Dancing To Love, Deconstructing The Love of My Life
Abhay (my partner, for reference) has always been an artist. As I define an artist, it is any one capable enough of choosing an endeavor and creating something so unique with it that you can’t help but think of “their way” or “that’s the way he/she would do it” — so in a way, they infuse their identity in their doing. The basics of his personality, attitudes, behaviors and who he really IS were laid down with soccer for which he’s been passionate all his life.
His infusion to the sport has always been — striving to be a better team player than an individual player — which shaped him to wish for better outcomes for all than one,
his discipline — which makes him respect his commitments towards his art and people, also making him extremely reliable,
picking up sharp, unnoticeable yet defining skills ( for example — skills that make an excellent player tackle other players just to pass it along to a striker who gets the spotlight for the goal ) — which makes him respect the work more than the recognition and,
his natural magnetism towards players that exude humility, character, and skill in equal proportion (any one can guess at this point his favorite player — hint: DID NOT win the Golden Boot in the World Cup but lifted the trophy).
While soccer and Abhay continue to remain the best of friends, they’re keeping it on the down low at the moment. He made the very hard decision of letting it go last year due to certain circumstances but around the same time found his curious love for music. His journey at this art that’s coming to shape the second phase of his life started with going to a few sessions and listening to local artists. Being the keen observer he is, he was picking up sounds, music, voices, anything that strung emotions in people. The same motivations that defined his previous art were coming to shape now -
- Soccer: Wanting a better outcome for the ENTIRE team than one person = Music: Creating music that genuinely made PEOPLE feel than keeping it just for himself,
- Soccer: Focusing on sharp defining skills that make a player skillful over scoring a goal = Music: His sharp ear picking up sounds and tunes that truly pull the strings of human emotions but no one can really pick them apart
- Soccer: Respect for players with humility and integrity = Music: Gravitating towards artists that have showed character into devoting themselves to the depths of music that truly spoke to the innate human character than the beats you shed off as you walk off the dance floor.
I’ve known him to be doing this a year or so and his discipline (again credits to his ex girlfriend, soccer) has been a defining infusion of his identity in his music. He’s been so fascinated, so in awe of bringing people together and making them feel, truly feel, that he just never stops learning — his keen ear gets keener every day. While I could write a book on him, to do justice to the title of this blog “Dancing To Love”, I want to give my bit on what it felt like dancing to his art. I have deeply felt music of artists I hold close to my heart — I have cried, I have transformed, I have suffered, I have reflected, I have felt… I have truly redefined myself bowing down to my new teacher, Music. I can’t tell you what’s good and bad music, I can tell you whether I feel. So he wanted to make me feel. He created a set just for me — and when I say just for me, it means communicating everything he’s felt about love through music. He put god knows how many hours and triple the creative power for the masterpiece he revealed to me last night and here’s how the story goes…..
Late evening on a Sunday, he started to play the soft tunes. He had me at the very first sound — it was so soft, so inviting until Alan Watts came along to set the narrative “Just surrender. Surrender is the most powerful thing we’ve done and love is the act of total surrender to another person.” With that, he gently took me deeper into his world. I was greeted with music that made me feel so comfortable in exploring — I started to move, to dance. A smile would sneak in every few minutes to the melodic tunes he spun, almost telling me to “let it go, be here with me”. So I let it go and I was with him….
As my thoughts started to swirl in and pull me out of the moment, his tunes continued to be my compass — gently telling me to “come back, be here with me, in the present”. So I did come back and I was with him…. At one point, all my thoughts vanished and I was completely sucked in, trusting the journey he was taking me on. At this very point, he dipped a set so melodic to bring in Ludovico Einaudi, a musician that I hold very close to my heart. I don’t quite know how he did that so gently but that moment was the defining moment of the set for only him, some one who knows me so deeply, could have done that. There was no doubt about that. In that moment, I broke down — tears welling up until they flew like a river on the landscape of my face and I felt SO SO LOVED. I haven’t felt so much gratitude for love as I did in that moment. I think that’s what dancing to love feels like. It was an honor to have been known so deeply by another human being. He was like the pianist and I was the piano. The rest of the set brought me up just as beautifully as it lay me down and I came out of it knowing that the deepest way you can invest in another human being is to hear them, know them and love them. It’s just that simple!
*Please message me personally if you’d like to listen to the masterpiece — I’ll be happy to share the joys with any one who wishes to hear it!
