Finding my way back to my first love

I love jazz. It’s my first love. In the last year and half I've have had an inordinate amount of time to myself living and working in a farm in the little agrarian town of Kitale, quite a contrast from Nairobi, my home city of eclectic contradictions. During this time while digging for new music I have come to an intriguing realization. The future of jazz is in the past. This is true especially when you recognize how so many young jazz musicians by their own confession ride on the back of legends learning, getting inspiration and recreating what has already been created in search of their unique modes of expression. How everlasting jazz is.

 This past week was a somewhat difficult one as I found myself suffering a flu that was unusually severe and sudden leaving me groggy and fatigued. I’ve been around long enough to know what flu is and how to treat one but in the back of my mind something kept telling me not to take things for granted. These are not ordinary times. I ignored and I’m still ignoring. Because of how I was feeling, I was unable to attend the funeral of my friend’s mom, even if just to be there in their hour of grief and loss. This was a woman we had in our youth grown to love and cherish like our own mom. This friend is one with whom we share some memorable experiences, painting the town red, riding bikes and because we were not consumers of alcohol, we hopped from restaurant to restaurant connecting with friends and other bikers. The world was beckoning…..

 We played music in church with him and other members of his family, from our late teens and for some even after making our own families, at least 20 years, maybe more. I was sad to miss the occasion. In other news, Hamas and Israel were at it again only this time, the fiercest in our lifetime. I had been following developments closely knowing that soon enough just as with the war in Ukraine the effects will hit home. A dreadful week of mixed emotions.

 I got up this morning feeling a bit better and decided to ride out to Eldoret a city I once lived in for a couple of years, 6 years ago. Only an hour away, a slow easy ride would help distract me and perhaps prepare me for the evidently loaded week ahead. As I set off, I decided to find something to listen to from YouTube and as I browsed quickly through my usual list of artists I came across a new project by Dominik Schurmann, an artist whose work I have come to love with passion. The song is The Seagull's Serenade with beautiful orchestration and the soulful, melodious voice of Song Yi Jeon a singer and composer who hails from South Korea. This piece warmed my heart and stirred my soul and just like that after a week of mental and emotional torment, I reconnected with my first love. I discovered also  in that moment that despite the many crises home and abroad, this crew was in the studio making this recording less than 24 hours ago, on the 14th day of October 2023, while I was away. They were focused on their passion. Here’s the link https://youtu.be/XD-crFBvlVQ?si=2cXaH64XBC2XljE2. 

We have heard it said that what we focus our attention and energy on becomes our reality. We can choose to debacle our minds with fruitless information or to nourish it with utmost knowledge. What a reminder that as I chase my dreams, pursue my goals, battle my ghosts or confront my demons as we often do, I must not forget my first love. That which reminds me of life, to live intentionally without fear, with passion and purpose, in the moment. That life is short. AND I HAVEN’T COME THIS FAR TO LOSE MY TRACK. How beautiful it was