Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Life is Beautiful-- and Wonderful!

I found the song! The song that captures my mantra. Sure he changed "beautiful" to "wonderful", but he didn't want to steal my phrase... ;)

Each lyric is full of meaning yet simple. As is life. We need to cherish all experiences, the positive and the negative, because "it takes the one to have the other."

So, without further ado, here is the wonderful live recording of Life is Wonderful by Jason Mraz:




It takes a crane to build a crane
It takes two floors to make a story
It takes an egg to make a hen
It takes a hen to make an egg
There is no end to what I'm saying

It takes a thought to make a word
And it takes some words to make an action
It takes some work to make it work
It takes some good to make it hurt
It takes some bad for satisfaction

La la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la la life goes full circle
Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Al la la la la

It takes a night to make it dawn
And it takes a day to make you yawn brother
And it takes some old to make you young
It takes some cold to know the sun
It takes the one to have the other

And it takes no time to fall in love
But it takes you years to know what love is
It takes some fears to make you trust
It takes those tears to make it rust
It takes the dust to have it polished

(Chorus)

It takes some silence to make sound
It takes a loss before you found it
And it takes a road to go nowhere
It takes a toll to make you care
It takes a hole to make a mountain

(Chorus)

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

Very wise words, to really find the lessons in things. It reminds me how I was struck by the song Thank You by Alanis Morissette, where she thanks things like frailty and disallusionment. Mraz is another one with balance and guidance.

Catherine Vibert said...

Aine, what a wonderful noon-time treat! I'm so glad I popped over here to hear this. I couldn't stop smiling, both at their delightful spirits, and the song itself. The mouth instrument parts were so much fun! Thanks for this delicious luncheon surprise.

Charles Gramlich said...

Kinda catchy, but a bit slow for me.

JaneyV said...

You know sometimes when something resonates so strongly with you that you feel a real swelling of joy - like the music fills you up and makes you want to move with it and sing at the top of your lungs?

I sure got it with this. I loved everything about it - so much so I listened to all the other songs on YouTube and I've ordered a CD.

Thanks Aine - you have certainly enriched my life today. ;0) xxx

Aniket Thakkar said...

"It takes some good to make it hurt" - Oh it takes a lotta good to make it hurt. :P

'And it takes no time to fall in love
But it takes you years to know what love is
It takes some fears to make you trust
It takes those tears to make it rust'

I guess it makes this one go up to become one of my favorites.

PS: I used to sing 'Country Roads' a lottt too. Until my brother started threatening me to stop. lolzz

@ Jason: I love 'Hand in my pocket' by Alanis Morissette too. :)

Sarah Hina said...

It takes some cold to know the sun. This, especially, resonates with me today!

It is a lovely, life-affirming song. We wouldn't feel the joy if we hadn't known some sorrow.

Thank you for sharing its light with us. :)

laughingwolf said...

wunderbra ;)

Aine said...

Jason~ This one is the song of my heart. It was such a moment when I first heard it. Much as Janey described!

Catvibe~ I'm so glad it made you smile!! I love the fun spontaneity of the mouth instruments, too! That was one of the reasons I chose the live version. He also slowed it a bit in this version, it feels more heartfelt than the studio recording (to me).

Charles~ Ha! Know any metal tunes with a similar message? I'd love to hear one (seriously!).

Janey~ I'm a bit speechless. I've always felt a resonance with you. But now you are scaring me. :)

I had the exact same experience when I found his music a few weeks ago. I'm adding his CDs to my next Amazon order.

(Wonder if he's INFJ, too...)

Aniket~ I'm starting to wonder if taste in music (or favorite songs) has a personality type correlation. :)

I almost pulled out that stanza to highlight in this post because it has special meaning for me. But then I realized that the entire song has special meaning to me. So I just posted the whole thing.

I am so glad to know you!

Sarah~ I'll send you warmth whenever you need it, dear friend! You are so giving. Probably the most beautiful, caring heart I've ever known. I'm glad to have something to give in return!

laughingwolf~ Uplifting, indeed! :)

JaneyV said...

Oh you Have to check this out!

I know!!!

Aine said...

Janey~ YES!! I saw that back when I did my post on that song (before I found Life is Wonderful.) Thanks for reminding me! I'm definitely intuiting all sorts of connections.
:)

SzélsőFa said...

This song has great lyrics, I can not listen to it at the moment (lack of voice from the PC - needs fixed soon).
Thank you!
I love when a seemingly simple saying or text can capture so much of the infinite.

Vesper said...

Lovely, philosophical song! Quite uplifting!

Aniket Thakkar said...

Hmm... you must research on that!
May be you'll end up finding a new research field all together! ;)

I read through all your personality posts (hope you checked the comments :) )

And don't tell Jason, but I've begun to find your blog more interesting now! :) :)

Aine said...

Szelsofa~ Sorry to hear the PC sound isn't working! I think you'd like the music. But it's the lyrics that are so "wonderful"!
:)

Vesper~ I can count on this song to make me feel better, no matter what. Glad you enjoyed it!

