As I sit in my office waiting to see my next patient, I hear the sounds of a young boy’s guitar strumming classical tunes like, ‘Blackbird’, ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and ‘Hotel California’ and I’m immediately transported to a place in time that feels light, airy, and even magical. I associate this vibe or feeling with the way I felt the first time I came to California at the age of 10. I was a bright-eyed, impressionable young girl from Georgia, traveling with my mother who was on a teacher recruiting trip. I was drawn to the sights of my childhood I’d seen so many times in sitcoms and movies. I loved seeing people expressing who they were in the latest fashions I’d seen only in magazines on Melrose Ave. I was thrilled by the exotic cars whirring by down Sunset Boulevard. I loved the smells of the eucalyptus trees in the canyons and the saltair juxtaposed next to the bustle of the city. I felt all my senses coming alive in this place. Everyone seemed happy to be chasing some sort of dream that was constantly being dangled in front of them but yet just out of reach enough to challenge their determination. I knew then that I would one day call this land my home. It just felt right in my soul.
This magical vibe I am feeling once again, that makes you want to express any sort of creative bone in your body, was placed here long before me by the free spirits, dreamers, and soul seekers who have called this land home. They too were lured by the intrigue of the city and landscape and all it seemed to possess.
These vibes beckon to those along the same path, and if you feel it, it never leaves you, it just continues to inspire you in waves just as if you were gonna take your last breath and give up, but suddenly you get a second wind and are able to feel a renewed sense of purpose again.
I felt that vibe again today as I let the music from a time gone by permeate my soul, breathing new life and inspiration into my mind and heart. I know that I made the right decision in making my home here in Los Angeles, the land of dreams. I’m feeling grateful to those that came before me, honoring the stirrings of their soul and placing these magical vibrations into the air for those to come after them to feel and allow to infuse us.
“There’s Gold in Them Thar Hills”
What is it about California, in particular, Los Angeles, that brings those looking to fulfill their dreams here in the first place? The answer is simple…GOLD! It all started with the promise of wealth and it continues its flashy appeal for those that are willing to unearth its hidden treasures. In the process of obtaining this wealth the city forces you to use every gift and talent you have to unlock its secrets.
“California is a place of invention, a place of courage, a place of vision, a place of the future. People who made California what it is were willing to take risks, think outside convention and build.”
-Nicolas Berggruen
Los Angeles, the City of Angels, has a unique vibration that you either love or hate. I love it, always have and always will. For me, this city is a like a mirror that reflects back to you the vibration you are putting into it. It shows you your true nature, shadows, light and all. I’m proud to say I live in the ‘City of Angels’ and I’m glad to see that the light, airy, vibrations that were started long ago with settlers seeking a new life they could call their own still fill the air and inspire those of the younger generation.
Its important to pay homage to our ancestors that have come before us, because they were the pioneers who paved the way for us to express ourselves and use our talents in ways that wouldn’t be possible without the work they did and the vibes they brought to the land so many dreamers and artists continue to call home.