Tuesday, April 24, 2012
I love the spring and the sounds that it brings. Every April for the past 5 years my daughter has participated in the Haliburton County Music Festival and it is inspiring to watch all the kids and adults as they perform individually and in groups. In our living room we spend weeks listening to
Madeline practice and get ready for the event. We have our own house concert every evening. The day finally comes when she puts on her special new dress and gets up on that stage and we love to listen to her play. At the same time, we also have our own outdoor concerts in April because we
live by The Great Green Meadow and it comes back to life every spring after a long quiet winter. We always anticipate and wait and then listen as the spring peepers, wood frogs, bittern and snipe return to the meadow
sounding their special calls. It is loud and magnificent! We sleep with our windows open and all these creatures serenade us to sleep every evening. We know when we start to hear the Red Wing Blackbirds that spring is really
close by. When we walk in the meadow during the day we hear the sounds of birds who are returning to the area like cat birds, phoebes, winter wrens and sparrows of many kinds. When we walk around the edge of the meadow we
cross streams where the water is gurgling loudly with spring runoff. My husband (and neighbours) have been commenting on the sounds of the woodpeckers as they hit something that is really loud to create a sound that
establishes their territory. They love stove pipes, a piece of metal or a hollow tree. The woodpeckers make the sound to mark their territory , and to the females know that they are there. It is a magical time of year. I'm a good listener. It is a very quiet and peaceful way to spend time. I've worked at it over the years. Recently I've been starting my yoga
classes with an "awareness meditation." Bringing our full awareness to what is happening in the moment. After settling into a relaxed position, the first thing we do is become quiet, close our eyes and give our full
attention and awareness to the sounds that are in the room and around the studio. Depending on the time of the day/ evening of the class we hear many sounds including the Drag River, birds, dogs, vehicles and of course we
listened to the wind on those really windy evenings last week. It's a really lovely and quiet way to stop and become fully present in the moment. Present to all the glorious sounds. I'm pretty sure we always feel grounded and grateful after appreciating all the sounds around us. Happy spring everyone.