The Power of Art

La Boheme is my favorite opera. If you don't know it, imagine Friends, move it from New York to Paris, and make them all artists and poor. You laugh with them. You cry with them. You love them despite their flaws because they are human and essentially good. That's the strength of Puccini's opera. It's simple and relatable. Besides, there is the music. Sublime.

Great writing, or just good, deserves praise, especially in times of drought. The arts are my solace whether it's an opera off an album or sitcom from TV. They draw my emotion and lift my heart. They restore my own sense of humanity. And when I think more tears would be hard to shed and laughter quite impossible, they prove me wrong. That's the part that is the miracle. That is their strength. By listening, we grow. We become better and more. Joey gets things wrong and we love him all the same. Rodolfo loses Mimi and we ache for him.

Knowing what will happen doesn't dilute the end in great opera, a successful sitcom, or key moments in life. The impact, in fact, increases with each viewing because we know what lies ahead. Being there, we witness and we react. That's the power of art. To keep us coming back, they remind us what it is to be human. And sometimes we need that.