Week One? Check!

Hey Everyone,
It's been a while since I've posted! I'll get better, I promise, but this past week was rather busy. Here's a little piece I wrote for my Music 161 (group voice) class, in response to a Brigham Young passage. I'll type out the passage first, and then my response:

"Strengthen the Hands of Your Fellow Beings"
Brigham Young

If you feel evil, keep it to yourselves until you overcome that evil principle. This is what I call resisting the devil, and he flees from me...When you are influenced by the Spirit of holiness and purity, let your light shine; but if you are tried and tempted and buffeted by Satan, keep your thoughts to yourselves--keep your mouths closed; for speaking produces fruit, either of a good or evil character...You frequently hear brethren and sisters say that they feel so tried and tempted, and have so many cares, and are so buffeted, that they must give vent to their feelings; and they yield to the temptation, and deal out their unpleasant sensations to their families and neighbors. Make up your minds thoroughly, once for all, that if we have trials, the Lord has suffered them to be brought upon us, and he will give us grace to bear them...But if we have light or intelligence--that which will do good, we will impart it...Let that be the determination of individual, for spirit begets spirit-likeness; feelings beget their likeness...If then we give vent to all our bad feelings [and] disagreeable sensations, how quickly we beget the same in others, and load each other down with our troubles, and become sunk in darkness and despair! ...In all your social communications...let all the dark, discontented, murmuring, unhappy, miserable feelings--all the evil fruit of the mind, fall from the tree in silence and unnoticed; and so let it perish, without taking it up to present to your neighbors. But when you have joy and happiness, light and intelligence, truth and virtue, offer that fruit abundantly to your neighbors, and it will do them good, and so strengthen the hands of your fellow beings.

Journal of Discourses, 5: 351-352

And now my response:

Good Fruit

This is one of my favorite quotes from Brigham Young. When Randy introduced it to me at YASE camp 2008, it completely changed my perspective on the healthy expression of feelings. While I cannot truthfully say that I have fully incorporated the principle of “no bad fruit” in my life, my efforts towards more fully living by it have made me much more positive and much happier. Especially in an environment of performance and scrutiny, which will be the context of this course, this principle transforms the vocal workshop from threatening to supportive. With the added comfort of knowing that one’s fellows are hoping and wanting the best for you comes an increased ability to perform to potential. The spirit can be present and will sharpen our faculties and help us to learn more effectively and permanently. Our voices will grow in their ability to sing praises unto our Father in Heaven.

Furthermore, it acts as a guideline for the kinds of choices we ought to make as performers. We must choose to take part in performances that are good and not evil. We must use our gifts to edify and enlighten others and in so doing we will edify ourselves. If we choose to lend our talents to unworthy performances, then we will be spiritually damaged and those for whom we perform will suffer as well. If we, as performers, truly wish to make the world a better place, we must be very careful the the fruits of our talents are not evil, but good.

Here is a song that I really like:



Love,
Christian