Aniket~ :D I have been reading all your comments. And now that you've read the posts, I can send more information! Woo hoo!

It'll be our secret. ;) Maybe I can steal a few more of his fans ... (mwah ha ha...)

jaz said...

Aine, isn't it amazing how powerfully we can experience a song??

This is great. I'm reading a lot of joyful posts today. Spring must be in the air. :)

Amritorupa Kanjilal said...

And it takes no time to fall in love
But it takes you years to know what love is
It takes some fears to make you trust
It takes those tears to make it rust
It takes the dust to have it polished


Thank you so much for the song... it really made my day...
it was my first visit to your blog and i totally loved it. hope to keep coming back :)

Aine said...

Jennifer~ Yes! It's like a gift to find a song that resonates with our heart.
:)

Little Girl Lost~ Oh, yay! You just made my day! :)

And, welcome to my blog!

jaz said...

Aine, I just had to tell you that your finger and your legs have been mentioned in the latest comment thread on my blog. And of course, Aniket is right in the thick of it. ;)

Aniket Thakkar said...

Nobody likes a tell-tale Jennifer. :-)

But yeah, soon well putting up legs, finger, etc. all together and then well have a full Aine in front of us. :-D

Aine said...

Jennifer~ Thanks for telling me! Lordy... I'll rein in my body parts now. ;)

Aniket~ I'm almost there. I'm preparing a post. Soon you will see all the parts together.

And, I do hope you aren't really concerned that you offended me in any way about the old lady finger! I love having fun. And I laugh at myself frequently-- very little would truly bother me. Someday, perhaps I'll tell stories that illustrate that. Stories that would fit better on Ello's blog! LOL :)

And, PS-- I am still trying to put together an email for you about INFJs. Didn't want you to think I had forgotten... :)

jaz said...

Aine, in his defense, I did bring it up first. BUT he called me Jenni. JENNI! So I kind of feel like we are even. ;)

Curious about the personality types--can someone figure out someone else's type and is there any value in doing so in terms of dealing with a very difficult person who might hypothetically be coming to stay with you for two LONG weeks?

Aniket Thakkar said...

Take your time Aine. I've got all the time in the world. And I know you are quite mature and sensible enough, to take some comments in good stride and laugh at them; unlike some hypothetical people who get angry if someone misses out a few letter out of your name in an attempt to show love. :-D Sigh.

Come on Jennifer we used to be best friends. :)

Aine said...

Jennifer~ Sounds fair to me. :)

Yes! There may be great value in understanding personality type in your, ahem, hypothetical situation. The reason someone could be considered "difficult" may be easily explained by a clash of two different temperaments. Are you familiar with the Myers-Briggs types? Do you know what type you are? If not, are you interested in learning more?

And, to fully answer your question, one cannot definitively figure out another's type without the person's involvement. After all, only they truly know how they think. But, once familiar with the theory and the possible cognitive functions, it's fairly easy to spot a "type". Or at least determine 2-3 of their letters or which of the 4 temperaments they most likely fit.

Knowing even a few of their preferences could lead to improved communication!

Aniket~ I'm searching for a particular photo. I may need to give up on that one though... :P

Look! She feels you are even. Time for I truce, I think! :)

Aniket Thakkar said...

Oh we already made truce. In fact she'll be flying down here for my wedding along with Catherine. :-D

I wish you could join them too.

jaz said...

Cat told me about it awhile ago, but with a million things to do al the time, I never looked into it. I know you have posts (can you direct me?). This is going to sound totally one-sided, of course, but this person is pretty universally difficult to get along with--conflict follows her on a short leash. And I am really not just saying that.

BUT she has been a person who has been particularly challenging for me, partially to do with culture, and partially because I haven't always had the thickest skin. (Shut up, Aniket.) But remmember my comment over on Sarah's blog about creating chaos with expectation? I am just looking for more mature ways to cycle out of that.

jaz said...

No, no, no, Aniket. Boston, New York, Washington, DC. These are our target locations for your wedding. Which would make it easier for Aine and Jason, too! See, it's a win-win.

Aine said...

Jennifer~ Sure! I'd love to see if personality theory leads to understanding (or at least a better perspective you can use to approach interactions with this person!) Perhaps Cat told you, I'm a bit obsessed with this theory. (just warning you now... ;)) I'm not an expert, but I've read at least a dozen books and hope to some day get certified to use it in my therapy practice.

Anyway-- start by reading my personality posts. There are 7 in total and they are listed in my archives starting in September 2008. If you'd like, you can email me with questions as you go through the information. The posts lead you through the basics of how the theory works and give you links to do some free online tests to figure out your own type. Then we can discuss your "friend"!

jaz said...

Okay, I took the test and came up as an INFJ with a the strongest one being feeling. Then I did it for the other person and it came up as an ISTJ, with the strongest being judging. I think I was as fair as possible, but since I am answering for her, who knows if my own biases affected the outcome. But assuming this was accurate, would you expect these two types to clash--with the INFJ feeling like the victim of the conflict? (I may have to email you at some point. The person is important to my husband and I don't want to be airing it in public!)