The desire to find something or someone beyond ourselves to save us from an undesirable experience is as natural to humans as breathing. Life is bound by desire according to Buddhism, as well as anyone else that takes even a squinty-eyed glance at humans.
The Boss became my saviour one pain-filled night, as I lay in agony. The injury to my shoulder and arm made sleep impossible. In the darkness I remote-controlled my bedroom CD player on to the audiobook Born to Run. It was read by the author Bruce Springsteen. Listening to his wise tell-all tale of his life hushed my pain.
To hear Bruce reveal his life experiences with candour was fascinating. He spoke of love, family, passion, travel, music, and his struggles with mental health. I had never heard a man recount so courageously and openly the inner details of his life, and the meaning of it. Through the profoundly intimate details shared by The Boss I was changed forever.
From the first listen of Born to Run I was saved. I was no longer alone in the pain odyssey that would last so many, many, months. The voice of Bruce Springsteen was my salvation from being engulfed in suffering. I may have other saviours, though none are so accessible, reliable, and intimate as The Boss reading to me in the dark.