Refreshed
by Beauty
“If the
sight of blue skies fills you with joy, if a blade of grass springing
up in the fields has power to move you, if the simple things of
nature have a message that you understand, rejoice, for your soul is
alive.”
Eleonora
Duse
I have been reading a
book by Canadian author, Louise Penny, titled, The Beautiful
Mystery. It is set in Quebec in a monastery of cloistered monks
whose sole purpose is to sing plainchant. Louise Penny is a mystery
writer who skillfully manages to hold the tension in her stories from
page one until the very last sentence. The descriptions of these
monks singing, and the way they are transported by their music, made
me very curious about Gregorian Chant. In a way, it's like Penny's
writing—it moves slowly, within narrow parameters of sound, up and
down, but not too far in either direction. It is sung in Latin, so
one only catches a familiar word here and there. The sounds seem to
resonate in the middle of the body—the energy of the heart chakra
is activated. If one listens for five minutes or so, one is carried
along on the cadence like floating downstream on a slow-moving river.
It is a beautiful mystery.
Nature offers many ways
of connecting our brains with our souls. Music is certainly one. And
the music of place is especially good for that. I came from the North
Carolina mountains, and the fiddle is the instrument of that
landscape. I simply cannot be still when it's played—I have to
dance! Think of the music of every continent and every culture—all
different, each tuned to the particular energetic wavelength of the
people. Something that sounds cacophonous to my ears, would be
meditative to one whose DNA is connected to that particular place.
Such a gift!
Blue skies full of puffy
clouds, bird song, glorious autumn leaves, falling rain, river water
rolling over rocks, waves lapping on a seashore, human voices singing
plainchant, all are gifts from the creative source of the universe.
Beauty, music, color, texture, sound, scent—all are paths through
the tangled woods of our everyday lives. Take a few minutes today to
be refreshed by one of these gifts. They are meant especially for
you.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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