M@nuScr1pt

And I hope that time doesn't pass us by. . .  Do you take the opportunities that come your way? There are always things that happen across your path when you least expect.  Life plants people in your path who show you new and interesting experiences that you never really consider.  There might be hidden talents that you have had buried within you for so long, things that you did once upon a time, or did during times when pressures didn't seem to rule your every waking moment.  Those times when time was not an issue and how you chose to do things planned out just right, or worked itself out purely by accident.  Do you have friends who are like that?  You make copious plans and things never quite stick?  But the last minute plans always win out every. single. time. It took a lot to introduce myself I had to put my heart up on the shelf I didn't know that it could be so hard When you come across new people and you are having conversations, you h...

I'm okay alone It makes my soul stir Under microscopes Keep my head in the dirt I've always had a strong affinity for singer songwriters.  I came across this track while watching the movie Dude starring my new favourite quartet of friends  Lucy Hale, Kathryn Prescott, Alexandra Shipp and Awkwafina.   There is another song from the film that I was intrigued with, but I'll talk about that in another future blog post.  The idea that is constant in the film is being able to spend time with friends because you won't have them for long - and there are a few incidents that happen in the film that bring about trauma on so many different levels for its band of female sheroes.  What makes your soul stir?  Is it something that people will never be able to see?  We don't usually require an audience.  Especially if we are alone too.  Who is keeping you under the microscope?  Who wants to keep your head in the dirt?  We never really know or ...

Cause I'll be standing on the side. . .  Everybody's a thing But some don't know how to handle it Always reachin' out in vain Just taking the things not worth having but Who's the thing in your life? There will be things that persist in being a problem in your life but it's up to you to figure out how to cope with all of that.  Problems persist because they require your attention.  So what type of attention will you pay to it?  Are you reaching out in vain to things that you don't need to be reaching out for?  You try to tell yourself that you don't need anybody or anything in your life - but the sad fact is that yes, humans require other human contact.  You just ration how much of it you need to have around you - whatever your comfort level will allow.  What do you need to know in order to handle your business?  Sometimes all it needs is one swift sharp action that will put a stop to anything resurfacing again.  Once you figure out ...

I want to be mad with courage, lost in living. . .  Listen to the song on Spotify - search for Mahinarangi Tocker When I grow up I want to be a rock and roll star  Dance me around the living room When I grow up I want to be an All Black  Chasing play and running for you When I grow up I want to be a model  Challenge conversation and catwalk talk When I grow up I want to be a singer  Or an actor, a singer or a writer of something new What did you want to be when you grow up? We might remember the past memories of scenes played out with dolls or action figures, because we were influenced by something that we were fascinated with.  There might have been people in our families or family friends that we knew who worked in jobs that we thought were pretty cool.  We might have wanted to be completely unsuitable things like superheroes or astronauts, things that we believed had no limits or restrictions, things that we forget about until we actua...

Keep my (eyes from) closing. . .  Bound to this lonely road You gave me hope, gave me hope Woke my drifting soul And led me home, led me home I'm not very familiar with this song, but I've had it sitting in my drafts folder of my Spotify playlist for just over a month.  I've only just started listening to it again today and it's been haunting me ever since.  The music itself reminds me a little bit of Alicia Keys' "Unthinkable" with the rhythmic feel, albeit it's a bit slower, but the momentum feels the same to me, more so harmony wise when the chorus hits.   Adele's "Send my love (to your new lover) is another song that springs to mind when I hear this particular track.  Saying all this doesn't detract though from the brilliance of this song though.  I'm just acknowledging that the great thing about good music is that it can help you to make connections to other songs. Won't you just stay here Chase away my fe...

Let every moment shine. . .  We hold on There is no need to cry We stay strong Belie ve me when I say The sun will rise again What are you holding on to? It can be easy to give up on yourself when everyone else already has. But that's the thing about self esteem isn't it, to have the strength to rely on yourself, and believe that all of the things that you're good at, all of the talents that you have have a purpose, have a path that needs to be pursued.  Difficulties strike when you least expect and rather than sink into the floor because you get taken down, it takes immense strength to stand back up again.  People you might have relied on in the past, will no longer be able to do so  now.  The sun may have set on those connections, but the sun will rise again. . .  Now I know the journey of life Has not been a walk in the park I know you're feeling like you're alone in the dark But trust me when I say Tomorrow is another day To just be yo...

But don't take your eyes off the road. . .  You took my heart And gave it a home We made it through the aching parts And I gave you my soul Oh we tried to kill the pain And heal these scars But now love has had its say And we're moving apart I came across this song purely by accident. I was watching Jay Z's instalment of "My next guest needs no introduction" with David Letterman and this song was featured in Shangri La Studios recording.  Dave was really surprised when she went to go and record the vocal that she stayed seated where she was where they had only just chatted a few minutes earlier.  I think sometimes you can forget as a performer how enthralled people can become when they see you perform for the first time or see you in your element.  They can never truly understand what goes on in your head when that happens.  It just isn't meant to be understood. Apart from David having a heart to heart with Jay Z about infidelity, that didn't...

So why don't we go. . .  I walked across an empty land I knew the pathway like the back of my hand I felt the earth beneath my feet Sat by the river and it made me complete There is comfort in knowing where you are going, knowing where you are heading. That sense of familiarity brings you confidence that you can't shake because there is no doubt. When you go to cross those empty lands, what things are running through your mind?  Do you think about what was there before? Why is that land empty now?  There must have been some things that existed there for you to be able to recognise empty land without its landmarks.  When you feel the earth beneath your feet, are you feeling its texture and how your feet respond to being planted there?  Sitting by the river, you might be aware of the sound that the water makes as it brushes against the river's edges.  Depending on what type of river it is, the flow of that river may reflect what you are feeling insi...

And child of mine. . .  They come to see the fire burning in your heart They want to witness, this love from the start What fire do you have burning in your heart? Is it the kind of fire that if you shared would cause other hearts to burn too? You might be surrounded by people who don't have hearts that burn, and don't know how to ignite those fires.  It might be because you've had to hide your fire for so long.  It might be because you've been with people who don't know what to do with that fire, or they've been trying to extinguish it.  For those who want to witness what you have in your heart, to see what constitutes as love, what you have to offer - will you be willing to share?  It takes time doesn't it.  You might not want to show people what's really in your heart because they won't understand, they might try to steal what's in your heart or make you stop believing in how much love is important for you to share. They hear you whe...