Islam

From My Blood-Red Orange: Our Ezekiel 25:17

Posted on by Francisco Bravo Cabrera 

 "Our Ezekiel 25:17"

 “The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men.”

 Mamma, all around me I witness those who hate,
 They say we're black, they say we're brown, they call us filthy names.
 I see and hear how callously they rule for their self-gain,
 And how they treasure for themselves the good things that we make...

 “Blessed is he, who in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children.”

 I’ve seen the ones that teach and guide us killed in the pouring rain,
 Their path cut down, their house in ruins, their life now filled with pain,
 I’ve seen the ones that seek redemption shackled and chained
 To filthy walls, in iron cages, what sins have they to pay...
 
“And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers.”

 I know, mamma, the time is coming, the day is near
 For our suffering to end,
 And justice from the highest sphere will
 Fall like rocks from heaven upon these evil men,
 I know, mamma, they’ll get their share,
 Every measure, counted well
 And we will smile, and we will have
 A new story to tell...

 “And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee."

The Question of Questioning Jazz…

Posted on by Francisco Bravo Cabrera

Some ask, what is Jazz?  Is that a good question?  Does it really matter?  It may…but then again, isn’t Jazz a style of music and isn’t music meant to be listened to and…well, I know that we question music, we write about music, we discuss it, we analyze it and critique it…so naturally, we are used to definitions and we want to apply it to Jazz, which by nature, would seem to defy definitions…and that is because the only constant with Jazz is CHANGE!  So wouldn’t that mean that today’s definition would change tomorrow?  What is the purpose of trying to define something if the words, the thoughts, the meaning of it will be lost in a short amount of time…but I would say that to me Jazz is like Religion…it is something that you adhere to by faith and because you like what you hear…you might be a musician seeking expression and realized that the only type of music that can allow you the freedom to be whatever you want to be is Jazz! You might like to listen to something that you know comes from way deep in the heart and soul of the player…or you might be a composer seeking to challenge yourself and your ego as you write something that you know is not going to be played as you wrote it or even as you imagined it…that is Jazz too…A religion? Did I say that? What is Religion? It is a conduit that takes us from the profane to the Sacred…Jazz is a conduit that takes us from the simple to the most complex but it lays it out before us and all we have to do is enjoy it…just like God, we cannot comprehend the mysteries of the universe, but God makes it simple for us…simply believe, trust and expect a miracle…I think that the more I think and the more I delve deeply into a topic, the more I understand that all things are connected, the more I see the face of God…