Can Hope and Heavy Metal Transform Your Holiday Spirit?
Ever wonder why success doesn't always equal fulfillment? I'm Tim Salmons and with 30 years experience as an actor and a career spanning work in the blue collar corporate medical field, as well as public service industries. I've seen and experienced the human condition at its best and worst. Here on powerful and unpolished, we will explore the everyday traps draining our energy and hindering fulfillment. This isn't just another success podcast.
Tim:It's about breaking free from patterns that hold you back and limit your potential. Join me on this transformative journey as we explore and identify limiting traps, detach from draining patterns and rediscover the power within, creating a life that is truly powerful and unpolished.
Tim:Hello. Good day, everyone, and welcome to powerful and unpolished. I'm Tim Salmons. I'm your host. I am stepping out on another solo adventure with the holidays.
Tim:People are kinda busy right now. So we're gonna play with, rather than my usual pontification of thinking of deep whatever it is. Who knows? I'm gonna do it in a different way. We're gonna get a little creative.
Tim:This last Saturday, my wife and I had the pleasure of going to a concert, and the concert was Trans Siberian Orchestra, TSO. And this is about our 6th or 7th time going to this concert, or whenever they tour through around the holidays. And what I love about TSO is they really just the eclectic combination of, I mean, it's, it's this unique Christmas music with like a heavy metal influence and a classical, inspiration, and then they just turn it into an incredible, arena show. It's between the choreography of the musicians, the pyrotechnics, the laser lights, the orchestra that they have on there, the the the band members, the the singers, all the different singers, all the different, dancing and moving and choreography. It is a if you haven't gone, it is a piece of theater to go enjoy and just take it in.
Tim:It's it hits so many different levels. I, you know, I rave for the guys. They do a great job. They actually have tours, like, around the holidays. They usually start early early to mid November, but they have an East Coast tour and they have West Coast tour.
Tim:And they're usually doing 2 shows a day, and then they pack it up that night, move it to another town, and do another 2 shows. It's like, these guys are amazing. The whole crew, the whole so cheers to them. Their founder, who is, he was a producer. His name is Paul O'Neil.
Tim:Bless his soul. He passed away in in 2017, but really inspired this amazing potential of this new kind of influence of music that he brought, with the colleagues that he worked along with. And there's a song that is one of their I mean, they have many, many different, some of them are instrumental, some of them are are have lyrics. This is one that's a little bit longer and it has lyrics, but it's one that always kinda I love it. It has some some hooks to it and some really nice inspiration, and it's a it's a storytelling.
Tim:It's it's definitely like folklore kind of storytelling music. Now I'm not gonna sing it to you. You'd probably laugh your butt off on that one, but what I am gonna do is I'm gonna read it read the lyrics as if they're like a poem. And then once I get done reading it, and it's a long like I said, it's a long lyrics. And just FYI, I believe it was 1996 that, they founded that Paul O'Neil founded Trans Siberian Orchestra.
Tim:And it wasn't until a few years later, I think it was their second album, that they actually started getting some traction and started doing arena tours. So but the the song that I picked out is one that has always sung to my soul, sung to my heart, sung to my, the possibility and the potential and hope and magic that maybe is available in this world. I believe it's available, and I know a lot of other people who believe it's available. And, hopefully, there are some out there who may not know that it's available, but they will find the belief in it at some point on their path, hopefully. So this song, the lyrics that I'm gonna go over, it's called Old City Bar.
Tim:And this is this is Old City Bar right here. In an old city bar, that's never too far from the places that gather the dreams that have been. In the safety of night, with its old neon light, it beckons to strangers, and they always come in. And the snow, it was falling. The neon was calling.
Tim:The music was low. And the night, Christmas Eve. And here was the danger. Even with strangers, inside of this night, it's easier to believe. Then the door opened wide and a child came inside.
Tim:Then no one in the bar had seen there before. And he asked, did we know that outside in the snow, there was someone lost standing outside our door? Then the bartender gazed through the smoke and the haze, through the window and ice to the corner streetlight, where standing alone by a broken pay phone, was a girl, the child said could no longer get home. And the snow, it was falling. The neon was calling.
Tim:The bartender turned and said, not that I care, but how would you know this? The child said, I've noticed. If one could be home, they'd be already there. The bartender came out from behind the bar, and in all of his life, he was never that far. And he did something else that no one saw, when he took all the cash from the register drawer.
Tim:Then he followed the child to the girl across the street. And we watched from the bar as they started to speak. Then he came or he called for a cab, and then said JFK. Put the girl in the cab, and the cab drove away. And we saw in his hand that the cash was all gone, from the light that she had wished upon.
Tim:If you want to arrange it, this world, you can change it. If we could somehow make this Christmas thing last, by helping a stranger actually, sorry, by helping a neighbor or even a stranger. To know who needs help, you only need to ask. Then he looked for the child, but the child wasn't there, just the wind and the snow, waltzing dreams through the air. So he walked back inside, somehow different, I think.
Tim:For the rest of the night no one paid for a drink. And the cynics will say that some neighborhood kid wandered in on some bums in the world where they hid. But they weren't there, So they couldn't see, by the old neon star, on that night, Christmas Eve, when the snow it was falling, the neon was calling. In case you should wander, in case you should care Why we are on our own Never went home, not on the night of all nights, for we were already there. So that's generally the lyrics.
