All the World is Gumball Shaped
I have been planning this article for months! Well, except that I had no idea what it would actually be about. What I mean is, that ever since I made arrangements to see the Dave Matthews Band next week in Atlanta, I’ve been looking forward to mentioning the one song that I want to hear most at that show, hoping that serendipity would work her magic, and somehow land the aforementioned tune a spot on next Tuesday night’s setlist. You see, ever since I have been writing these posts, I have noticed a strange, yet comforting phenomenon, where the tracks that I speak of suddenly appear, sometimes after long absences, on stage. It’s not that I believe that I am causing these things to occur, (I’m not that crazy!), it’s just that synchronicity is that powerful. But hey, if I come to find that someone from the band is actually reading these pieces, then that would be all the more amazing! So, Dave, if you would like to dedicate a song to the psychologist who writes spiritually themed, eccentric works about how much she loves your music, please, be my guest!
Okay, back to reality, which, by the way, is still filled with mystery when it involves DMB. Take last week, for example. After I finished scripting my thoughts about love and these musicians, Dave's beautiful lyrics to the song, “I’ll Back You Up,” literally popped into my head as perfect for a title to what I had just described. It was only later, when I checked dmbalmanac.com, that I realized that the night before, the men played that very melody, live, in New York.
And that is just one incidence. I won’t bore you with all the others, but suffice it to say that, believing in the principles of serendipity and synchronicity, I did not take lightly my choice of which favorite song to feature today. Of course, it’s never easy to pick just one when you love the entire collection of a group. But after months of sorting and deciding, I finally picked my selection yesterday morning, and it was “Granny.”
And then, as astute tour followers will recognize, “Granny” was played for the first time this Fall. Last night.
If I could control a universal force like synchronicity, I would have preferred that “Granny” be played next week, instead of last night when I wasn’t there to enjoy it! But, of course, this isn’t the case. Synchronicity doesn’t exist to ensure that we get what we want, but rather to remind us that we are all connected at a very deep and meaningful level. That a writer’s thought in North Carolina can travel through an invisible network called the collective unconscious and somehow merge with what has, or will, occur on another plane is truly amazing. And this happens to all of us, whether we realize it or not.
In the end, I still hope to hear “Granny,” next week, but either way, I will continue to believe in the connective powers of the Universe, and be grateful for what comes my way, because as long as Dave and the boys are performing, I’m sure to experience the best of what’s around.
Hayley Bauman, Psy.D.
Author of Serendipity and the Search for True Self