With the coming of spring, we, at least those of us who are familiar with some of the nuances of classical music, also remember the birthday of the great German musician Johannes Sebastian Bach.  For many centuries (Bach died in 1750), Bach's melodies have reverberated across the world, stirring the hearts of millions, perhaps billions of people, many of whom probably have not been aware that it was Bach's music they were hearing.  As long as humanity moves upon the earth, it's unlikely that Bach's melodies will be forgotten.
     

     In this, we can rejoice.  We humans are remarkable creatures, really, beings who can create, beings who can reason, beings who can change the world.  In Bach's many glorious melodies, we see, in magnificent musical form, a bit of our seemingly unlimited potential to take what is within and before us and transform it into something that, to a music lover, or almost anything else, is a thing beyond ready imagination.  It's quite astounding.
     Moreover, regardless of how one sees the universe's origins (though the frequent reader no doubt knows my loyalties in this regard), we can all, I think, put ourselves into the cosmos that we see as actors.  We are actors in a tale of incredible marvel and wonder, birthed and gifted to explore and understand and transform the worlds that lay before us, thespians who are acting out a drama at which we can, if we stop to think, be ever amazed.
    We can thank Bach today for what he has shown us about our capacities.  We can also thank Bach for giving to us a glimpse of the unfolding mystery of who we are in this vast, vast--and loved--universe.