Music is a very human thing. Music is a very unique thing, in my mind. It is an intimate relationship between the notes on a page, the performer, and the audience. We use it to woo romantic interests. We use it to voice our concerns and opinions. We use it to praise God Almighty. We use it as a way to let the world know we are alive and have something to say, without words.

I've always like music. It sounded nice when I was young. I always hummed something, even to the point that my parents would get notes from teachers saying that I was a bit disruptive in class.

I learned to love music, and not just listening to it. Playing it. Forming it. Learning to take these dots and lines a page and make it mean something. To put feeling behind it. To go with gusto.

Music takes many forms and shapes and sounds. It is as changing as humans because it is made by humans. It can mean one thing to the composer, something totally different to the performer, and a completely new something to the audience who hears it. It is open for interpretation. It is meant to be undefined in its meaning. Instrumental music allows for any person, regardless of the language they speak, to hear and share with the world.

I escape in music. I let it absorb me. I drown in it sometimes, just to get away from the rest of the world. I create my own narratives to every song, living many lives, the way you feel when reading a book.

Music allows us to connect. The people I sing with, the people I play with, they all mean more to me than most. We make music, first, for the audience, and then ourselves. It brings us joy to deliver a present to an audience. You'll never hear a song the same way twice. You learn to notice differences with every listening.

Music, to me, is more than just something to do. It's a whole new world, a whole new way to live in this mundane world. It's a beautiful tool we use to give people something that no one can get anywhere else. It is an escape and a testimony. It is what makes us human. It is the bond between all of us that will last until kingdom come.