MATTHEW SWEGSDA - IMAGINATION HEAVEN

IMAGINATION HEAVEN by Matthew Swegsda

Song link above

Imagination heaven is my escape. It is my happy place. People who know me will tell you that my head is in the clouds a lot of the time; both as a dreamer and a complete muppet :). It's safe to say I can be perceived as pretty stupid a lot of the time and my Bsc Mathematics is almost unbelievable to prove to people because I simply am not paying attention half the time. Give me a non-homogenous partial differential equation with constant coefficients back in my day as a mathematics student and I would've solved it no problem and loved doing so but given some of the most simple everyday tasks... Sorry, what was I saying? :) You get the picture. I am frequently absent minded thinking about the next big idea or my brain is in auto pilot or as I like to call it; rest mode. This is when common sense totally evades me.

I can learn rocket science if you give me a textbook or understand the theory behind some complicated s**t but there are plenty of occasions when a simple step to the left will save a new vase from being knocked over and I have lost count of how many plates of food I have dropped over the years. As you have already guessed... I lose stuff too. It makes for a very interesting life I suppose and without that part of me I would not be me and I actually don't mind that... most of the time.

A friend yesterday posted a link to my Facebook wall with Neil young's 'The painter' and said: "Listen, this is you..."

The painter is a metaphor, in my opinion, that he uses to describe someone who is following too many masters and even though the painter does double the work of the normal man, the painter falls and becomes lost in the quest to paint every picture. I never said I believe this will happen to me or that I am lost but I did once upon a time and I can relate. I think Mr Young is saying that following too many dreams can have it's consequences but at the same time I reckon that painter was happy enough by remaining true of self. I think a wrong path taken is not a waste of time. You have spent the time to rule it out and that is a good thing and most likely learned something from it. Neil Young says he will still record and punt a bad song as it leads him to a good one and is still part of him. True that and I reckon that 'painter' turned out to paint just the picture he intended.

I initially chased a dream in football as a young lad because in the village where I grew up, this is what made you popular. I was chubby and not so good to begin with and drove myself on to eventually sign with Ayr and then Hibernian youth squads. I pushed myself to get there because it was a nice thing to say and it made me look good but there was not enough passion there and certainly not enough sacrifice.

Then I decided to see how well I could do at school. I was always naturally clever and did enough to remain in the top classes without trying too hard. I always failed things until it was my last chance and then I would get a top score when I knew I had to do it.
I loved Maths and even though I only got a C in higher I convinced my teacher to allow me to do Advanced higher and promised I would give it my all. I did and I passed it with flying colors, got the prize as best student that year and got accepted to Strathclyde Uni to go do Maths, stats and Finance. Managed a pass degree in straight Maths eventually but even though I could do it well, it was not what I wanted to do and never really reached my potential.

Then I tried the working world and found out I could sell sand to the arabs. I liked it but again not for me. I then went to Cyprus to chase another love story that was consistent with the all previous attempts... It ended. However, while chasing tail I found a great job in an F & B establishment who appointed me I.T. manager within a few months and then I moved into stock control. It was exciting, challenging and rewarding - but not enough.

Throughout all of these stepping stone attempts, only one thing remained constant; my love and passion for music. I managed to build myself a small home recording studio and started to record my bedroom busking sessions and without meaning to, it just became real. I started to post songs online and received lots of great feedback and some unbelievable online recognition. Everything clicked and suddenly I could accept every bad thing that I had ever endured as I had finally found myself. To say that my trip to Cyprus was a spirit walk pretty much hits the nail on the head. Firstly I found out who I wasn't for the largest part and then I found out exactly who I was and what I wanted.


"Every journey is worthwhile and mistakes and failures are simply stepping stones to success" - Matthew Swegsda