三月八號, 2018, 我正準備出門去探訪一位正住醫院的朋友Connie, 但突然間有一個衝動想回頭帶埋一支結他一齊出發.
我還記得那一個appointment 需要很多心力氣力才能約到她(有很多朋友和家人探望他, 大部份朋友必須先預約!)
有一支結他在我身上, Connie 立即以為我會開始唱歌. "我瞓係度聽你唱, 我依家應該冇氣唱." (當時我正正知道這只不過是一個藉口. 在醫院病床上突然唱歌真係有啲尷尬...)
原本我沒有任何的計劃, 只不過希望這天結他會在適合的時間和地點發動他的 "magic power". 突然間靈光一閃, 我隨意地, 預算她應該會給我一個負面答案地問她 "你想唔想試吓寫歌?"
她的面好像發了光一樣, 完全沒有猶豫地回應 "好啊, 點解唔得啫.....但係點寫呢?"
長話短說, 短短五分鐘之內, 我們已經開始寫第一首歌, 一首能夠捕捉到她那天醫院裏做CT Scan 的情況和情緒.
我十分驚訝地看着她的靈感從手指頭上在電話上打出來, 而我也急忙地用她即興的歌詞創造旋律和弦配合. 二十分鐘內, Connie 的主打歌已經完成. 我們的笑聲觸發其他病人好奇的目光.
Freedom Comes
Am
What a day?
C
What a day?
G F Am
Drinking 8 glasses of water within 45 mins today!!!????
Am C
Ridiculously, you can’t pee…
G Am
You can’t pee…….. Right away!!!
Am
Hold it up!
C G Am
Hold it up!! Pressure innnnnn... my butt!
Am C G F
Do you know how I truly feel when you tell me to hold it up!!!???
Am C G F
Freedom comes, freedom comes...when I could let it go release it all at once.
Am C
Freedom comes, freedom comes,
F G Am
Felt like you blew it but indeed you have been set free...ahhh!!!(Relieved)
這個就是我最喜歡去收集的 "magic moment"- 人能夠突然間由一個很被動的狀態轉變成為一個"活生生", "真我" 的狀態.
"Freedoms Comes" 記錄了一個連續了三個月, 隨意的音樂創作旅程. 雖然Connie 的身體狀況令她需要依靠氧氣管, 有些時候不同大少身體的痛楚會作成每日的挑戰. 但是她的創意和創作能力和速度超越了她的身體狀況, 不停地令我吃驚.
在這個癌病病房裏, 每一個星期我們在她病床邊一起完成1-2首歌. 好像他只需要"禁一粒制"就能夠下載所有靈感變成歌詞. 她只需要大約一個小時就能完成一首歌的歌詞. 而我就會將完成的作品回家配上旋律和編曲.
Connie, 沒有人會能夠在她身邊感覺無聊, 她的幽默感能夠轉化任何談話, 字也可以用來「玩」而捕捉內容精粹.
她的故事濃縮了在這十一首歌裏, 傳述了不同的人生經歷-由她的幽默, 友情, 親情, 自我價值觀, 信心, 疑惑, 希望, 人生方向和喜怒哀樂都一一以歌曲型色記錄下來. 這些音樂就成為了她遺留下來的傳奇, 感染心靈, 觸動其他人也一同去思考獨特的人生歷程.
On March 8th, 2018 I was just getting ready to step out to visit Connie at the hospital, a sudden urge came to me to turn back and grab my travel guitar before dashing out of the door.
I still remember it was quite an effort to make an "official appointment" with Connie (she had many friends and family queued up to visit her, you need to book a "slot" on specific day and time) and even at the last minute when I was nearly there I got her call saying she has some other visitor and I should arrive a bit later or go to her another day.
With a guitar with me, Connie immediately assumed that we were gonna do some worship right away. "I'm gonna sit back and relax and you sing for me, I don't think I have enough breath to sing now." (which I know it was an excuse of being embarrassed to sing in a random setting)
Originally I had no agenda for the night, simply bringing out the guitar hoping for the right moment to unleash the power of music in the hospital room. A flash of idea came up and I asked casually without expecting a positive answer "Would you like to try songwriting?"
I saw her face light up, her playfulness immediately jumped out of her. Without any hesitation she replied "Why not? Let's do it!!!!!! But...how?"
Long story short, within 5mins we were already writing our first ever song, a song that totally captures her playfulness and humour despite the situation. She had just finished a CT scan and wanted to use a song to capture the moment.
I was in shock to witness her creative ideas automatically flowing out onto her fingers typing out the lyrics on her phone while I tried to catch up with her speed improvising a melody line and guitar accompaniment to go with her lyrics. Within 20 mins connie's first hits 主打歌 is already completed. Our laughter were contagious triggering curious eyes around the room.
Freedom Comes
Am
What a day?
C
What a day?
G F Am
Drinking 8 glasses of water within 45 mins today!!!????
Am C
Ridiculously, you can’t pee…
G Am
You can’t pee…….. Right away!!!
Am
Hold it up!
C G Am
Hold it up!! Pressure innnnnn... my butt!
Am C G F
Do you know how I truly feel when you tell me to hold it up!!!???
Am C G F
Freedom comes, freedom comes...when I could let it go release it all at once.
Am C
Freedom comes, freedom comes,
F G Am
Felt like you blew it but indeed you have been set free...ahhh!!!(Relieved)
These are the magic moments I love capturing- of someone suddenly transition from an inactive/passive mood state to becoming fully themselves and fully alive in that present moment with music.
"Freedom comes" marked our beginning of a spontaneous songwriting project we worked together for two months from March to April.
Her physical condition causing her to be relying on oxygen tube, at times the pain in her body causing her different challenges. Yet the speed of her creativity and productivity were unparalleled to her condition and never eased to amaze me. Every week we produced 1-2 songs right on the spot next to her bed in the oncology ward. As if she just pressed a button and downloaded all her inspirations automatically, it took on average one hour for her to finish writing up each song's lyrics. I would then take her completed lyrics written in lighting speed and initial melodic ideas to turn them into a song with arrangement at home on the same day.
Connie, one can never feel bored for a single moment around her, she has this sense of humor in her to transform any conversations into a subtle, hilarious joke that fully capture the essence and the emotions with her play of word.
Her personal stories and testimonies were condensed in song format-each song retelling her humor, friendship, identity, doubt, faith, hope, family, worship and direction. She has written a total of 11 songs' lyrics during our time together which are part of the legacy she left behind, continuing to inspire whoever come across these songs to walk this journey of faith she had been through.
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