I have been learning piano for about a year and a half and am quietly confident that down the track, I will be sufficiently skilled in being able to play music that I have only dreamed of. If I look back only a year ago, I was relearning which finger corresponds where on the keyboard, and now, as if by magic, I am playing pieces by Chopin, Bach and Mozart! The activity of playing/learning music is wonderfully distracting from the minds incessant chatter, instead, filling it with sounds that traverse the centuries. In this way, I find myself as a bead in the chain of life aspiring in to keep the song going.
The musicians cottage here at Bundanon has a baby grand piano which I practiced on this morning. A first for me playing this type of piano. The notes seemed louder, crisper and more emotive with the 'hood' up on the piano. The cacophony of morning bird chatter was interrupted by my playing and being so far removed from anyone's ears, I played with as much heart as I could muster. So much so that I brought myself to tears! Channelling emotions via music is therapeutic, engaging and replenishing.
After practice, I went for a walk along a dirt road through the forest here at Bundanon in search of new materials for my artwork. I came across some seed pods which I spent then next several hours gleaning and placing into a plastic zip lock bag for later use. On the way back, 2 goannas slid amongst the humus, aware of my silent tracking. A thought came to me that perhaps I'm meant to be afraid of these reptiles. They may see my legs as tree trunks!