Additional…

Hello All. I hope you are having an enjoyable week thus far. I am writing to share with you the latest “goings ons" in my life.

It has been a productive time since my last entry. I am making a shift in my life that involves a complete revamp of myself and what I am committed to in this life. For this reason, I am calling it a “rebirth” of sorts.

Many of you know me to be a musician and artist, among other things. These qualities have not changed. However, my focus and attention is what is shifting.

I have been known to “cling” to dreams. Dreams that get me nowhere. Many of you know of a few of these dreams. Well, I have found that clinging to anything that involves questionable affiliations can undermine what I set out to do in this life. Now, it is true that no one can take away your freedom and independence; however, I’m the one who spent time in a jail pod wondering the entire time, practically, what to do with the rest of my life.

Well, years have passed since that time in jail. And now, I am believing once again, after many many years, that the “world is my oyster.” I haven’t felt this way, in some respects, since the breakdown I experienced freshman year of college.

I’m back. I’m healthy. And, I have a fresh outlook soon life to share with anyone interested. Amen.

That said, I am letting you guys know that the quartet dream is over and a new path has been forged. This path, as it stands, is more of a foundation from which to grow on a daily basis.

I was writing in my journal today, once again, that I “would rather” go a direction separate from the individuals in that dream quartet. I would rather embark on my own career path that involves recitals, teaching and the other creative areas that I excel with.

“Would rather” is a funny and interesting conjunction. It contains a comparison of two different ideas or thoughts, but nonetheless leads to a tipping point, if you will, of intention and preference.

I have been toying with the “would rather” idea in my journal for what feels like a number of years.

I can explain further. I began the quartet dream when I was in school at the Cleveland Institute of Music. At that young age, I thought I had hit the jackpot with this dream, among other dreams as well. Well, twenty-plus years later that dream has not happened. The good news is that I continued to play and grow in music and other areas of my life. So, today, it feels, I can take away that dream and utilize those areas of growth to propel myself into a new direction. Which, by the way, I am doing.

“Would rather”, some would say is not a good tool, because of the act of comparing. I disagree. When looking at it as a new dream taking the place of a dream that never happened, it seems to make more sense. Also, it should be noted that in recent years, I was bouncing back and forth between the old quartet dream and what I “would rather” do.

Here I would like to say, that the old quartet dream was so attractive because of the quality of players involved in the dream. We knew each other reasonably well in college and sight-read music together on a number of occasions. I felt that as a group, we could be able to conquer anything and be very successful as an ensemble. However, in recent years, I have been able to determine that my best interests are not their own. For this reason alone, we cannot work together.

It has been years since seeing each other in person. But, I can say, I care not whether I ever see them again. You could say, I am burning a bridge, but that it is for my best interests. Amen.

So, here I am with all of these talents and gifts at my fingertips. What will come? This questionable I have been asking myself for a while. Amen.

Well, this website is being revamped as we speak to offer my gifts to those interested in sharing. These gifts include playing violin and viola, song-writing, teaching music, making art and creating art cards. Etc. These gifts are my new home and my approach to life every day. With them I will forge my path, thankful for each moment I am given to share the love of life I feel with anyone who comes along.

There is a saying I would like to live by, which is, “give all to all”. That has become my motto. Thank you for being there and maybe we can share love one day. Amen.

Love,

Travis Galbraith