September 15, 2025
There’s something deeply liberating in Nietzsche’s words. The image is simple: someone dancing while everyone else watches, unable to hear the music that moves them. To the outside world, it looks like madness. To the dancer, it feels like freedom.
I’ve thought about this idea often, especially when I catch myself worrying about what others think. Most of us spend way too much time trying to fit into rhythms that aren’t even ours. We nod along to the “expected” beats, career milestones, the right kind of house, the correct way to behave at PTA meetings, while ignoring the music that really makes our souls move.
The irony is that the people who inspire us most are rarely the ones who blend in. They’re the ones who risk dancing, singing, or creating when it doesn’t make sense to the crowd. They’re the ones who appear odd, quirky, or even “insane” until suddenly the rest of us finally catch the tune.
Hearing the Music in Everyday Life
This doesn’t always mean actual dancing (though you’ll definitely find me singing loudly to “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” in the car). It can be as simple as following a creative spark others don’t get, or raising your kids in a way that feels right even if it’s unconventional.
For me, “hearing the music” often shows up in writing. I jot down strange thoughts, funny moments, or deep reflections that don’t always make sense in the moment. Later, though, I realize they were part of a rhythm guiding me forward. When I share them here on Low Two Pair, sometimes readers tell me I’ve put into words something they’ve felt but never named. That’s the magic: when the music you thought was just yours suddenly becomes shared.
Why We Hesitate to Dance
Of course, dancing while others stare isn’t easy. Judgment is real, and so is fear. Nobody likes to feel like the odd one out. But maybe that’s the test. If the thought of being misunderstood keeps you from moving, you’ll always end up standing still. And standing still, while life’s music plays on, can be the real insanity.
What if instead, you leaned into the dance? What if you accepted that some people won’t hear the music you do, and that’s okay? The world is full of different songs, and your job isn’t to force everyone to listen. It’s just to move in step with the one that’s yours.
An Invitation
So here’s the question I’m sitting with today: what’s my “music”? What’s yours? It could be as big as starting a business or as small as singing along to your favorite song without shame. Either way, the challenge is the same: let yourself be moved, even if nobody else hears it.
Because in the end, the ones who risk looking a little crazy are the ones who remind the rest of us that joy, meaning, and beauty are worth pursuing.
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