bang on de drum
Friday afternoon I left town just a bit too late, too close to Friday traffic going out of the city along the Pike. That and the slush coming down from the sky made the trip to Inspirit Common in Hadley a two-and-a-half-hour one; good thing that just before leaving I had downloaded some talks by Ajahn Brahm (thanks for the suggestion, Rob, what I’ve heard so far is good).
Together with Emily and Bucky (the friends who own and run the above-linked mind-body-spirit center) and their six-month-old son Kadin, I went to a drum-and-dance event. And for the first time ever I played a djembe in a drum circle, for half an hour or so. It’s a rush! I came in with this tightness in the middle of my chest, which almost worked itself out in the course of trancy dancing to the drums, but it was still there afterwards. Sat down to make rhythms, next thing I know there’s a lightness where the bad used to be. Later on in the evening Bucky said, “It opens up the heart, doesn’t it?” That’s exactly what drumming did for me. I will buy a djembe before I buy an iPhone, and that’s saying a lot.
Driving home late at night, I took the long way along Route 9. On and on and on through endless trees and industrial towns and mist. The road looked like it belonged in Neil Gaiman’s stories.
December 9th, 2007 at 9:12 pm
yay! it was great to see you! you should come out for drummy again if you can… maybe you can meet us at the one in cambridge next weekend. (it’s the last one though, ending after 25 years…)
December 10th, 2007 at 8:51 am
You’ll be there?! If you make it all the way from central MA, heck yes I’ll be there.
In case anyone else is reading this and interested, here’s the practical info: 8-11:30pm on Saturday 15 December, at the First Church Congregational, 11 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA (Harvard Square). The website says admission is $8. Not only will it be the last one ever (so far as I know), it’s also a Winter Solstice celebration.
December 10th, 2007 at 11:45 am
Oh, Hi, nice people! :)