Memories

Just before I left for college, I purchased a stereo system. Back then, we listened to music on records, so my system consisted of a receiver, two speakers and a turntable. I left for school with a stereo, but no records. I can easily see myself in my mind's eye in the college bookstore purchasing my first three albums: Grover Washington Jr.'s Mister Magic, Jean luc Ponty's Aurora, and Ronnie Law's Fever. Every night, either my roommate or I would cue one one of the three before we went to sleep.

One trac, in particular, has the power to instantly catapult me back in time 30+ years to the '70's whenever I hear it. Hearing Ronnie Law's Night Breeze does more than just bringing back memories. It seems to stimulate so many of the feelings that I experienced one year back in 1976. It turns on the feeling that everything was new, that the whole world was opening up to me to be experienced, and that nothing was impossible. That "the sky's the limit" feeling.

As an individual, it is easy to re-experience such feelings. We have an average day, nothing seems new, everything's the same. We pop in a song, or call up a friend, or have a dream, and suddenly, we are re-energized. But how do we do that as a group? How do we do that as a nation? How do we do that as a people?