I love stories. I like how they connect us to each other and our past. I like how they can transport us to a place or even a memory. I’m fascinated by the stories of songs. Behind the scenes movie specials have always intrigued me. It’s the story of making a story. Process appeals to me. The story of a person’s career is interesting. Some burn slowly for a long time. Some fizzle and fade instantly.

I was watching American Idol tonight. Even this show, probably one of the biggest things going in terms of money-making machines at the moment, is on a journey from new to old. They added in a “13th” finalist to spice up the story. Yes, reality TV is almost as much Hollywood magic as reality, it seems.

I watched Slumdog Millionaire last week and now I always want to say “Slumdog Mill-en-air!” like the Indian Regis guy. But it’s a great story. It’s a fantastic tale of a person’s longing for love and what seems to be an end to most of us is just a means: winning a big load of money.

Some people will downplay the impact of music or video games on a person. They will tell you that it’s just music and words or entertainment and that songs that seem to promote violence or some other ill of society only affect weak-minded people.

I’m not so sure. In fact, I’d prefer to make the argument that art and stories and music can have a tremendous effect on all of us. But not just in a bad way. I think that stories can remind us what we are fighting for. They can remind us who we are. They can give us understanding about another person. They can help us cope with grief. They can give us a sense of connection to our world. They can give us a sense of connection beyond our world to our Creator. They can give us Hope.

And sometimes they just make us laugh. A lot.

Or make us think.

I was asked in an interview last week about music in general and why I write songs. I think that’s it. I want to elicit some kind of emotional response in people and push them past the mundane subplot of their own story.

I like to see people laugh too.