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Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Since 1996 |
Your Gateway to Music and More from a Christian Perspective Slow down as you approach the gate, and have your change ready.... |
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Single Serving by psychologist, Dr. Bruce L. Thiessen, aka Dr. BLT: A biblically-based, psychoSONGanalysis of the song/music video, When I'm Gone: by rap artists, Eminem As a prelude to the review presented below, hear/download this free one-song "soundtrack": When You're Gone (My reply
to Eminem's When I'm Gone)
Have you ever loved someone so much you'd give an arm for?While other rappers are busy getting rich (or dying trying) by hiding their true selves, presenting a false persona, and rapping about nothing, at least nothing of substance, Eminem is becoming the paragon of authenticity. In his latest song and in his latest corresponding music video, he is about as transparent, about as personal, and about as deep as a person can be. When I'm Gone latest deftly depicts a struggle many men have come to know: the struggle between family ties and a fiercely passionate drive to carve out a legacy for themselves. The agony inherent in this internal conflict is brilliantly portrayed in both the song and the video. In the video, Eminem appears to be just one of the "addicts" in an NA/AA-type group. Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous are based upon the Jungian notion that lives are transformed by telling ones story and revealing oneself in a group that supports its members holds them accountable. In this group, Eminem steps up to a mic he is much less familiar with than the typical stage mic. He bears his soul to the group, and in the process, makes amends to his daughter, Hallie, and to his wife, Kim. If there was a one-song "soundtrack" to the recent ceremony in which Eminem and his heretofore estranged wife, Kim renewed their wedding vows, this would have to be it. It is as poignant and revealing as a song can possibly be. But what happens when karma turns right around and bites youI held my baby daughter as I saw Eminem's new music video for When I'm Gone, and when I saw the look on Eminem's daughter Hailie's face as he left her for the rigors of the road, it made me never want to stray to far, or be so physically or emotionally distant that it causes her as much pain as Eminem's frequent, prolonged departures have apparently caused his wife and daughter. It caused me never to want to see that same look in my wife's face either. Moreover, if you look at the expression in Eminem's face in the video, you can tell that he shares their pain, and deeply regrets not being there for his family. I never want that expression to appear on my face either. This is a song for both men and women. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to my patients as a therapeutic tool, or to recommend it to any man or woman feeling the effects of this family/ambition struggle. The song, and the video can benefit men by helping them clarify their values, helping them to put their lives in the proper perspective, and helping them to get their priorities in order. The song can also help women appreciate the painful struggle that men go through. Of course, women are not necessarily strangers to ambition, and many women who have a passion for their work find themselves caught up in the same struggle. As a way to illustrate this very point, allow me to introduce another Eminem, or, to be more precise, another M&M. The story of Mary and Martha is a story of the struggle between task-orientation, and process-orientation. In this New Testament story, Jesus rewards the behavior of one of these women over the other. This is where your homework assignment comes in. What I'd like you to read the following story of M&M (Mary and Martha): INTERACTIVE SINGLE SONG ACTIVITY Luke 10:38-42 (King James
Version)
38 Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.Answer the questions below, then cut, paste and email your answers to drblt@drblt.com for another free mp3: 1.
What side of Eminem's struggle does Mary represent?
5.
Are you most like Mary or most like Martha in the way you live your life?
Once again, cut/paste and
email your replies to drblt@drblt.com for an additional free mp3.
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