One Song

According to Jon Foreman "switchfoot" is a surfing term.  You switch  your feet and face the opposite direction.

"We were meant to live for so much more

Have we lost ourselves?

Somewhere we live inside

Somewhere we live inside

We were meant to live for so much more

Have we lost ourselves?

Somewhere we live inside"  Meant to Live, Switchfoot

Have you ever been completely stuck?  I got stuck in the crawl space of a mountain home in the middle of nowhere a couple of years ago. The owners were home. I could have beat on the floor with my flashlight and  they would have eventually figured it out, but I was in a precarious situation to say the least.  I found myself in  a very dark, very cramped space and I didn't see any way out.  There was a block wall on my left and seemingly impenetrable plumbing and duct work on the other three sides.  I couldn't move. Because of how I got into my predicament, backing up wasn't an option either. After I got my panic under control, I found a way out.  It wasn't any fun, but I did it. The whole ordeal was over in a matter of minutes, although it took a little longer for my heart rate and sweat glands to return to normal. I was very glad to see the light of day.

But that's not the kind of stuck I'm talking about.  I'm referring to when our lives are stuck. We consider our options and there doesn't seem to be any good way forward. Or any direction for that matter.

In the spring of 2005 I was stuck.  I was in a job that I was highly qualified and trained to do.  My supervisors were pleased with my work and those I supervised were for the most part pleased as well. But I was profoundly stressed.  And profoundly unhappy. I wanted to quit, but my always supportive wife was concerned about my tendency to give up on myself and my job too easily and too soon.  And she had good reason to be concerned.  I had an abysmal track record with "careers".

But my unhappiness deepened. My unhappiness began to slide toward despair.

I so enjoy finding good music, but every now and then good music finds me.  The song Meant to Live by Switchfoot told me what I was supposed to do.  The answer was not crystal clear, but it was clear enough.

Jon Foreman, the founder, writer and lead singer, is passionate about surfing. All of them are. He said "Switchfoot is  about change and movement,  a different way of approaching life and music." This week while looking for a movie to watch on Netflix, I noticed Fading West by Switchfoot.  And I watched it.  The movie, released in 2013, is a documentary/travelogue of their 2012 World Tour.  Their yearlong tour included Australia, New Zealand, S. Africa and Bali.  As it turned out, the movie is as much about surfing as it is  about their music and their concerts.  Foreman said, "Surfing brought us together and surfing keeps us together."  He said that regarding the day to day stresses of touring, the water is a "reset" for all of them. "We find the water as often as possible." And if Fading West is any indication, they find the water fairly often.

It is so very good to be listening to this triumphant Switchfoot music when I'm not in any crisis or distress.  I'm not looking for any answers or direction.  I'm not looking for anything.  I can just allow myself to be bathed by their words and music.  A crisis? No.  A reset? Yes.

 "And we find what we're made of through the open door.
Is it fear you're afraid of? What are you waiting for?
 Love alone is worth the fight."   Love Alone is Worth the Fight,  from Fading West, by Switchfoot

"And I was lost but not alone."  The Edge of the Earth from Fading West by Switchfoot

I was in a crawl space this afternoon.  It was dark, dirty and very cramped.  But I didn't get stuck. If you've ever been stuck in a crawl space or in your life  you have no plans to ever be stuck again.