Monday, August 16, 2010

Morning Sounds

Have you ever listened to one of those sounds of nature CDs? They always start off soft with maybe the sound of crickets. Then the crickets grow louder and there comes some running water. A bird calls softly in the background then perhaps louder while fading away.
That was what I heard this morning as I walked out my back door. I was attaching my iPod, ready to plug the earbuds into my ears when I caught the sound of the crickets. I laced the headphones around my neck so I could listen.
As I walked past the Rose of Sharon bushes, the crickets grew louder. Then out my gate down the alley, I passed my neighbor's water feature tinkling. The roads were so still. No cars moved. The air was cool enough that the air conditioners were not clanging to life.
I kept walking, trying to be aware of the sounds around me. A breeze stirred the trees making their leaves whisper and the crickets chirp louder. I turned the corner toward the east. That was the direction I wanted to walk, even though it was downhill, which meant I'd have to come back uphill.
In the orthodontist office the other day, I read an article, I think it was Real Simple magazine, that one way to energize is to face the east for 10 minutes every morning. Facing east was beautiful. The sun was past the point of sending up pinks and oranges into the sky. It was a definite yellow behind those trees and buildings in the east. But the sky was a clear blue and a trace of clouds looked like powdered sugar when it's sprinkled on brownies.
The birds grew louder. A man on a scooter puttered past. A plane engine droned overhead. Then I turned the corner again and the people sounds faded behind the rising sounds of the cicadas waking up for their morning buzz.
When I came home, I gathered my computer and sat on the front porch to continue enjoying the sweet breeze. I watched as a crow was chased by the other birds. He made raucous cawing sounds as the sun continued its yellow path higher in the sky. Like a nature CD set on replay, the sounds started over again with the crickets chirping and the crow harmonizing his protests.

5 comments:

Lucia said...

That's why I take the time to catch the sunrise, the sunrise rises here in the east and when I look at the sky in the east or go to the lake early morning and look east I take a big breath just let it wash over me the beauty of it. Most days it's just nice to look up!

Stephanie said...

Ahh. Thank you for sharing your morning. It made me feel relaxed just reading about your experience. I love those sounds of nature.

BigLittleWolf said...

Lovely. Sometimes something as simple as 15 minutes outside, on a bench, is enough to renew. We forget how important a bit of sun and air can be, not to mention the light - natural light.

Food Junkie said...

Isn't it simply marvelous............I do love those meditation cds and that sounds of the waterfall is so soothing............don't get to see the sound of the waterfall in these parts but yeah the chirping is still to be heard in our busy city........Thank God for that.

Linda said...

I love to sit outside here. There is no traffic, just the sounds of nature which, right now, are cigales (cicadas), and the wind through the trees. At night we can hear frog sounds too.

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