Fear and Fulfillment

Hi, it's me, Jonah, the baritone saxophonist. Remember?

Last month, I had a really truly wonderful time touring in Finland. I’ve appeared in Finland various times in the dead of winter, and it was a pleasure to return, not at the moment of darkest culmination, but in the spring, at the time of light’s return. The mass of familiar faces, however, was what really fired me up. Nothing tops my self-fulfillment charts like showing up and finding a community of people I’ve seen before, ready to listen and connect all over again.

Thank you. Thank you for coming, and thank you for coming back.

Playing solo at Bar Kuka in Turku on March 20th. Photo by Jesse Ponkamo

While in Finland, I also recorded a new album in collaboration with Lau Nau, and it came out so well! I’m excited to share it with you. But I can’t yet. That’s just not how it works. Sorry. I linked to my album from last November, with Berke Can Özcan, instead (a little switcheroo).

Berke and I have a couple festival appearances coming up that I’m really looking forward to. First on the 16th of May in Vic (near Barcelona) for the Festival Jazz Vic and then in July at the Istanbul Jazz Festival. Stay tuned for more EU tour dates in November.

By the time I come home from Istanbul in July, I will have taken seven trips abroad since the election last November. It’s not the first time I’ve traveled a lot during an era where my home country has chosen the darkest of many dark paths. But this April, on the road in the EU, I experienced something totally unexpected. People were not mad, they were worried. Worried about me. Worried about us. Fearful of what this country is capable of doing to the people within its borders.

I’m fearful too.

If I had to choose one human quality to be the star at the top of my Christmas tree of things I wish I was really really effortlessly good at, it would be empathy. Empathy requires imagination and patience. It also requires selflessness and generosity. One of the lesser discussed ingredients for a strong sense of empathy is experience.

If you find yourself in a place similar to me, and this is the first time in your life that you are feeling genuinely fearful at home, in your own country, congratulations. Things have been pretty good so far. Let's, you and I, take a moment to feel grateful for the life we’ve lived. For many people, some who are neighbors, others living far away, fear is the baseline.

This experience of widespread fear is a chance to build the strongest possible empathy for those who were in danger last year, are in more danger now, will still be in danger in 2029. There is a longer fight than the one many of us are feeling acutely today, and this moment can be a spark for solidarity. Let’s use our fear to become more connected, more caring, more empathetic, more ready to decide that nobody should be afraid.

See you soon,
Jonah