On the journey of the heart there is something deep within which longs to be heroic. It bubbles to the surface in expected and unexpected ways.

I am reminded of the great literary works which call to this yearning _ namely _ the great speech by King Henry before the battle of Agincourt in Shakespeare's Henry V. Once again Shakespeare shows his brilliance in touching something deep inside our souls, as he did in so many of his works.

Henry's speech resonates deeply with me.

More on the journey of the heart.

This blog started with a Latin phrase Esse Quam Videri, which means To be, rather than to seem. It is a phrase I encountered while reading Wild at Heart by John Eldredge. I have been moved deeply by his work, and I have been convicted as well. the journey of the recovering heart is fascinating, and keeps in mind Psalm 119:32, where the psalmist wrote: I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free.

What a great picture, a free heart which is running in the path for which the Master intended it. This is, to be sure, a longing of mine _ a free heart.

And this is where Esse Quam Videri comes in. I will never be free so long as i am pretending or posing. To seem or appear one thing while truly being something else is deception. The journey of the heart must start with walking away from the false self and dealing truthfully with God and ourselves.

There is much more say on the journey.

One visitor to the site asked me: What has Kenny G ever done to you? in response to yesterday's post. Answer: he really hasn't done anything to me, other than confuse people as to what real jazz is. i can forgive him that, easily enough. the Ode To Kenny G was born out of a series of funny conversations i had with a friend.

On the visual arts front, i highly recommend Lampung Arts and the painting of two artists featured at the site. I think the painting of Jason Guynes is a great window on the culture of Lampung, Indonesia, as well as being technically sound. His work really puts the viewer on the island.

A reminder to all who visit: please use the contact button at the top of the page to connect with my email address and respond to what you read here. Your comments and critiques are not just welcome, but important to me. The demand for Yaccs, the feature which lets readers respond at the site _ which you notice on some blogs _ is so high that it is nearly impossible to get the comment feature at this point. In the meantime, please hit the contact button, i check the address quite often.

A change of pace.

Ode To Kenny G

The upper reaches of the FM dial are dark,
A silence hovers like a mournful cloud.
A veil of tears shrouds once-light, bright harmonies.

Dentist's offices, elevators and food courts pause in a reverent moment of silence,
As a tribute to the lilting melodies of the flaxen-haired hornman.

O departed Songbird, so tragic is your leaving.

Marsalis backstage, all became a blur.
In one grand motion, smooth as a major scale, Marsalis struck with Kenny's own dear horn as a club,
And down Kenny Flailed.

What now, oh smooth tune lovers?
What now, snooze button slappers?

the smooth jazz vacuum, who will fill?

Ahh . . . surely John tesh and Yanni fit the bill.

I know the length of Doxology left some gasping for air, so this will be brief.

I just finished reading Imagine by Steve Turner and highly recommend it. Turner has a great perspective on art and the life of the believer.

Included in the book is this quote from R.G. Collingswood: >"The artist must prophesy, not in the sense that he fortells things to come, but in the sense that he tells his audience, at the risk of their displeasure, the secrets of their own hearts."

I highly recommend Bill Mallonee, whose link you find at left, and the music of Jacob's Hip. These two are rightly called artists.