Mandolin Rain

A cool evening dance
Listening to the bluegrass band takes the chill
From the air till they play the last song
I'll do my time
Keeping you off my mind but there's moments
That I find,
I'm not feeling so strong

I have to admit that I have absolutely no musical talent whatsoever. However, I am a huge music fan. I love the sounds of a mandolin and a banjo in bluegrass music especially. Each instrument has such a distinct sound and can set the whole mood for a song. The musician knows just how much tension and pressure to put on the strings and when to apply it. Only then does the beauty of the music come out.

I look at life in the same way. We are instruments, and God, as the musician, knows just how much pressure to put on us to bring out our beauty if we let Him. Without the musician, the instrument is nothing more than an object. We were created for so much more than just existing. And though the pressures of life may weigh upon us, it is then that our true beauty shows through. A musician knows how much tension he can put on the strings before they break. Even though our song may be of heartache and pain, the musician can still work through us. For even as tiny as a mandolin is, look at the beautiful sound that it makes.

Listen to the mandolin rain
Listen to the music on the lake
Listen to my heart break every time she runs away
Listen to the banjo wind
A sad song drifting low
Listen to the tears roll
Down my face as she turns to go

Like an instrument sets the mood for a song, we set the mood for our lives. We must try to stay in tune so that the musician can play through us.

Remembering that each song is beautiful in it's own way is... on this cowboys mind



(Mandolin Rain: Bruce Hornsby)