by on

Today marks the second anniversary of Mara’s passing and I look back on a previous entry to help me reflect on what has transpired over the last two years.

In this previous entry I noted that what I had learned was that…

  • Life is far too short for me to be waiting for permission to do something with it
  • Fear is all in my head
  • I suffer fools even less gladly than I normally would
  • People spend too much time complaining about first world problems

I still think and feel these things but since then I have also noticed that…

  • Slipping back into old habits is easy, maintaining new habits is hard
  • Momentum is something you need to constantly work at
  • You never, ever take anything for granted
  • Community and your connection to it is more important than ever

It’s amazing what comes out of you if you give yourself the time and permission to just sit and reflect (and not feel guilty about it).

Even though it’s been two years, not a day goes by where I am reminded of Mara and how much of a positive influence she has had on my life.

Sometimes this fact energises me and (most) other times it really hits me hard in the feels but today I wanted to celebrate how special and uniquely original Mara was and the best way for me to do that is with a song.

This song is called One Of A Kind and I wrote this in 2018 after Mara put up a fridge magnet with the first part of a beautiful quote from Pope John Paul II on it.

The full quote is…

“The human being is single, unique, and unrepeatable, someone thought of and chosen from eternity, someone called and identified by name”

The quote inspired me so much that I wrote and demoed the song in just under a couple of hours and it was one of Mara’s favourite songs of mine.

Mara was definitely one of a kind. Always was and always will be.

Peace,

Corey 🙂

One Of A Kind
©2018 C. Stewart

You managed to find your way
Through all the obstacles in this game of life
And through the challenges you faced
You made it through to the other side

You never know how much you mean to me
But it’s so obvious as far as I can see

Did you know that you are one of a kind
Yes you are, something so magical
Did you know that you are one of a kind
Yes you are, something irreplaceable

Nothing short of a miracle
Is what you are and what you’ll always be
I don’t why we try so hard
To be somebody else coz we’re all we need

You never know how much you mean to me
But it’s so obvious as far as I can see

Did you know that you are one of a kind
Yes you are, something so magical
Did you know that you are one of a kind
Yes you are, something irreplaceable

Interlude…

You never know how much you mean to me
But it’s so obvious as far as I can see

Did you know that you are one of a kind
Yes you are, something so magical
Did you know that you are one of a kind
Yes you are, something irreplaceable

Did you know that you are one of a kind
Yes you are, something so magical
Did you know that you are one of a kind
Yes you are, something irreplaceable

by on

To increase your ability to generate songwriting ideas, it’s necessary to increase your life experience, and that means getting out of your comfort zone and embracing what life has to offer you.

Imagine having the confidence to fully experience your life with the knowledge that there’s a great song to be written as a result of the risk being taken.

That’s a mighty powerful way of looking at life.

A prime example of a situation that can benefit from this way of thinking is the awkward, clumsy and very vulnerable beginnings of falling in love. So many people just don’t take the risk for the fear of getting hurt.

Now, the fear of getting hurt is certainly a real one, no doubt about that but my argument is that if you’re committed to songwriting as a pathway to experiencing your life to the full then it is your duty as a songwriter to take the risk and go with it.

If whatever you take the risk on works out then you have some great songs to write. If it doesn’t work out then you still have some great songs to write (with perhaps a bit of therapy thrown in for good measure).

How can you lose?

Going out of your way to fully experience your life doesn’t mean having to endure mammoth changes, swings and roundabouts or extreme tragedy. It’s the little things that you can do to break the habits and routines of your day to day life that make all the difference.

Here are some examples of little things you can do to get more out of your life and therefore, get more out of your songwriting.

  • Go see a movie by yourself
  • Take a long walk on the beach
  • Go for a drive
  • Call a friend you haven’t spoken too in ages
  • Strike up a conversation with a complete stranger
  • Catch public transport
  • Go to a cafe and write (or start writing) in your journal
  • Smile at people and watch their reactions
  • Meditate and listen
  • Go skydiving (Optional – I can understand if people find this a little extreme)

    Generally, we try so hard to control everything in our lives so we don’t experience anything that we would consider as bad; however, by choosing songwriting as a way to experience life, we can relax and allow our lives to unfold before our eyes.

    Then we write a song about it.

    Just think, if you look at your life in this way, you will never be able to use the excuse “I don’t have anything to write about” ever again.

    What do you think about songwriting as a way to experience more out of life? What aspect of your life can you change up or do a little different today? How would that change affect you? Would you write a song about it?

    Remember (even if it is for the sake of your songwriting process), don’t ever be afraid to fully experience your life, choose it.

    Peace,

    Corey 🙂