Some people have amazing stories. The people who rise above the worst of circumstances are the ones we remember. Take, for example, Corrie Ten Boom. She was a Dutch woman who, with the aid of her family, helped many Jews escape the Nazis during the Holocaust. Obviously, that wasn’t an easy task, especially since she herself was sent to a concentration camp, where her sister died. Despite that, she continued philanthropy after being released, aiding mentally ill refugees escaping imprisonment and establishing a rehabilitation center after the war.
Her story just makes you go, wow. What a legacy, right? Few people leave this life with that kind of resume. That’s usually because most of us don’t encounter that kind of adversity in our lives (thank goodness.) Extraordinary times call for extraordinary people.
Something I value most in myself is integrity. If I can come out of a situation with my integrity still intact, I consider it a win, even if the situation didn’t turn out in my favor. Since I’m a fallible human, I don’t always escape with all my integrity. Sometimes my integrity is weak or faulty, and I don’t come out of it unscathed. But it’s my philosophy that the more you face adversity, the stronger you become, if you decide to learn from it.
Day 16: The Brightest Stars – Rogue Valley
Though my music tastes have diversified in the last few years, I still like a good bluegrass, folksy tune. That’s where Rogue Valley comes in. They are Americana to a T. Their most recent release, Radiate/Dissolve, has a lot of flavors you would expect from Fleetwood Mac or America. It’s what I like to call good driving music.
Rogue Valley, as their name might suggest, get a lot of inspiration from nature, specifically the landscape of America. Their last four albums all centered around different seasons and geographies. Radiate/Dissolve to me seems a bit more cosmic in its execution. Many of the songs reference planets, solar systems, and in this case, stars.
Talk is easy when you’re lookin towards the mornin
The brightest stars are set in the bleakest nights
As the opening track of the album, “The Brightest Stars” sets us up well. It’s a little bit of a tiny fable – it’s easy to see when it’s bright. Not so much when it’s dark outside.
Old suns long burned through
The ghostly choir sings their tune
Whispering songs set deep in the bleakest night
You’re probably getting a feel for how much nature imagery they use. It’s a lot. But it works. Rogue Valley is bringing us to a dark place, but not without hope. You can hear it in the vocal rise used in the last line. After the first verse, vocalist Chris Koza simply repeats one word: “Radiate.” I mean, if your album is called Radiate/Dissolve, it only makes sense. Especially in a song about bright stars that radiate light.
a woman walks alone
long black hair
and eyes of stonewhispering songs
set deep in the
darkest nights
Rogue Valley also finds inspiration in folklore. I did some digging to see if I could figure out if this was a legend of some sort, but I didn’t find anything (if you know folktales better than me, knock yourself out.)
The message remains the same, however. Our true “light” will only be shown when things are at their darkest. Integrity, after all, is what a man does in the dark. Similarly, when we are traveling through darkness, the things we value will light the way. You may even be lighting the way for other people.
Audrey D. DeBoer 