Progression

In terms of music, a progression is a succession of chords which gives a piece of music its harmonic movement. In a chord progression, each chord moves to the next, propelling the music forward. Every chord is an important musical building block of the piece as a whole.

I am looking forward to the new year with the idea of progression at the forefront of my thoughts.  It is my wish that every day, every moment, every choice will be for the purpose of moving forward. Not in a mad rush, but in a steady succession of events and days and decisions. This, of course, means willfully releasing the past. I don't mean forgetting the past. I should always be aware and in touch with what has come before in order to learn and grow. However, I cannot let myself be so anchored to the events of the past that there is no forward motion. I should not live thinking back to what could have been and playing moments over and over in my head in an endless loop.

A piece of music can't be made up of one chord played over and over. Well, it can, but who would want to listen to that? Sometimes, all we can do is stop agonizing over the past and move on to the next thing. It should be simple, right?

There is often a danger of confusing contentment with complacency, but a person CAN be content without being complacent. One should always be moving forward in personal growth, always striving to be a little bit better. I never want to say to myself (or anyone else) "Well, this is as good as I get!" I don't want to get to a certain age and just stop. I don't need big, dramatic changes; even tiny steps upward and/or forward are positive motion. I don't want this kind of progression because I am discontented. I simply find joy in the process, in the growth and evolution of who I am.

And so the harmonic movement of my life is composed day by day and moment by moment. It doesn't always follow a steady andante, but again, an unchanging pace would be boring. There will be times of rapid movement when events shift and change from one measure to the next. There will also be gentle lulls when days slow and the movement is so subtle it's barely noted.

Now, at the great fermata of 2018 before the clock strikes midnight and a New Year begins, I think ahead (only slightly) and prepare myself. There's new music waiting to be written. The final strains of the preceding chords fade and I take a giant lung-bursting breath, ready to lift my voice in new notes and new ideas in a brand new shining year.

Happy New Year, everyone.

 Let's make some music.