectively move out of the confines of a conventional studio and into the garage (or even the bedroom). This meant that up-and-coming singer/songwriters and producers could hone their skills without paying high fees for studio time or needing to commute to professional locations. This had a significant impact on both the secular and religious music industries. More time for getting over the learning curve. More time from experimentation. More time for musical expansion and genre expression.

See, I'm not a Christian singer/rapper/other label. I consider myself an artist who's also Christian. It should be obvious to anyone who encounters me what I believe simply by the way I choose to live my life. But when it comes to music, I'm being forced into a box. One side says, "if you're a Christian then you can't sing/rap about love and relationships!" The other side says, "if you want to be considered a mainstream artist, you can't include any religious references!" The absurdity of it all is frustrating. My goal with my music is to simply offer the world something I created in hopes that it will be either something you relate to, something that encourages you, or simply something that entertains you. It's unfortunate that there exists an unspoken rule among some that my life as a Christian can not publicly include practical expressions of love, disappointment, struggle and fun.

It's almost as if releasing a song commercially ties you to that genre for the duration of your career. Anything outside of that is considered "getting away from your roots".  That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. I'm simply an artist and my creations may change as often as my moods depending on what I'm going through at the moment. Pop, R&B, Hip Hop, Country... if I write a song and that's the feel of it, then so be it.

I just want to live my life outside of catergorization. (and yes, I recognize the irony of adding tags to this post)