I had a really cool experience this last week: I got to be in the band Helmet. For four songs on a Friday night, I was a part of the band that first exposed me to "drop D" tuning. I remember being in 9th grade when my friend Josh first showed me Helmet's "Betty" CD; we would always play either Wilma's Rainbow or Milquetoast as a warm-up song or a sound check song at every show and every practice. Needless to say, when I was asked by my friend Chris if my current band would like to be Helmet for a night and play with Page Hamilton (lead vocalist, guitarist, founder), I jumped all over that opportunity.
The day before the show, I happened to bump into Page at Mammoth Music. He and I spent about 15 minutes talking about music, guitars, pedals, rehearsals, etc. I walked away with a distinct feeling of honor: a very influential guitarist not only gave me the time of day, but spoke to me as a peer, as someone whom he respected. In that moment, I was in the presence of a person of honor and I was receiving validation from him.
You know those name-dropper type of people? Those people who always are talking about this person that they know, or this person that they met? Sometimes I'm afraid that I'm turning into one of those people. I've have some amazing opportunities through music (and sometimes through dumb luck) to meet and hang with some very famous people. I like to share those experiences with my friends and people that I meet, mostly because I like them to be involved in the story. But, I have to admit, sometimes I do it to make myself feel big and feel important. To a certain extent, I think that everybody does this a little bit. In society, there is a pecking order, and we all want to feel like we are important, that we are valuable, that we are deserving of honor. I believe this is one of the fundamental human needs: a feeling of value.
Something I didn't expect happened on that Friday night. When the show was finished, people didn't just crowd around Page Hamilton; people started crowding around me and the other musicians who played with him (a total of 6 different people). In the eyes of the crowd, we were important too! Not as important as Page, obviously, but important nonetheless. I heard comments like, "I'm so stinking jealous of you right now!" or "You did an amazing job!" or "How did you get to do this gig?" Because Page Hamilton is deserving of honor, I received that same honor, albeit in lesser amounts. People were coming to me of all people to receive their little piece of validation, of recognition. I wonder if on Saturday, people were telling their friends, "I got to meet the guy who played guitar with Page Hamilton!" Totally. Weird.
In the scriptures, on of the Psalmists wrote a song that says "For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor." (Psalm 84:11) Essentially, the writer is saying that it is better to be in the presence of God's greatness than to be anywhere else, and that because of his relationship with God, it brings him honor and favor. Pretend like someone offered you a job at the White House cleaning the windows. It didn't pay a ton, but you would be in the presence of the President, the cabinet members, and maybe even Bono (who was there for a very important meeting with government leaders). You would take that job, wouldn't you? You would love the opportunity just to meet these famous people, to gain a little bit of the honor, respect and value that is associated with them.
I submit to you that the only honor worth really caring about is the honor that comes from being a part of God's family. All human honor and respect will fade away with the seasons (Helmet is not as popular currently as they were in the 90's...sorry!), and human honor always looks to put somebody else down in an attempt to elevate self. With God, however, there is always room for honor, there is always a place at the table with the King of all the other kings and rulers. People's opinions are fickle and change with your successes and failures; God's opinion of you is based on your worth and value as a human being, as His creation. Don't spend too much time worrying about what people think of you, but remember that God is the one who gives lasting honor.
But, if you get the chance to hang with celebrities, you should totally do it because it gives you something good to put on your blog...
