Sweet Symphonies

"Life has a melody...A rhythm of notes which become your existence once played in harmony with God's plan." 

I'm offering dinner to the first person that can tell me where this quote comes from without plugging it into a search engine...and I have my ways of testing your honesty. 

Music has been playing through my mind a lot lately, not only as a soundtrack for the day-to-day, but also as a reflection of the spirit. I was allegorizing religion earlier, a hobby, and I thought about this great big symphonic world. God, like music, is everywhere. Cultural bias often dictates the forms that appeal to individuals, but there is no culture that is without some sort of music. Many religions would like to say they have the market cornered on salvation, but it just doesn't make sense that God would provide only one way to sing his song. 

Jesus is one instrument, like a piano. If I know how to play the piano, then to me that is music. Buddha is another instrument, like a zheng (that stringed weapon they use to throw punches at the three defenders of the slum in Kung Fu Hustle). Many people can derive music from that instrument. Is one better than the other? The symphony is everywhere, rustling trees, a babbling brook, silence. There is music and God in it all. We just have to listen for it. Telling millions of people that their preference in music is wrong, is just noise that will get them damned to hell, limits our own ability to hear the incomprehensibly infinite variety of song he created. Grace, Jesus, folk, and rock will probably forever top my charts, but I still want to hear and experience as many of the universe's sweet sounds as I can.

As many of you know, I'm not very musically gifted. Though I appreciate melodious sounds, producing them is not my forte. My karaoke support group doesn't need to chime in with, "It's not that bad." Mediocre is bad enough when you sing as much and as loud as I do.  A couple of friendly dj's have had to mercifully stop me in midsong. And earlier tonight I had to lock the kitties out of the family room because Billy was attacking my face during the high notes. Everyone is a critic.Whether or not my tune is easy on the ears, I'm going to keep singing it. Singing is a manifestation of the spirit; even when it is an imperfect celebration of whatever I'm feeling.

Currently, I'm trying to master The Beatles "Oh, Darling." I started with "Across the Universe" because the lyrics are so profound (wink), but the rawness of "Oh, Darling" spoke a little louder. As such things go, just when you think you know what you want, something else takes the stage. Life's lullaby is like that.

So, what are you listening to? You. My friend or the stranger reading this, what's your song?


P.S. How many people thought the line "Jai Guru Deva" was "Kangaroo Days" from "Across the Universe." What does it mean? "I give thanks (victory) (salutation) to Guru Dev (or heavenly teacher)." Good stuff.