I’ve always loved John Mayer. Loved him. But listening to the chorus of this song, my jaw dropped and I was looking around at the people around me like DID YOU HEAR THAT?! And of course, all I got (at most), was a series of yeah, good song, yup. Not exactly the response I had. The chorus of this song, is amazing for lack of a better word. It puts “it” into words and threads it into a melody that people sing without even realizing what they’re saying! Because the chorus to this song, from the lips of John (the Savior) Mayer, has given me hope. And for that 10 seconds of chorus, made me feel as though, I’m not alone. Heart of Life by John Mayer.

Pain throws your heart to the ground. What a simple yet, avid description. I picture a person, (you, myself, anyone) frustrated and they sling their arm back and whip whatever they have in their hand to the ground. And what John is saying is that, that item in their hand is your heart. Imagine that, your red, pumping heart, turgor with feelings and emotions, thrown with only the strength frustration can muster to the hard concrete ground. That’s painful. That’s why when you’re sad, truly sad, heartbroken, misunderstood, mourning, lost, alone, it’s painful. Someone, or something has thrown your heart to the ground. Without getting too personal, I can remember a time a felt like this. Some may laugh or scoff, but it is the truth that I felt my heart thrown to the ground during Dear John. Not because of the sad, tragic love story. No, no. It was the character of the father. The tragedy that is his life. Like when he says, “I made lasagna” and John goes, “I know you did, Dad, it’s Sunday.” My heart hit the concrete. And it goes without saying that the tears came. Sobs that wretched out of the core of your body and that shook me all over. My shoulders quaking in their slumped over position. My stomach filled with the kind of nausea that is so uncomfortable it verges on pain. And my leg was jiggling because with all of this pent up energy, pain and sadness inside of me, I didn’t know what to do with myself.

Love turns the whole thing around. When John said this I was like “Oh thank God, it’s not just me”. Because I’ve always found it so embarassing that even in the darkest of my stages, the right person, saying the right thing, I could probably smile. He could probably make me sit up. She could probably banish my tears. And I’ve always felt like such a poseur for feeling this. Like, wow those dark, doomed feelings you have must not really be THAT bad if he/she can pull you out of it. But John helped show me that this is not true. It’s just the power of love. Like love is this person that runs over and picks your heart up off the concrete. Picks off the pieces of gravel that stuck themselves to it, dusts it off, blows the hurt away, and just holds it there in their warm palm before they decide to give it back to you. That’s love. And the Beatle’s were right, all we need is love. There would never be a reason to stop smilling, laughing or being happy if there was always love surrounding you. If every person just gave a little bit. Give a little bit of your love to me. Well, then maybe the world would realize that love is all you need.

No, it won’t all go the way it should. John, always the realist. Just reminding us that life is no Utopia and we don’t live in the Garden of Eden. That the bumps in the road ahead of us will be good and plenty. Nails coming out of the woodwork to trip you, make you fall off course for a little bit.

But I know the heart of life is good. That there my friends, is the line, that gave me hope. Because even when you’re feeling lost and alone and standing at a crossroads, alone in the rain, with your dirty, bent out of shape, heart in your hand and you don’t know where to go, you don’t know why you’re here, just know the heart of life is good. Wow. How do you say anything other than WOW to that. Like, you just put it in words John and ran with it. No, life is not a fairytale. But I do believe in happy endings because the heart of life is good. Life did not show up and take you to make you miserable. You are given a purpose. You are here for a reason. Life had good intentions bringing you here. Whether you took those good intentions and shot them to hell, well, that’s up to you. But my good friend, John and I’m sure the Beatles would agree, says that he knows the heart of life is good. What a freaking relief.