You Are the Instrument

On Saturday, we went to the Dane County's Farmer's Market.  One of the first things we saw as we walked in was this man playing the drums and singing.

I stopped, in awe of his playing and his spontaneous singing. I carefully watched his hands, trying to decipher how he was creating this music.

When he learned that I had recently gotten bongo drums, he called me over. I hesitated, noticing that my old thinking returned for a moment — what about the crowds? my bad hair day? playing with someone who actually knows what he's doing? Thankfully, I ignored those old voices and walked in closer. 

He explained that the first thing to know about drumming is that you are the instrument, not the drum. 

If he wants to make a bass sound, he thinks "bass" and then hits his full hand in the center of the drum. To slap, he says "slap" to himself as he hits the drumhead with the top of his palm toward the side. And to make a tone, which is the same kind of hand placement and gesture as a slap, he simply thinks "tone" instead of slap.

By your thoughts, you control the sound of your instrument. It's a great metaphor for how we are in our lives. 

What tune are we creating out of the instrument of our life? How do we intentionally — or not  — make the music in our life?

He also talked to me how in Africa the drumming came from the women. That drumming can be very soft. And how drumming needs to be connected to your breath.

And then, then, he had me play with him. It was pure bliss. 

(Helpful, too. I learned I need to keep my right thumb up more.)

Through my work with Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way, I have come to see that I have been a shadow artist to musicians. This means that instead of honoring my desire to be musical in myself, I surround myself with people who are musicians instead. (I even married a talented jazz/blues guitarist.)  

Music has always been a passion — listening to it, dancing to it, singing it, copying the lyrics. As I child, I loved to make up songs (including lyrics about chopping lettuce or whatever else I thought of) on my grandparent's piano. I experienced recorder and piano as part of music classes. I sing loudly in the car when I'm alone. But for much of my 38 years I thought music was something only others were talented enough to do.  

But I'm starting to follow my inner song more and more. As I do, I am able to create new music — and new possibilities — in my life.

I mentioned in my last Inspired Writer newsletter that I had a breakthrough with music this summer. 

This week, I have my first bongo lesson. (Many thanks to my wonderful husband for the thoughtful birthday gift of these bongos and a lesson with a talented percussionist/drummer he plays with.)  I'm to bring a notebook, and I'm going to get homework, too. I can't begin to tell you how excited I am.

I'm curious to see what transformations open up for me as I begin to follow the beat of my heart more fully. 

 And I'm so thankful for all the support of the universe as I embark on this journey. I say it was no accident that I received this impromptu lesson on Saturday. Nor that later that day, as I listened to a four-man drum circle, a man came up to me and told me to not just tap my hands, but to move my feet, too. (Indeed dancing along was much more fun.) Nor that today, during my first Spiritual Mastery class, I got to use bongos in the drum circle.

I am not walking on this journey alone, and knowing I'm supported makes it easier for me to go toward the callings of my heart with childlike joy and freedom.

Tell me, how are you playing the instrument of your life? What beat is calling to you right now?

P.S. Have you seen the movie, The Visitor?  Part of what I so enjoyed about this movie is witnessing the main character's transformation as he takes up drumming. 

Flowering Fridays: Water Lily

This summer we put a pond in our fenced-in vegetable and flower garden. It is a simple pond (we "planted" a cast-iron tub into the ground), but it has been my favorite feature of the garden this year.

 To stock the pond with plants, we visited Windy Oak Aquatics in Eagle. (If you live in southeastern Wisconsin, it's worth the trip in warmer months just to see their lotus and water lilies in bloom; I could have gawked at them all day, they were so stunning). 

We bought a hardy water lily — I can't remember the variety — but it has these beautiful variegated leaves and blooms in this ethereal pale yellow-lavender. (It's called a hardy lily because you can bring it inside, give it some water and put in a dark spot (like your basement) and it will overwinter.)

The blooms last for only three days, but they are breathtaking. 

I think about the kind of effort writers, artists and anyone who is looking to birth a dream puts in. There is a lot of work underneath the surface that has to happen for our vision to become a reality.

All creative endeavors involve efforts and explorations that many do not see. There are the false starts. The chapters that end up in the recycling bin. The near-finished painting that must be put aside for the new theme to emerge. There are the lonely moments when self-doubt creeps in and taps us on the shoulder and whispers: "Who are you to think you can be a writer…an artist…a person who achieves their dreams?"

Sometimes birthing a creative project means many months in a dark winter, as we wait for our spring sun to shine again. Sometimes it means being patient through a fallow period, trusting new growth will soon sprout. And sometimes our long and diligent efforts result in a bloom that is brief, but so worth the effort for the experience of sharing our fullest expression with the world.

In the past, I would get caught up in the product — and forget about the richness that comes from being in the process. (I've mentioned how being with the process is a growing edge for me.) 

But I am finally getting that the process — and the striving and the learning and growing that comes of it — is as important as what I create. 

And there's a wonderful side benefit to our striving:

We become a stand and a support for others to strive toward honoring their dreams. In our striving, we inspire others to strive toward their dreams, too.

And I see this in my water lily, too. As the lily has kept growing and expanding, it has become a place of support for our resident frog. 

Tell me, what is the value in striving for you?

Daily Inspiration

Part of how I keep myself focused and inspired each day is to ensure my day starts with some uplifting messages in my email inbox. Such daily inspiration keeps me focused on what I want to create in my life and how I want to be. It reminds me to go into my day with an eye on some key questions:

What do I want to create today? What story do I want to tell about my life today? Where is the happiness in this moment?

I'm someone who thrives on information and possibilities so my daily dose of inspiration might feel like an overdose to you. But here are the emails that provide me with an orientation that keeps me motivated, energized and in awe of life:

Daily Law of Attraction Quotation from Abraham-Hicks

The Inner Vortex

TUT's Notes from the Universe

Neale Donald Walsh (author of the Conversations with God books)

The Writer's Almanac with Garrison Keillor

Daily OM

James Ray's Daily Thought of Power

Tell me, what are your favorite daily doses of inspiration?