Sounds

The world is a place of noise and chaos. People talking over each other. Horns blaring in a twisted line of traffic. Construction works drowning out the sound of your own thoughts. How do we even survive this bedlam? How can we hear ourselves speak if the words are instantly snatched from our lips?

The world is a place of noise and chaos and yet there are still moments suffused with serenity and peace. You just have to listen harder for them. What about those less noticeable sounds that always light our souls whenever we hear them? Those sounds that seem to be magnified a thousandfold when the relentless noise finally ceases. This is what I try to seek in this chaos.

Nature is an orchestra…

a blissful symphony of birds chirping amongst the trees

the haunting ballad of ancient trees swaying in the wind

leaves crunching beneath your feet

the pitter patter of raindrops on the leaves

crickets chirping 

the snap and pop of a campfire 

the tinkling sound of a distant stream

the gurgling of water as it embraces the stones and boulders along the way 

…and the sea is Poseidon’s symphony

the sound of the waves lapping against the shore

the distant caw of seagulls 

the tinkling music of the ice-cream cart 

the sound of the ocean in a conch shell 

pebbles skimming across the water

the sound of your feet walking over wet sand 

The sounds of home…

the sound of a cake batter being mixed with a wooden spoon

slicing a freshly baked cake

the scraping sound of your pen as it dances across the page

pages flipping in the afternoon breeze 

piercing the foil on a new jar of peanut butter

the sound of the knife spreading butter on toast  

placing a steaming bowl of porridge on the table

biting into a marshmallow

rain pattering against the window 

the sound of your dog breathing as he dozes by your side

the scuffling of shoes on wooden floors 

Your favourite song on the radio

the peaceful silence when you’re home alone 

Or what about…

the tolling of church bells on a Sunday 

the sound of distant lawnmowers 

a propellor airplane flying lazily on a warm day

wooden gates creaking with the breeze

the cacophony of animal sounds in a nearby farm

murmurs and footsteps in a museum

the sound of your fingertips caressing book spines in your favourite bookstore

the crinkling of wax paper wrapped around your freshly bought loaf of bread 

What is your favourite sound?