It’s fine…
It’s not fine…
Don’t let them steal the backbeat in the rhythm in your voice.
J Lind’s “Don’t Let Them Steal Your Joy” is a joyful song in the face of criticism, skepticism, and even prejudice.
It doesn’t matter what you do, there will be those who doubt, those who oppose. As often as not, they are projecting their doubts onto you, or are afraid that your success may detract from their own. Their criticisms, their insults, may well be pre-emptive attacks borne out of their own insecurities.
If they’re not saying you’re too young, then they’ll be saying you’re too old. If they aren’t saying that you’re too weak to succeed, then they will say that you are too aggressive. Some folks seem destined to be armchair quarterbacks, and they dedicate themselves to the task.
J Lind’s song is there to guard your spirit from the wet blanket of criticism, to light your fire despite the downpour, to keep you dancing in the rain. “Don’t let them steal your joy.”
In time, you may well silence the critics, and you may even win some of them over. That’s not your concern, though – it is not your task to persuade those, who would pull you into darkness, that they should instead warm to your light. It’s up to them to come to that conclusion. Your only task is to be who you are, to set your standards and your goals, to contribute in the way that you are able and are led to, and to follow the path that is yours.
Find your community, support your community. Do not concern yourself with your detractors.
There may be those in your community who truly do wish to guide you, who have suggestions for you, and who ultimately support you. Those aren’t the ones we’re talking about.
It’s the ones who oppose you or criticize you without really knowing who you are or where your heart is at, those are the ones who you really don’t need to concern yourself with.
Maybe you have some things to say that are new to them, or even things that frighten them, because what you say seems strange to them. Let them be frightened, let them stew. They may, in time, come to understand how you express yourself. It’s not up to you to make that happen. If you stop saying what you need to say, though, they may come to the conclusion that they never really needed to hear it, and they will consider you out of earshot and out of mind.
“Don’t let them steal your joy.” We want to see your dance, to hear your song. “Don’t let them steal the backbeat in the rhythm of your voice.” Put J Lind’s song on loud enough so you can dance to it, so you can sing along, in your room, or the living room, or while washing the dishes.
