Do you like good surprises? I find that most people are at one end of the spectrum or the other. I am one of those people that loves to be surprised. For my 30th birthday some friends threw me a surprise party which remains one of my favorite memories ever (my 40th was spent in a hospital after celebrating a little too much and breaking my ankle…not too keen on that memory). One of the most pleasant surprises I’ve received in the last few months is this song, “Satan Pulls the Strings”. As you will see in the video at the end of this post, this song shows a whole other side of the Avett Brothers. Gone are the lovely melodies and melancholy feelings. This song ROCKS. It is no better or worse than the softer and more folksy songs. It’s just different.
I don’t claim to know what the band is thinking when they write their songs, but this one inspired me to think about extremes found among and sometimes within people. My favorite lines in the song are when Seth practically screams the following:
God is in the song and the devil’s in my feet
My God, devil’s in our feet, mama, the devil’s in our feet
God is in the song and the devil’s in our feet
It’s like he is proclaiming that the music is the “holy” part of their performance and the dancing that it inspires is the “evil” part. Of course, that is a simplistic view, but it’s a duality that I can relate to. This duality is a part of my life everyday. I absolutely love music and detest dancing (unless I’ve been drinking and then suddenly I’m the girl in the white dress in Saturday Night Fever). I believe that we can find those extremes inside us all. See if you can relate to any of these extremes:
I look forward to summer for the whole school year yet hate hot weather. I am a true baseball (Go Yankees!) fanatic yet love to have my nails done and to claim to my sisters that I am a delicate flower. I have a sometimes wicked sense of humor but also a history of depression and anxiety. I absolutely love being around children yet have none of my own. I am a hopeless romantic who craves lots of alone time. I can binge watch Game of Thrones and follow it up with Downton Abbey. My writing allows me to express my private feelings easily while talking one on one often turns me into “mute girl”, a well-earned nickname in my 20s. I have spoken eloquently in front of mourners yet get tongue-tied when trying to express my sympathies one on one. Two of my all-time favorite movies are The Departed (a violent movie filled with gang violence and police corruption) and Elizabeth (a historical biography filled with lords and ladies). My chosen career is a traditional and sometimes conservative one, yet I sport 3 tattoos, change my hair color at least twice a season, and have a fascination with the spiritual realm.
I could go on and on about the duality I have found within myself, but you get the idea. Even if none of my examples resonated with you, I’m sure you can pick out at least 2 or 3 contradictions within yourself. What I think is essential in recognizing the yin and yang in a person is the act of balancing out those extremes. It seems like our souls help us when we are leaning too far to one extreme or another. When I’m relying too much on my sense of humor, that is often a sign that I’m trying to avoid something that is troubling me deep inside. In the past when I’ve spent a little too much time with my romantic partner, petty arguments began because my soul was looking for a way to get some alone time. I tried for years to adopt a child despite financial hardship because I was certain no one would ever love me enough to have a child with me. Once I accepted that I couldn’t afford to adopt, the desperate longing to be a mother began to subside and I finally began to love and accept myself. What I have found is that recognizing what needs to be balanced in your life can be the key to a more peaceful existence.
I was born on the cusp of Libra and Scorpio (October 23rd) so the scales which symbolize Libra may have influenced this piece of writing. I often say that my nice, caring, and gentle side is my Libran influence while the bitchy, secretive, and hermit-like side is all Scorpion. But now I am realizing that I need both sides to be happy. Examine and try to balance out the extremes found within yourself ,and you may find yourself as ecstatic as the Avett Brothers appear to be in the video below. And if you find yourself dancing along, just say the devil made you do it.
One Foot In, One Foot Back 