The Roshua Review October 2015 | Page 17

And we can face some problems

Trials and tribulations

Diamonds go through heat and constant pressure for creation

Be at your true nirvana

You can ride the crystal express

Comparing trials and tribulations to the process of creating beautiful jewels is reassuring, but it's hard to disregard his blatant advice of "[riding] the crystal express." I've asked people, and people seem to not notice how broad "Crystal Express" actually is. Since October 16, 2015, I have entered deep speculations on what the Crystal Express is. It's apparently up to interpretation along with love, hate, and forbidden knowledge. I feel as if the Crystal Express is a real concrete entity, but Raury gives no clue as to where it is. Over time I have come to accept that he blatantly decides to not tell us where it is, perhaps alluding that it is strictly forbidden knowledge.

Accepting that the existence and location of the Crystal Express was forbidden knowledge to the masses made everything seemingly click for me. Being the person that I am (and one who believes that Yeezus is under analyzed and one of the deepest albums in recent times), I have begun to kind of tie things together as how they apply in my world. I believe that Forbidden Knowledge is ultimately the cause of destruction. The reason that it is forbidden knowledge is not because it is hidden; to be honest, if we simply opened our eyes we would see that a lot of it is right in front of our faces. It is forbidden because it is powerful and capable of changing the world. In the right hands, forbidden knowledge can mean world peace, economic stability, complete equality, and so much more. All of these achievements sound mesmerizing, so why is the knowledge forbidden again? Well, we've already addressed that hate runs more rampant on the earth than love, so the likelihood of the knowledge falling into the right hand is unlikely. In fact, people of all sorts have found and learned some forbidden knowledge, and the world is still in disarray. Good and evil aspects of the knowledge are kept secret not because the people who have found it are good or evil, but because every person who has been enlightened has not acted out of love. If love is all we need, then why isn't the whole picture provided? Why does Raury speak of a grandiose solution to a world of "trials and tribulations" but fail to tell us how to find it? I think it has to be a situation like a grade school teacher telling their young student to use a dictionary. Being told the answer won't necessarily enlighten the student; in fact, the student will probably abuse the opportunity instead appreciating what has been given to him or her. It's a hate/love thing. The student who finds the answers they are looking is bound to appreciate it and understand the importance of it.

To hopefullly tie everything into one important message for you, "You ain't got the answers Sway." You don't have them and I don't have them, and that's ok. Learning to love and resisting hate is what gives us life, and the best way to learn is to ask questions. Raury's last words on "Crystal Express" are, "and we all, we all, we all need light." Just when you thought all we needed was love, right? Light has been symbolic for so many things throughout time that it may been life, knowledge, and perhaps heaven. So are love, life, and knowledge synonymous? Perhaps the Crystal Express is heaven, the only place I know of where it can all finally come together. The possibilities are endless, so I'll leave you to find your own truths. I think that those who really want to initiate change must continue living, loving, and learning until it all comes together. All We Need reignited a fire in me that desires to make the world a better place, and I hope reading this essay has perhaps done the same for you. In order to change the world, we all must find the answers, and I truly believe that is the secret to love, life, and knowledge. We all must find and climb aboard the Crystal Express.