Tim:Not like I did a great job not like I did a great job responding on that. But, anyway, what I love about these lyrics is not only is it telling a story, but it really taps into some key elements that exist or are available for people to tap into. And the one phrase that always really just sings to my heart because there's a truth to it and it's the part of the lyrics where it says: If you want to arrange it, this world, you can change it. If we could, somehow, make this Christmas thing last By helping a neighbor or even a stranger To know who needs help, you need only just ask. This is what happens.
Tim:This this when it talks about, if we could somehow make this Christmas thing last. My experience is the the reference that they're referring to is this sense of hope, sense of believing, sense of possibility and the interesting thing is that often times, maybe not always, but often, when we experience a catastrophic event that displaces or shakes up our world, like a tornado, a hurricane, earthquake, major snowstorm that is a blizzard it really puts people in peril We check our egos oftentimes, hopefully There may be some people that aren't that in touch but for those who are in touch we check our egos. We extend a hand. We offer some guidance. We offer some support.
Tim:It brings humanity closer. I think that's one reason why I really appreciate what Paul did when he wrote these these lyrics and whoever else was working with him or if he just did it all by himself. But, there is a sense of hope. There is a sense of possibility that that comes not only, you know, from music like this, but also the different holidays and seasons that we experience, not not even just Christmas. You know, some people think of birthdays as a, you know, oh, it's it's another day whereas other people, it's like it's a celebration.
Tim:It's another reminder of I bring something unique to this world and it deserves to be considered, respected and honored. And there is a magic that kinda happens, on that Christmas Eve kind of experience for those people who have experienced that. It's you know, it could be other Eves. It doesn't just have to be Christmas, but it could be other Eves that, you know, maybe for a 1st grader going to school for the first time as a 1st grader, maybe the night before are all nervous and excited to go go to school. And then maybe there's some people out there that avoid school.
Tim:Who knows? You know? But there's there's eves that we have these possibilities of when we are operating in hope, when we are playing with possibility. It's not a guarantee, even in this experience of this lyrics, as it talks about this this, you know, angel child or whatever that talked about the girl who was across the street and brought, you know, the bartender to her to help her get to the airport and get headed home. But it's it's having that essence in you of where do you live and appreciate the possibility.
Tim:And I guess maybe one of the questions that's coming up for me right now is we're talking about this or as I'm talking about this because no one else is talking back to me. But the, it it it's the aspect of when you do have hope and possibility, there might be some folks out there that are listening that kind of retract from that. Maybe they, maybe they experienced let down around holidays or birthdays or anniversary days or special days that were meant to be something. And then when they were growing up or may, maybe they didn't have fulfilment, maybe they didn't have joy. Maybe they didn't experience that.
Tim:And so perhaps they don't wanna set themselves up to be let down again, so they don't really give themselves the ability to play with hope, the ability to play with possibility. Because we all have that inner critic. We all have that, you know, that little us that likes to be right about what's not wrong or that or what what's not gonna work. You know? Oh, I should have known it.
Tim:I knew it was gonna be like this. Or and that's why I like to play, and that's what I thought about you know, I might start pulling some lyrics and just saying here, let's instead of, you know, just Tim's Tim's weekly pontificate kind of thing, on just random thoughts, you know, pull apart some the creativity the creativity that goes into this music, the creativity that goes into this lyrics, the the the ripple effect that Paul had with the colleagues that he worked with and how they continue that ripple effect moving forward, inspiring, highlighting, perhaps challenging other souls as they find their way. Because in this one story here, some of our listeners are the girl across the street by the broken pay phone. Some of the listeners are the child because they are angels on this planet and they do see and witness things that the general population doesn't. And some of them might be the bystanders that are in the bar, who are comfortable here but maybe not as aware as they could be.
Tim:Or maybe they're the bartender that has the opportunity to come out further from the bar, to give up all of his cash for the benefit of someone else, and then to return back to his patrons and still celebrate the evening, gifting them this experience of wonder, gifting them this experience of hope and appreciating and being in gratitude, to opening up to that and letting go of whatever any one of these individuals or characters is holding onto. So I just thought this would be fun to share and play with. I hope that you found it entertaining. I hope that it's given you some insight. And who knows?
Tim:Maybe you, became a fan or or are open to going and checking out Trans Siberian Orchestra, some of their music, and they've got stuff online on YouTube. They've got great albums out there. And, just to give them a shout out, every time we see them, they're always spectacular, amazing, gifted professionals. So I wish you well throughout this holiday season. We're gonna keep playing with various kind of things.
Tim:I hope you have a wonderful rest of the day, rest of the week for you. Sending you love, light, passion, compassion, gratitude, and grace for yourself. If you found this useful or or interesting, please share it with someone. If if you can, give us a like, whether you're on Spotify or, Apple Podcasts or whatever platform you're listening on. But until next time, we wish you all the best.
Tim:Have a wonderful, wonderful week.
Tim:Cheers. Thanks for joining me today. If you've resonated with any of the stories or insights shared today, don't forget to hit that subscribe button. Your support means the world, so feel free to share your thoughts using hashtag powerful and unpolished podcast. Until next time, stay powerful, stay unpolished.
