LISTEN AND FEEL

I amble through the double doorway,
Smells and sounds overpower and, for a moment, control me.
The fragrance of coffee emerges from the multitude,
Cheap, styrofoam cups with plastic lids, quenching the sipper’s desire.
All gaze upon a corner of the room, unseeing,
I gaze upon that corner of the room, unseeing,
Rather, we feel a smooth, pulsing rhythm.

I seat myself and am immersed,
My brain ceases to think, but begins to feel.
A saxophone solo, rising in scales and arpeggios,
A trumpet solo, piercing my ears and dominating,
A piano chord, framing solitary lines,
A bass line, adding structure and creating a base,
A drum rhythm, adding time and precision,
Merge to form one harmonious entity.

I look upon each of these rhythms,
I listen to each of these students,
I look upon the whole, and I listen to the whole,
Yet I cannot find greater satisfaction in any one.
These solos end, the melody resumes.

In that single moment after the final held note,
I speak to all in that room,
They speak each to me;
We decide ! to applaud.

- Yoshi Fujita