Hi, my name is Kathleen, and I am going to be blogging about music! I really love music and it has impacted my life in so many ways that I would have never imagined such a broad, yet general, yet subjective matter could cover it all! I think that music is something that everyone can enjoy. It has something for everyone and there are so many ways to access it that honestly, sometimes I wonder how people do not know more about it. For example, you do not even have to look for the most popular music, or the “coolest” artist. Even just humming your own tune is like connecting to other people through a collective creativity. This is beautiful because we do not all need to listen to the popular stuff, the cool stuff, or emulate the cool rock stars, the “popular” kids, or the “indie” kids, etc. I do not like those stereotypes because I believe that they keep people outside of the music community by saying that you must enjoy a certain type of music to be interesting and recognized within the community. While it is somewhat true that you need to be famous or successful in order to make a living from music, you need to be able to be different and stand out. I think that people should not feel pressure to be famous and make an abundance of money. Music can be your livelihood and pay your bills, as for famous people. But it can also be a hobby or a passion, too. And there’s nothing wrong with keeping a passion to yourself. So, if you feel pressured to be famous and have all this luck and success from your music, I believe you do not need to feel that way. I am saying that from firsthand experience… During the pandemic, while I was in online school, I went through a patch of hyper-fixating on those super successful, young musicians. They were the same age as me! I was honestly jealous of them. But over time, I realized that they also had a spur of luck. I told myself that their luck was going to be mine—that all I was missing was that luck. I was going to do everything in my power to get that luck and get to that place where they were. And maybe I was hazy from online school taking up my life, or maybe it was also childish behavior that fed into these ideas. But I also think that if you’re a musician and have a passion for music, you will probably feel the pressure of success at some point. And I feel for people who feel that way because it is not just for music. It is for anything. People feel that their only salvation is to be famous. If you are trying to pay the bills, that may be true. But you can still perform even if it can’t fully support you financially. You can still meet new people and grow your passion without it having to be your full-time job. There is another side of music, the more wholesome side, wherein you make music and participate in the music community just for the sake of doing it. And this is the idea I want to cultivate with this blog, starting with a conversation about one of my favorite bands, Vulfpeck. A while ago, my band teacher told me that he was playing in a church later that week and that he was performing a song by a funk band called Vulfpeck. He played me one of the songs by the band, and I was immediately intrigued. I had never heard of this band before nor heard the song, and it was amazing. The song was called “Christmas in L.A.,” with the lead singer being Theo Katzman. I was blown away by the tightness of the band. They were so connected and well-coordinated. Vulfpeck really emulates the wholesomeness of the music community. They add so many intricate details, for instance—in one song—bells, to make each song intriguing. Their music is a dreamy and upbeat escape that snaps you into a haven of funk. I have been opened to a whole world of their music filled with impactful, slow, meaningful, emotional and all-around beautiful songs. And there are also some songs—songs that are almost humorous like one called “Funky Duck,” or one called “It Gets Funkier.” Their humorous attitude towards their playing is also really inspiring. In the music video for one of their songs, “Birds of a Feather,” their band leader, Jack Stratton, is playing pancakes and hitting them with spatulas instead of drumsticks. It is hilarious! You can tell that they have a lighthearted attitude towards their music, and this is something I want to emulate. The songs are a great escape when I am feeling down or if I want to celebrate my happiness. I do not think I will stop listening to them anytime soon—they’re great! I hope that my discussion of some of the aspects of the music community as well as the band Vulfpeck has inspired something in you, or changed your perspective, or introduced you to something new. Please enjoy this video of me playing a cover of the song I mentioned, “Christmas in L.A.,” and have a great day!
