The Power of the New

Whenever I discover something that has existed for hundreds perhaps thousandsof years and witness or experience it for the first time, I categorize that momentas“new.” New in the sense that it becomes part of me finding its place in mymemory that was not there before. The idea that comes to me while sitting quietlyin a room or as I walk along the street perhaps has always existed inside my headbut at that moment of realization, the newness of that idea brings with it a sortof power. A power that I can use to change or make a correction for the good ofmyself, even others.

With the arrival of new life into our family this year, the meaning of theword“new” and the power of that newness has taken on a completely differentmeaning. It’s probably true that all of the motherly instincts have existed insideme for a long time, but to actually realize the existence of another life that isso incredible and miraculously connected to my own, produces another kindof “newness.” That first sound a child makes, heard by mothers and fathers since thebeginning of time, is a unique, tonal quality all its own that I know I will recognizefor a lifetime. Then when it becomes the tone of that first, new cry that seems almostmelodic, I attempt to use the power of understanding to figure out what it is thatthis precious new life is attempting to tell me.

There’s an old saying amongst some elder musicians, that there is nothing new tothe music, just variations of what has always been. It’s true that the sound of middleC with an augmented fifth is a musical chord that has always existed, but until thatmoment when it was first created, its mystery was only solved by the power tocreate a new and unique sound. A vision of a woman’s face sitting quietly, lookinginto the distance lives only inside the mind of the painter until the power to createwhat we will see on the canvas as something new, pushes the strokes of the brush.

So now, whenever I wish someone a Happy New Year, there is a power that I hopewill translate with that wish, to not only enjoy the newness of the seasons, the peopleand places they may discover, but also to find the newness of life and all it has tooffer us. To use the power of their newness to lift and carry others to a place whereevery moment has the wonder and magic of becoming something new.

Happy New Year…

Alicia

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