When Scientists talk about love

It is mystery. Stop trying to figure it out. Stop it.

But We're Actually Doing Just Fine

Among the other upward swoops are these. People are living longer and healthier lives, not just in the developed world but globally. A dozen infectious and parasitic diseases are extinct or moribund. Vastly more children are going to school and learning to read. Extreme poverty has fallen worldwide from 85 to 10 percent. Despite local setbacks, the world is more democratic than ever. Women are better educated, marrying later, earning more, and in more positions of power and influence. Racial prejudice and hate crimes have decreased since data were first recorded. The world is even getting smarter: In every country, IQ has been increasing by three points a decade.

Steven Pinker, Human Progress Quantified

The whole thing is worth a read.

SHE SHREDS

There is a new-ish magazine available called She Shreds. It is important. Here's why:

This photo snapped by one of our readers was one of the best things that happened in 2015 for us and well, maybe even the guitar industry as a whole in terms of cultural redefining. Not only did it create a huge amount of national conversations but it helped us and a lot of others understand how exclusivity has pushed women out of guitar culture and why inclusivity needs to be what we strive for and head towards. #sheshreds #sheshredsmag #inclusivity #guitar #guitarculture #guitarworld #redefine #reinvent #shift #movement

A photo posted by She Shreds Magazine (@sheshredsmag) on Dec 31, 2015 at 1:46pm PST

I remember being a teenager and trying to explain to other teenagers why more girls don't play guitar. It was relevant at the time because I was leading and playing in worship bands in churches and almost every permutation of every band was the same: boys on drums and guitars, girls on vocals (and keys were the gender wildcard). I was annoyed.

My reductive theory was this:

We subconsciously do things based on what we think will make us more attractive.
Girls are attracted to talent.
Boys are attracted to looks.
Obviously, developing a talent (playing the guitar, for instance) takes time and energy.
Spoiler: being pretty takes time and energy, too.
There are only so many hours in a day.

There were, of course, a lot of other reasons (precedent, culture, etc) but this was my best shot at trying to work it out.

Ten years later, change is afoot.

 

"Be a good steward of your gifts. Protect your time. Feed your inner life. Avoid too much noise. Read good books, have good sentences in your ears. Be by yourself as often as you can. Walk. Take the phone off the hook. Work regular hours."

Jane Kenyon

2015 In Review

In northern Portugal, at a lavender farm on the side of a winding ridge, after the first bottle of wine and before the second, I looked up and saw a shooting star.

There was real magic inside that tiny second.