A friend from high school sent me a message through facebook. After the usual small talk, a P.S. was added with a hinted message through a song. After looking up the song on YouTube, I remembered it and it seemed to fit perfectly with what I felt was being said. I’m not claiming to understand completely what was implied through that song dedication but it was fun to search it out and interpret as best I could. The novelty of the communication inspired me to want to respond in kind. Needless to say, I’ve been searching through all kinds of music and have had a heightened awareness to the lyrics of songs. But I haven’t had much success in finding one that fits. First of all, I haven’t really been involved in the music scene for a long time. For 20+ years now my music has been lullabies and nursery rhymes, church hymns or instrumental. I have recently been exposed to my older teen’s music choice, but not a huge selection. Next, most of the songs are all about romantic relationships – love songs. And although I do love this friend dearly, that’s not exactly the message I’d like to communicate at this stage in my life. So I thought I’d find a safe, plutonic friendship song –that hasn’t really worked out well either. I’m considering not even playing the game, but it’s kind of frustrating to know that the perfect message is probably out there. I just haven’t found it yet. Maybe I could write my own song – bad idea. Maybe music just isn’t my thing. I could change the rules and send a secret message through a line from a movie, or maybe literature (although I might be losing common ground when approaching that subject). The truth be known, what I am probably lacking is the creative streak to even have a message worth deciphering. You know, wording it in such a way that it would be understood what to look for without spelling it out completely. I remember asking a guy to a dance in college, by sending him on a scavenger hunt for the words and clues. It was ALOT of work…, and he figured it out way too quickly. I just may not be any good at subtle communications.
I got to thinking about the frequency and use of secret messages. Spies send communication back to their headquarters so that it could not be understood by the untrained mind. Military intelligence attempts to decode encrypted communications from the enemy – so as to interrupt their plans. Artists, Authors, poets, playwrights, and musicians send their message through the medium that speaks to the heart, better than if told through verbal means. Body Language and even verbal intonation have an air of mystery and decoding is necessary, however, probably not as much as the written word through texts, e-mail, and chats. Even the early Christians used the symbol of drawing half a fish in the sand as a non-recognizable way of identifying if it was safe to discuss their beliefs in front of those around them. Probably the most powerful use of this concept was the Savior himself, who taught in parables, symbolism, and multiple level interpretations, so that those who have eyes to see and ears to hear could understand the message He was communicating. On a spiritual plane, the Holy Ghost rarely uses words but communicates instead through our feelings, ideas, dreams, visions, impressions, emotions, and sometimes a still small voice – almost indiscernible. Conversely, the adversary communicates in much the same manner by planting foreign thoughts and untrue ideas into our minds, hoping that we will adopt them as our own and thus establish debilitating beliefs on which all other decisions will be made. Yep, this world has a lot of secret communications.
There’s something exhilarating to finally catch on to the point of a hidden message. I know when an idea all of a sudden comes clear in my mind, it seems so obvious, but for some reason, I just couldn’t see it before. And then I see it everywhere, as if it had been there all along. That’s what is so fascinating about mysteries – everything is usually right there in front of us, but the awareness is limited to what we want to see or are comfortable as being our reality. That reminds me of the dwarves in ‘The Last Battle’ in the Narnia Chronicles. Their eyes were incapable of seeing what was truly around them, because they believed one way and were unwilling to consider another. Their perception of reality was such because they were unwilling to decode the encryption, to read between the lines. I wonder how often I’m guilty of doing a similar thing.
Since part of my life’s mission is about seeking truth – I love clarifying, decoding, and developing a deeper understanding of all that is around me. But how do I work the opposite - communicate without communicating in full? How does one even practice the art of ambiguity (if that is an art)? If there’s an easy answer, I don’t have it.
So what’s the point of all these thoughts about mysterious messages? I really don’t have any idea. But it’s going to be fun trying to figure it out.
