The majority of us who live our lives do it in a way that’s acceptable and even “passable” by most standards. But rarely do we take it a step further. Can you look yourself in the eye each and every night knowing that you did just about everything you could to make yourself (not anyone else) proud of the work you put in? And I’m talking about any endeavor you’re undertaking. If you went to the gym did you give it your best effort? If you’re a publisher and you’re writing an article did you write something you were proud of? That you put every single thing you had into? Or were you just going through the motions? Were you simply doing the “routine,” that minimal effort so many of us have become accustomed to? If you’re one of the “regulars” this scene should really it home.
In “Walk the Line” when we first see Johnny Cash auditioning he sings a Gospel song and gets completely torn apart by producer Sam Phillips (played by Dallas Roberts). Here’s the important part of the speech he gives word for word.
Bring it home? Alright let’s bring it home. If you was hit by a truck and you was lying out in that gutter dyin’ and you had time to sing one song, one song people would remember before you were dirt, one song that would let God know what you felt about your time here on Earth, one song that would sum you up you tellin’ me that’s the song you’d sing? That same Jimmy Davis tune we hear on the radio all day, about your peace within and how it’s real and how you gonna shout it? Or would you sing something else. Something real. Something you felt. Cuz I’m tellin’ you right now. That’s the kind of song people wanna hear. That’s the kinda song that truly saves people. It ain’t got nothin’ to do with believin’ in God Mr. Cash, it has to do with believin’ in yourself.
And in that moment Johnny Cash is truly born. He takes a step back and sings a song that’s completely real. From his soul. Something he put his entire life into and would bet his entire life on. The rest, as they say, is history.
While this might just be a movie scene and dramatized a bit for effect, don’t let that fool you. This moment is as real as any moment there is. The question is, what’s your song going to be?
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