Being in Tune

         Throughout my life I have had many occasions when I worked at being in tune.  In my teenage life as a band member of our high school I knew the need of finding just the right pitch for my instrument to be in tune with the rest of the musicians.  As that chapter came near drawing to a close I found myself to be the concert master (mistress?) that played the note for each section, listened, suggested whether they were sharp or flat, worked to get just that right sound.  Since those days there have been many similar moments.  It isn’t always something that can be fixed with a small adjustment.  Listening in choir when someone’s voice if off-key, even just a tad, can make my teeth feel on edge, nerves fraying.  I can’t fix that, but I do need to overlook it.

            Recently I attended a symphony orchestra concert and listened to the tuning procedure prior to the concert, then again after a short intermission.  A change in temperature,  drying of reeds, lubrication insufficient---so many little things can throw off that unified sound.  Those who seem unable to find the right pitch can destroy the overall performance of a wonderful group, regardless of the hours of practice prior.  The effort  to be in tune is repeated over and over, until it meets as closely as possible to the wishes of the conductor.

            I have been reading Emily Freeman’s book 21 Days Closer to Christ.  It reminds me of how often we need to work at staying in tune with our Savior and His teachings.  Hopefully He is the conductor in our lives and has patience as we work to stay on pitch. Small, seemingly insignificant, things in our daily lives throw us off so easily and we cannot seem to find just that “right note.” Sometimes we go into a complete discordant overture!

 We are imperfect beings, everything won’t fix,  we are often most harsh on ourselves, even though we may blame others.  We may wander for lengthy periods without realizing that we are the ones who are out of sync.  Just as in music it takes repeated effort and reflection, a “good ear”to find the tone we are seeking. Then more effort is still required to cling to that soul enhancing feeling that lets us understand we are “in tune.”  For me it is an eternal quest.  I daresay I am not alone.

Where Did I Put It?

Been trying to organize much of my house, throw out, label, throw out, etc.  Orderliness is a state of being we all need. The anti-clutter is a good thing, it simplifies.  I believe this to be true and am aiming to get to that state.  However, I also know from my years of experience that just living in our society brings in much clutter.  Try picking up your daily mail for starters.

Paper coming into a household, even the necessary papers, start to build a paper mountain.  And keeping the info on the computer doesn’t make this vanish, because we all know that the computer fails and ‘poof’, there goes the works!  It isn’t all paper either that wants keeping.   Just “stuff” from living, the ancestor heirlooms of one type or another, the sentimental memory objects from our past,  our collections that are part of the definition of who we are…..and on and on.

  I do think I am making progress.  Some of you are blessed with organization talents.  I think that is not me.  I didn’t bring that talent with me to this earth, I am trying to learn.  Me and my activities, that part I can schedule just fine, the stuff, not so much.  Now I am attempting to remember where I put this or that in this latest organizing process.  My husband asks me where thus and such is, and I can’t remember.  When I had organized chaos I knew where things were. 

That isn’t the way it is supposed to work.  The articles, books, etc. on the need of organizing, simplifying and such, say that doing this will bring peace and contentment.  Frustrations from searching for something should vanish, smiles appear and life turns into smooth sailing.  That is what the organization gurus all claim.  When does this happen?  Will I have to wait until I manage to get every room in the hoped for organized state?

I am  now telling myself that it is just a new learning experience supposedly good for my aging mental capacities, if they do not drive me to the point of escape first.  Perseverance is my theme for this spring cleaning binge.  I know this isn’t temporary, it will be spring, summer, and on into the future---- once “done,” it needs constant vigilance to keep from lapsing back into past habits, etc. 

Rockin Party

When spring weather arrives around here and a field is newly plowed, close to being ready for planting, there are always good sized rocks that find their way to the surface.  Not quite boulders, but they are sufficiently large to cause damage to farm machinery that travels across the fields during the year.  My husband's solution to this has always been to have a "rock party."  Family and neighbors are "invited" to come help with the gathering of stones, limiting potential damage that might occur once he gets planting underway, not to mention the harvesting. 

