When things get rushed and hectic, as they often do, it’s easy to view life as little more than a series of practical demands to be met. But then we hear a beautiful song, we see an exquisite painting, or we read a stunning poem, and we are reminded that life, at its heart, is beautiful and brilliant, elevating and enriching. Yes, the world has its practical, methodical side, but life is just as much an art as it is a science.

Art can be powerful and stirring, and it can be quiet and simple. It can move us and calm us. It can inspire and console us. Art helps us to ponder life’s great questions and appreciate its lighter side. It can lift us when we’re feeling down and open our eyes and hearts to the needs of those who suffer. Indeed, the arts illuminate the human condition, fostering more empathetic people and more compassionate communities.

Such benefits were noted more than 150 years ago by a prominent community leader, who said of the dramatic arts: “Upon the stage of a theater can be represented in character, evil and its consequences, good and its happy results and rewards; the weakness and the follies of man, the magnanimity of virtue and the greatness of truth.”

Recently a woman took her young granddaughter to a professional production of a well-known musical. They had on their best clothes and their best behavior as they settled into the theater’s velvet seats. The music started, the lights came on, the curtains opened, and the magic began. They were transported to a different time and place. Later, when they walked out of the theater hand in hand, they somehow felt closer because they had experienced this beautiful art form together.

This is what art can do for individuals, families, and entire communities. It can help us better understand each other, ourselves, and our place in the universe. The arts both explore and express what it means to be human and to feel the wonder and beauty of life.

Episode 4545. Aired October 23, 2016.

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