Adventures with Star, Part One

I have always loved rabbits. Since the age of four, rabbits were the main subject of all my drawings. I remember one time when I was five years old, I enlightened a few of my peers on how to draw a rabbit during my Sunday School class, and I felt proud of my abilities. I wanted to have my own pet rabbit so immensely that sometimes it was the only thing I could think about. I remember often sighing as I had daydreams of holding a rabbit in my arms, wishing it would become a reality.

Then, for Christmas when I was eight years old, I received a baby rabbit. I was ecstatic. The rabbit was all black except for a white spot on her nose. She was so tiny that I could easily fit her in the palms of both of my hands. I had never had a pet before in my life, so I was scared to hold her at first. When I first held her, she became very scared and scratched me. I cried and vowed that I would only hold her while wearing long sleeves and jeans, but I soon developed a sense of how she wanted to be held and how she became comfortable.

My siblings and I had a debate about what her name would be, and we soon settled on the name “Star.” We figured that since she was all black except for the white spot on her nose, she resembled a dark night with a lone star shining brightly. Lone stars are usually the best view that we have in Houston any given night anyway, so we found it fitting.

I fell in love with Star. She became one of the greatest joys in my life. Most young girls I knew were obsessed with toys such as Barbies, but I had no interest in those things at all. Star was my world. Ruth, an elderly neighbor, gave me two handbooks about rabbits, so I studied them diligently. I learned the best kinds of foods to give rabbits, and I experimented with Star to see which foods were her favorites: tomatoes, parsley, and chocolate. I found out about her craze for chocolate when I discovered a half-eaten chocolate Easter bunny under my bed one year. I learned all about their habits, and I spent so much time with Star, that I became quite adept at recognizing what she desired and felt when I was with her. My siblings always complained because Star would nip them. But I always scoffed at them and said, “Well of course she did! Don’t you realize that you picked her up in the completely wrong way?” They never seemed to understand.

At first, I kept Star in a cage inside. But one beautiful spring day, I decided I would take her in our backyard and let her enjoy the freshness of the grass and plants. Star had a blast. So I increased her outings over the weeks, and my dad eventually built a cage for her outside. So Star moved outside. Every day, I would diligently take her out of her cage and let her roam around the yard, and then I would bring her back in at night.

But one day I forgot to put her back in her cage. I ran outside calling her name, horrified and convinced that I had left her to her death by neighborhood cats.  [To be continued…]

Classical vs. Modern - A Question of Communication

I used to hate most things “modern.” My parents raised me to appreciate all things classical: music, art, architecture, dance, poetry, etc. I looked on things such as rap, modern art, and modernist architecture with utmost disgust and wondered how anybody could like such a thing. I was perplexed and thought that perhaps a large chunk of the population just missed the point. Couldn’t they tell that classical music was better composed? Couldn’t they tell that classical art and architecture were “more artistic”?

It has taken me many years and many more conversations with all kinds of people who have different tastes than I have to help me expand my understanding of music, art, and architecture. I used to think that rappers weren’t as talented. And I thought that people whose art was modern just didn’t have the skills either. But today, I finally made a connection. I was listening to Twenty-One Pilots’ “Taxi Cabs,” which combines a variety of musical styles, including rap, into a unique composition that I think exemplifies the style of Twenty-One Pilots. It was in that moment of transition between rap and the rest of the song that I realized why people enjoy it. Twenty-One Pilots understands the character of music, and they choose to express it in their own way. In the same way that Picasso was able to paint realistically (and well), I think that Twenty-One Pilots would be able to perform music that I think is more “talented” or “skilled.” And just like Picasso, they choose to not express it in that way.

I personally enjoy classical music more than modern music, but I now know that it is because the way I communicate my feelings and thoughts matches more with “classical” styles. People who enjoy modern music relate to that music in a similar way that I connect with my music. Understanding music, art, and architecture in terms of how people communicate gives me appreciation for practically all forms and has helped me to be able to in turn relate to other people better.

I’ve noticed that people are extremely touchy when it comes to certain subjects: music and art (and religion, but that calls for a different discussion). Disregarding one type of music in my mind usually lends to me disregarding an entire group of people who identify with that music. So it really is foolish of me to completely throw away music and art that I may not understand. Perhaps others who I know will tell me their opinions about music and art that are pleasing to them, and that will be a venue for me to better comprehend who they are individually.

Today, I still identify my taste in music, art, and architecture closer to the “classical” side, but I no longer hate anything modern. Just like they are able to appreciate the classical and still choose to express themselves in a different way, I am able to understand the modern and express myself in my style.