A big tractor moves slowly  along,with a large loading bucket on the front, as the rock pickers walk along each side, targeting the biggest chunks.  They bend, pick up the rocks and toss them into the bucket.  It requires constant movement, down, up, toss, repeat. One also has to keep a lookout to prevent making a connection with the missiles being tossed.  When the bucket is loaded it is emptied onto a dump truck and it starts all over again.  All ages are welcome, no particular skill required, only willingness and a smile.

We have just finished a rock party, with only one injury out of the ten pickers.  A head wound with much blood, but applying an icy cold compress from the spring water that fills our pond tightened up the blood vessels quickly so that only the pain was present.

There is a reward of sorts for all the effort.  Besides the camaraderie that binds us together there is a weenie roast and s'mores at the end of the backbreaking work, visiting and the glow of the twilight campfire.  And there is a large dump truck full of good sized rocks should someone wish them for landscaping or whatever.   It is nice that rocks are now in demand for the beautification of property these days.  

When we first started this endeavor there was no great demand for rocks of this size.  You are wondering if we have never heard of those machines called "rock pickers."  Certainly, but we have never been able to afford one and thing of the good times we would have missed over the years.  Our children have fond memories, or maybe not, of this procedure and I am sure it is something they reflect upon from time to time.  None of them have gone into the farming business and this might have had something to do with their grownup choice of occupations.  However, the 15 year old neighbor confided to me this year that "this was kind of fun."  Yep, he's a great kid with the right kind of attitude.

Being Single-minded

My life took me to Cub River the other day, 'twas a soggy, wet, snowy day.  Driving took concentration with all the slush on the pavement pulling the car one way or the other.  I rounded a curve and slowed even more.  Ahead was a long column of turkeys that were just beginning to cross to the upper side. 

           

My approach did not disturb these birds in the slightest.  Single file, they kept advancing, one by one, not one feather ruffled, as they marched through the slush.  I stopped and waited while twenty-four of Cub River’s finest large feathered friends finished the crossing.  Only one appeared to have felt a bit nervous, jumping sideways and lifting a wing.

           

This single-mindedness made me remember that my aunt used to describe her daughter, along with myself, as being “one track minded.”  This was not said in a complimentary fashion.  My aunt was not happy with our being intent on carrying out whatever had caused her comment.  Now, as an adult, I realize that this being on one track mentally is not necessarily a bad thing, nor is it always a good thing.  It all depends on what is on that track. 

           

Those turkeys were nearly oblivious to me and had I been so inclined I might have been a threatening force to their very existence. (However I know it is not easy to run over these birds.)  We often go through our days rather oblivious to our surroundings, we block out any mental disturbance.  Sometimes we are so certain that what we have in mind is the most important thing, the most correct.  Does our single-mindedness cause us to miss worthwhile opportunities that might intersect our path?

           

At the same time, this same mental quality of staying on course is what helps us to accomplish much.  If we bounce around, rubber-ball style, at the end of the day we usually feel we come up short of our goals that we set as the day began.

            Seems to me we need a flexible one-track mind.  Is there such a thing?      

Yes, or maybe No

Why have I had such a difficult time to begin this "outlet?"  I have been asking myself this question for the last three months since it first occurred to me to become a blogger.(with an additional push from friends and family.)  It is something I had never considered for myself even as I have been enjoying the musings of others.  All during this time, and way beyond, I write.  Writing has become a force that drives me.  Somehow just the weekly newspaper column stuff, my journaling, my family history stories, these three outlets do not seem enough.  My head is still filled with extra words, perceptions,and observations that I find scribbled on the backs of envelopes, jotted on my car notepad.
Then there is this block of "what do I call the blog?"  I have batted a number of things around and this is what I chose, since it comes from my "noodle" and covers more of the whole kit and kaboodle of what makes me tick. Maybe that should be "tock" as I seem to talk much better with written words than those that come out of my mouth. Often I am the insert foot variety when it comes to conversations.
I am a work in progress, as are we all,  hopeful of becoming who I truly am.  Since this urge seems programmed within my soul perhaps this blog will help me in that discovery.  And, so, I am stepping off the edge of my self-imposed cliff.  For those reading I hope you find something of worth, something to enjoy.