Many drops of water

[vaneramos]

A dried flower head Brenna found and brought me for Christmas (lilac?).

~~~~~~~~~~

From an article by Oliver Moore on globeandmail.com:

But even though measles kill 600,000 people every year, diarrhea another 1.8 million and tuberculosis nearly two million, charities have learned the hard way that front-page news is often needed to break the public out of their lethargy.

"As many people died of AIDS¹ since the tsunami as died in the tsunami," pointed out David Morley, executive director of Médecins Sans Frontières. "But it's not a shock any more."

¹150,000

~~~~~~~~~~

From the song, "How Different Can We Be?" by Ruth Elaine Schram:

Many grains of sand make the shoreline;
many drops of water make the sea;
many flowers make the garden;
many threads a tapestry. . . .

Kept apart by fences or walls, separated by geography;
still our hearts can sense we are all many parts of the whole.
How different can we really be?

~~~~~~~~~~

Being one who doesn't cry easily, I tend to forget how readily music brings it out. I was pulling into the parking lot of the church yesterday afternoon when it occurred to me, but by then it was too late to go back for Kleenex; I would have to get some toilet paper from the restroom.

I also should have paid attention to the concert programme, which was emailed to choir members beforehand. Then I might have been prepared to hear the "Sanctus" from Faure's Requiem performed live for the first time, by the three other choirs that joined the Wellington-Waterloo Rainbow Chorus for the tsunami benefit. I might have been prepared for "Four Strong Winds." (I still wouldn't have been prepared for the lovely "When the Stars Fall", by Andy Beck, which was new to me.)

And if I had thought about it, I would have considered how good it would feel to end the concert all together singing "In Remembrance" by Eleanor Daley, and Leon Dubinsky's "We Rise Again." My queer choir has participated in a number of previous choral events with these same community ensembles, but always our collective performances included Christmas carols, the "Hallelujah Chorus" or church hymns.

The Rainbow Chorus is strictly secular. We tackle religious music in very limited doses. Many members are far more sensitive than I about religious lyrics. So those communal hymns always feel like a necessary evil, a compromise we make for the progressive privilege of participating in a choral community that has set aside considerable prejudice in order to include us. This is happening, remember, in a city of only 107,000 people. In a diverse and tolerant environment, everyone has to bend a little.

So it touched me deeply that whoever planned last night's concert chose the Daley and Dubinsky pieces, both entirely nonsectarian, spiritual but without religious references, for us all to sing together. That was probably the influence of Allison MacNeill, our straight accompanist, who is also choir director of Harcourt Memorial United Church. A real ball of energy, that woman, and never a flash of temper. I've seen her in many tense situations, but she is always gracious. A doer, one who brings together the disparate parts, a maker of musical and personal harmony.

Harcourt United is a great supporter of our choir, too, hosting all our rehearsals and concerts. Last year it became Guelph's first affirming United Church², and the first mainline congregation to conduct same-sex marriages. Paster John Butters' daughter and her female partner were married in the sanctuary a few months later.

Allison, John and the female clergy (whose name escapes me at the moment) were also the brainstormers who brought together last night's event in less than a week.

Four choirs, 120 voices, 42 of them from the Rainbow Chorus. By 8 p.m., before the beginning of the drumming circle, the event had already raised almost $15,000.

Most of the music, like Faure's Requiem, was transcendent and uplifting. It was a confusing experience: I felt happy and proud to be a part of it. Fortunately I got all the gushing out of my system during rehearsal. But when I think of the reason for it happening, those feelings falter. And the tsunami only illuminates a tiny fragment of the suffering that goes on in this world, most of which we in wealthy countries ignore.

..........

²The United Church of Canada, considered our most liberal Protestant denomination, leaves the choice up to individual congregations whether to become affirming: officially welcoming queer people. To do so requires a lengthy democratic process. Harcourt underwent several years of deliberation before passing the decision by a narrow margin. The United Church was formed in 1925 from the union of the Methodists, Congregationalists and 70 per cent of the Presbyterians in Canada.

Comments

[poetbear.livejournal.com]

it does look like lilac.~paul

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

It reminded me of hydrangea, which confused me for a while. I'm still confused. I didn't think lilac petals persisted that way. I suppose in my experience the old heads were always pruned off before they reached this stage.

[jwg.livejournal.com]

My first thought was hydrangea. If I were in Gloucester I'd look because we have both examples there (maybe they are still there).

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Huh, I just love some Tavener, but that one didn't appeal to me for some reason.

Do you know the Faure Requiem? It is incredibly different from all the others: entirely sublime and peaceful. My other favourite is Brahms, but I like Mozart, too.

[detailbear.livejournal.com]

The choir at the Unitarian Fellowship of London did the Fauré requiem back when I was a member. I got to sing the Kyrie solo. Still one of my most moving moments.

[detailbear.livejournal.com]

Oops. The solo in the Offeratory.

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

Okay, that makes more sense. :-)

[vaneramos.livejournal.com]

That is awesome, Kevin. I didn't realize you were a singer. I must remember to let you know about our spring concert; maybe you can come and hear us.

[detailbear.livejournal.com]

I'd like that. I wish there was a GMC in London.