Prepare, prepare, get ready, get set.
Prepare, prepare, and don’t forget.
This is a special time of year.
Christmas is coming, Advent is here.
Prepare, prepare, make ready, make way,
to hear the story of Christmas Day.
Prepare, prepare, the time has come,
soon we will welcome Mary’s son.
I heard this on an online Advent Calendar from Ireland – there are two short audios, both recorded by a young Irish boy and they are both lovely. Listen HERE if you would like.
I’m pretty sure that the small things quote is from Dorothy Day…
“Green was the silence,
wet was the light,
the month of June trembled
like a butterfly.”
― Pablo Neruda, 100 Love Sonnets
American Sign Language has hand shapes that represent English ABC’s.
I carved rubber stamps to make the letter A, C and L.
My friend is having a Deaf baby and her name requires that I need to also carve the letters: R, I, B, and E. Soon I will have the whole alphabet!
I stumbled on, of all things, a lipstick ad that really speaks to this experience of adjusting to not singing in tune…and now occasionally right on task. I’ve never been a professional in music – but I dreamed of it as a girl. And, as far as coping with life goes, hitting all of the notes, especially in church, was a fail safe relief for almost all of my first forty some years. It wasn’t funny after a while when my kids had to break it to me that I was not just singing too loud in church, but I was way off key, more times than not. I rely on their honesty. But, it’s hard to explain how quickly I, for the most part, got over my fears about the fact that I may lose most of or all of my hearing at some point in time in my later life. Losing some or all of my ability to accurately hear music? That’s a tough one too, but this year I’ve learned to watch and listen and just enjoy. It’s less work anyway.
But, feeling left out, experiencing exile – it’s tough no matter how, or why, or for how long. It’s tough.
(photo credit: Beth A. Richardson – thanks Beth 🙂 )
The closed captions are not totally accurate on the lipstick ad that I mentioned so here is a transcript. It is SO beautiful. You don’t have to be thinking about anything other than that life can be challenging to appreciate it – it just happens to also be about the Deaf experience and the joy of singing music in key.
Here is a link to the ad: #LOVEYOURNATURE “Silence”
Burt’s Bees “Silence” ad re: #LoveYourNature
Closed Caption Transcript
(Violin music)
In life you have a lot of barriers and you have two choices: you can allow yourself to stay stuck and do nothing, or you can find your way around and experience life.
I started performing when I was about four and I was always the singer, but I had problems with my hearing so, losing my hearing was always my biggest fear.
When I was in music school I started noticing that I couldn’t understand my teachers. Everything just got quieter and more muddled, and it was just….
“poof”…..
it was gone.
I lost all of my dreams.
I lost everything that makes sense.
I could have stayed angry and fearful, but I made a choice to face my fears and find happiness again.
(musical tuning sounds)
I had to start small, so…I wanted to find the notes.
I started on a journey of feeling vibrations. Through the floor I could feel the drums. And, the bass, I can feel through my chest, and the high frequencies I can feel on my skin, my arms, my face.
(Mandy to accompanist) “I can’t tell if you are playing lower or just louder, so I just kind of want to look. (finger snaps, 1-2-3-4 followed by music). Pull back just a little.”
Before I was just terrified to actually sing in front of people, but losing my hearing was my biggest fear. So, now I don’t have that fear holding me back and I just enjoy singing.
Now I feel the music, like I am a part of it, even though I can’t hear it.
And….I love that about myself.”
( Fred Rogers: March 20, 1928 – February 27, 2003)
Raising children in this day and age is no easy task. ~ Kate Cooper
“A healthy self-love that leads to true happiness is what Rousseau called “amour de soi.”
It builds up one’s intrinsic well-being, as opposed to feeding shallow cravings to be admired.
Cultivating amour de soi requires being fully alive at this moment,
as opposed to being virtually alive while wondering what others think.
The soulful connection with another person, the enjoyment of a beautiful hike alone (not shared on Facebook) or a prayer of thanks over your sleeping child (absent a #blessed tweet)
could be considered expressions of amour de soi.”
“Following Jesus means to incarnate an attitude, a disposition, an openness,
and a receptivity to the divine offer of grace actuated in loving service;
it means taking up a new way of being in the world for God and for
the flourishing of all God’s creation.” ~ M. Shawn Copeland
Found in The Ignation Solidarity Network Blog
“You find me where I can’t be seen…
(my Granny)
before you I’m fallin’,
if it weren’t for your wings I’d be gone…
to grow my own wings I have tried….
in time I will not fear the day…take me to where I can go.” ~ Kate Rusby, Falling
Patty Griffin:
” I don’t know nothin’ except change will come…..time keeps moving….
I don’t know if I’ll ever get home….sometimes you don’t know if you’re walking in the wrong direction.
If you break down, I’ll drive out and find you, if you forget my love, I’m going to try and remind you….
Attendance Please 