Green Patches

PG - Parental Guidance

You know that old saying - "Never work with animals or children?" After today I'm tempted to coin another one - "or with parents!" When our two were younger, we used to joke that the PG parental guidance ratings on films referred to those where watching with Mum and Dad was liable to cause terminal embarrassment to offspring as well as untold trauma to easily shockable parents. 

Echoes of that came back to me today as we listened to adult offspring and friend's first go at student radio. They have a regular, weekly slot and this was their first broadcast. 

Help - I was more nervous than they were...Far more! 

Mercifully (for me, that is!), I'm quite often otherwise engaged with churchy stuff on a Friday afternoon.  I don't think I could cope with the strain every week...waiting in fascinated terror for what they might come out with next... those endearing parental quirks and foibles being aired for the entire  world (or at least the whole of East Anglia) to hear.  Mixed with a strange sense of pride; (Oh dear, I just know I'm going to turn into one of those embarrassing Mothers who burst into tears and reminisce with rose-tinted specs on about "their little boy.") They were actually pretty good. OK, the music wasn't exactly my thing. Nor would I expect it to be. And some of the chat...well, just as well my hearing's none too good - my shockometer might go into overdrive. 

But yes, I kind of enjoyed it. I'm indeed A Proud Mummy. My Little Boy has grown up! (Sniff). I'll even  forgive you for casting nasturtiums on my texting skills on air.  Well done! 

 

 

 

Creation's Hymn

We've been singing this morning, Greenpatchdog and I.    Do feel free to hop over to my other blog to read all about it and to'The Ship,'   if you fancy adding your own 'earworm' to the mix. 

Near, far, wherever you are...Franciscan Earworm - reprise

For the curious, this links to The Seven Joys of Mary  not Francis, but I'm sure you'll get the picture. Don't  say I didn't warn you!

What's a girl to do?

When a glance at her coursebook reveals the next thrilling task: "Look quickly through Leviticus 17-26!"  (groan).  (Apart from reaching for the chocolate biscuits, of course.)  Why, dive into her feedreader for some light relief. Mahler Tempo Markings  appears courtesy of Bonnie. Thanks to Weekend Fisher at Heart, Mind, Soul, and Strength for brightening up my afternoon.

Advent

Is a time of preparation says Dave Walker of Cartoonchurch. It's good to see that somebody else struggles with the temptation to turn it into a list of tasks to be ticked off, at the  completion of which you collapse in exhaustion.

It's good to pause awhile before the rush sets in.  It's also interesting to discover what Advent  signifies to different people. In a small group meeting of Franciscans last weekend we did just that; each bringing along something that represented what  the season meant for  us. I must admit, my first reaction on learning what was planned was to pull out my shopping list! However, after careful consideration,  I realised that the long list of 'to do's' was more manageable than I thought, and indeed probably only existed in my imagination.

In the end I took along the Bach Chorale  - Nicolai's 'Sleepers Wake,' which I've happy memories of singing at school with Charterhouse choir. (Or was it Cranleigh?) It's near to  impossible to explain what it conveys to me. Cold  winter evenings; light; expectancy; a sense of the numinous; richly dark and deeper layers of meaning which the music can only hint at? Happily, music has a trick of transcending mere words. It doesn't always offer cut and dried explanations. Which on reflection may say a little about my antipathy to what I see as dogma and one size fits all explanations in matters of faith.  That's not to discount simplicity; far from it.  Richard Rohr talks about being 'Utterly humbled by mystery.' That's what takes my breath away.

Singing a new song (2)

Or... What do Mark 7:33,  YMCA by Village People, and Irish folk song The Leprechaun have in common?

Answer: They're all examples of the dreaded 'Earworm'; that pesky tune you just can't get out of your head and which causes fellow shoppers to give you a wide berth in the queue in Tescos. It's been well documented, you know. According to the BBC:

Research in the

US

has found that songs get stuck in our heads because they create a "brain itch" that can only be scratched by repeating the tune over and over.

In

Germany

, this type of song is known as an "ohrwurm" - an earworm - and typically has a high, upbeat melody and repetitive lyrics that verge between catchy and annoying.

Now I'll admit that YMCA and its ilk brings back happy memories of bouncing round the Isle of Wight in a battered Ford  transit on a student bellringing weekend, with said earworm playing on a tinny transistor radio. However, for the last 24 hours my own personal auditory creepy-crawly has been that 'delightful' Irish folksong mentioned above. I only started learning it yesterday and it's already become, as the BBC article put it, a cognitive itch (sounds better than a 'pesky nusciance,' doesn't it?) that can only be got rid of by repeating over and over again!

By now dear readers, you might be asking another question: What on earth does all this have to do with Mark 7:33, the account of Jesus' healing of the deaf-mute? Well, before someone summons the Anglican equivalent of The Spanish Inquisition, let me explain.  This passage has been floating around on the peripheries of my mind for some months now.  I won't inflict my musings about it on you here; they're strictly personal journal material. But it won't go away, and whenever I think I've puzzled out what it's all about, up it pops again. Do you think there's such a thing as a 'spiritual earworm?'  One of slightly more import  than either  little green men of the pisky variety or Village People, 'delightful' though they might be, (sorry, chaps!).

Now, how am I going to scratch this particular 'cognitive itch?' And what has this to do with sticking your finger in your ear, in the best folk tradition? You tell me.

Incidentally, only last weekend I found that I'm not the only person pondering that particular gospel passage and its implications. Have a look at the excellent 'Finger in the ear stuff' from Maidenhead Methodist Church.

 

Currently listening to - an extra

Another unashamed plug here - this time  for the Wellspring Ensemble  - the classical section of the Wellspring worship group, a group of freelance musicians which promote the creative arts in churches. They're long had a place in my personal 'playlist' though not on the typelist here (they're not on Amazon, and when I try and add their details here the intelli thingy insists on posting up a CD of plainchant by some Benedictine monks!). I've a couple of their CDs, my favourite being their recording Benediction, a selection of the 'blessings' -  improvisations on sacred themes, played out amongst the audience at the close of each concert. I don't know about the surroundsound promised in their most recent work, you have to be there to really appreciate the full effect, which I have -  as they've played locally. Do have a listen. Enjoy.