|
This photo of Mark's veggie garden, taken yesterday, illustrates just how ordered things are, as of now.
Th experience of gardening, unlike any other art form, moves us slowly through the seasons, using a rhythm over which we have little control. Unless of course, you have figured out how to make it rain, or not rain, the wind to blow and the birds to sing. The elements of our outdoor experiences come together in a fabulously marvelous way that we cannot (and likely could not) create if it were up to us. It is music.
Recently, we heard an amazing speech by Mark Williams, CEO of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) in which he shed light on the meaning and value of music in our lives. He reminded us that we are exposed to music every day, often at times when we are not even conscious of it. We sing for birthdays, we listen to a processional at weddings and no funeral would be a true celebration of life without music.
Music, according to Williams, transforms us. “It transforms ordinary commutes into moments of calm; times of love into glimpses of ecstasy; periods of isolation into opportunities for communion.” He continues, “I have seen music transform addiction into healing. Confusion into discipline. I have seen time itself transform into timelessness.”
Community
Williams knows his stuff. He has been in the “business” of music his whole life, which began when he was a “shy, unsure and lonely” young man who was introduced to the French horn. At 15 years old, he played for the Cincinnati Youth Orchestra in Ohio. Clearly, he is a gifted musician. Through his musical experience he discovered his many gifts and found “his people” and community.
The TSO has discovered that Alzheimer’s patients connect with music in ways that they cannot using verbal ques. A special program that serves Alzheimer’s patients is “not only transforming peoples’ health; it helps to connect people who report some of the greatest isolation in our society”.
We are reminded of the many qualities of music that are like those we experience through gardening.
We relax and open our minds while in the presence of trees, as the Japanese have taught the world, through Forest Bathing.
We stop and observe forces of nature when the wind blows, lightning strikes and rain falls to the earth.
We absorb benefits not well understood through the complex alchemy of soil, when we connect with it.
The sound of bird song, so prevalent this time of year (thank you mating season!) registers in our minds with rhythm and cadence that stays with us all day. If we think about it hard, it can come back to us mid winter. Or in old age, as will the smell of lilac or the sight of a fresh peony.
Everywhere we look we see evidence that gardening brings people together and builds community.
| 