Young Bloggers
Little Women, Reviewed by Grace, 13
Kind Cinderella lives luxuriously in a castle after enduring her hardships obediently. Gentle Snow White gets saved by the dashing prince because of her sweet personality. Loving Sleeping Beauty wakes up from her slumber with a single kiss. Characters in these cherished fairy tales we’ve grown up with always end up with their dreams being fulfilled—if they’ve been virtuous. Then what explains what happens to the girls in Little Women by Louisa May Alcott? Little Women documents the growth of four very different sisters—Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy—from childhood to womanhood. Each sister symbolizes a distinct type of personality, but how they end up in life doesn’t match readers’ initial expectations. By steering us away from our preconceptions, Alcott accurately depicts what life is really like: sometimes unfair and cruel, yet undeniably satisfying. From Alcott, I learned to accept that “happily ever after” doesn’t exist, nor is it ultimately gratifying. My mom had recommended this book to me, but I was hesitant to read it because the story of four girls didn’t initially intrigue me. However, after learning that Alcott’s father, Amos Bronson Alcott, was a friend of Emerson’s and a leader in the transcendentalist movement of the time, I decided to try it. How might Alcott’s feminine perspective of this period add to my understanding? I soon became lost in the intriguing plot which takes place during the Civil War and realized that this novel offers so much more than I had anticipated. The hardship the characters had to endure during this difficult period in American life and the complex moral message for women of all ages have had a lasting impact on me. Though they grew up in the same household, the sisters are all quite different and each is sharply drawn. Meg dreams of ending up in the lap of luxury, but is eventually content with something quite the opposite. Jo, a classic tomboy, learns to balance her literary ambitions with tenderness. Beth, an ever dutiful daughter, willingly resides at her cozy home without any further aspirations, while Amy grows from a pampered little girl to an ardent artist. My two favorite characters are Jo and Amy, despite the fact that they are opposites. Both are ambitious girls, but Amy’s graceful manners are what society valued in a woman at the time, while Jo’s headstrong spirit is often questioned. Even though frivolous Amy almost always winds up better off than Jo, Alcott twists our expectations to ensure that each girl ends up content in her own way. It’s a harsh truth that practicality sometimes wins out over idealism and that being virtuous doesn’t ensure a happy ending. Through this moving story, Alcott steers us away from our childish fairy-tale beliefs to a more mature understanding of joy and suffering. Ultimately, Alcott portrays women as happiest when pursuing their own unique path in life. As Jo explains, we must find “the key to [our] castle in the air” and accept that “whether [we] can unlock the door remains to be seen.” I highly recommend this book to any girl struggling with growing up in a complex world. Little Women offers insight into conventional gender stereotypes and leaves us with important moral issues to think about. This makes it a novel for all readers. In the end, we must ask ourselves: what truly is “happily ever after”? Does it even exist? Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. Roberts Brothers, 1968. Buy the book here and help support Stone Soup in the process!
Dear Corona, an open letter from Tatum, 12
Tatum Lovely, 12 (Pipersville, PA) Dear Corona Tatum Lovely, 12 Dear Corona, I sit alone in my room, drawing flowers. I don’t know why. Maybe I’m trying to get inspiration for poetry. Oh look, they’re chrysanthemums. Do you know what chrysanthemums represent? Death. Yeah, death. I guess you can relate to that. You bring death! What was it… five million people? That you’ve given a bouquet of chrysanthemums? Huh. Amaryllises represent pride. Are you proud of what you’ve done? I mean, it’s pretty impressive. You’ve brought pain, fear, and isolation to billions. You wipe us out, you make us cry, you put limitations on all we like to be and do. You’ve made yourself an enemy of… the world. You bring what all people deeply dread the most: loss of loved ones, or, themselves. You are a blanket that has been tossed carelessly over our little planet. I think a black blanket. A dark, thick, black blanket. You’ve added grief and gloom to perfectly fine days. But now, after all that despicable talk, I will draw you white roses for unity. You might lock us up in our own houses. You might take from us the most precious thing: life. And you might have forced us into a sense of revulsion for masks, making us feel like medical patients. And for shots, though they protect us. And for zoom calls, and kisses through a camera. And for social activities that now we see how much we taken for granted. But still, I draw you white roses for unity. Because though it is true your wicked ways have cost us, you have brought us closer together. We’ve spent more time with our immediate families than ever. Even the world is closer than ever because we’re all fighting the same battle, all together like the selfsame species we are. You certainly did not physically unite us, but hopefully you have in heart, mind, and spirit. Sincerely, Tatum Lovely
