u/Ok-Check1237

On June 14th, I was at a bar scrolling Reddit when I saw a Brazilian news channel headline in my feed. I was shocked and devastated, far more than I could have ever expected from someone so removed from my personal life. I hadn’t even listened to OT in over a year.
Every single day after that, I thought about Oliver and reflected on my own life. I’m going to turn 33 this year. What if I lost my life at this age too? What have I even accomplished? Etc. etc.
The more I thought about it, the more upset I became about the loss of Oliver. At the same time, I learned more about the gifts he gave the world through his songs that I find especially moving.
I kept seeing posts about “I asked for a sign.” While I thought it was interesting, I didn’t think I would ever see a sign, or deserved one. I decided I wouldn’t ask for one, nor did I think I deserved a REAL sign. Something that actually moves you. Still, I knew it would be an interesting thing to happen, and on some level I did want something to happen.
I’ve only experienced a few things from friends and family I’ve lost that felt anything like “signs,” and it seemed almost inappropriate for me to think I should receive one. Instead, I decided I wouldn’t wait on any of these feelings of life’s urgency and got to work building my music studio. Literally building it. Constructing a wall from scratch and sound-isolating a new room created inside a section of the garage.
A few weeks into the project, I had a dream that I was hanging out with Oliver. I was so grateful because I could finally ask him for advice. The funny thing is that I got an answer I never would have expected myself.
I asked if there were any tricks or arrangements he would suggest for me. He told me that above all else, he cherishes having FRIENDS in the studio.
That answer was funny to me because I have very few friends and have always been a bit of a recluse and introvert. Especially when it comes to making music. He told me stories about passionate recording sessions and spending 38 hours in the studio when I asked about some of my favorite songs.
The NEXT DAY, in July, was my friend’s 33rd birthday, we met up in a forest where he was camping, and he had a forest cat hanging out with him. My friend knew nothing about OT or his songs, but after the camping trip he ended up bringing the cat home and naming him “thirty tree,” “tree” for short.
These back to back “signs,” combined with my refusal to ask for them, just crushed me.
I still feel that same sense of urgency around artistic creation and expression. Today I’m putting the final pieces of the studio together and taking Oliver’s advice about DOING and CREATING to heart. “You don't need anything. You just need time and an idea and creativity, and you do not need to be asking for someone's permission to do this shit.”