The other day I was cruising down the I5 freeway going from Seattle to Olympia to visit Jetta, an old college friend. It was a day off. I was free from the job, the hassle of life in general, everything.

It felt like summer vacation when I was a kid growing up in Pennsylvania. More than anything it felt like I had space— in my mind, in my heart, and on the open road.

I was sort of sick of the million songs on my thumb drive so I dug into my CDs and pulled up a band called The Himalayans. Who the hell are they? They are Adam Duritz’s previous band. Adam is the main guy from Counting Crows. I f*ing LOVE the Counting Crows.

On this album, you can hear the coming of age of a songwriter. You can hear melodic ideas and lyrical images being tested by a guy who would soon pen songs that would blast across the world. Some of these tunes are absolutely amazing.

I cranked it up. Stepped on the gas.

Every once in awhile I am so blown away by the music that it literally rocks my soul, transcends everything. It fuels my heartbeat, open my heart and reminds me of one of the pleasures of being human.

For seven or eight songs in a row, The Himalayans rocked me bigtime. With the warm air blowing across my skin, the music cresting through my body and heart, I was free. Really, really free.

I love music and I listen to it all the time. But it doesn’t generally hit me this hard. When it does, it is a blessing. A miracle. I want more. I want to remember it. Shine it.

As the tunes begin to fade, I wrote a poem in my mind. Soon after I scratched it in my little book.

the pleasures of being human

summer. warm, easy. i fly

down the freeway of

open roads, open windows. the stereo

answers my prayers. melody,

rhythm, guitar. the art of timelessness

—wind on warm skin

music inside me, blinding me

with beauty, reminding me

of the pleasures of being human.

>>> illustration by megan hills______________

When was a time that music blew you away? What song? At a concert? What was the scene? How did it affect you? What does music do for you?

Guest Blogger, Jeff Leisawitz burns with a mission—to inspire writers, artists, musicians, filmmakers, entrepreneurs (and everyone else) to amp up their creativity, heal their hearts and shine in the world.

Creativity. Inspiration. Spirituality.

See more about Jeff at his website http://jeffleisawitz.com/

If you’d like to be a guest blogger – drop me a line. The more the merrier:)