10th anniversary of Swami Kriyananda moksha (liberation) day.
Preparing for our first trip to Europe since before the pandemic.
And on top of everything else, it’s now been six months since my bone marrow transplant, which means I’m due to restore the immunizations that were wiped out along with the rest of my immune system (hopefully before the trip to Europe!).
Perhaps it’s being in major “crunch time” that has me craving the extremely satisfying “crunchiness” of popcorn! I haven’t given in yet, but maybe tomorrow…
My involvement with Ananda accelerated and deepened throughout 1999. I received Kriya initiation at Ananda Village in May; returned for the Kriya retreat in June; and moved into the Ananda Palo Alto community in August.
Early that fall I learned that there would be an Ananda choir performing Swami Kriyananda’s Oratorio in Italy in May 2000. Although I was not a singer (my only choir experience had been in Mrs. Hall’s fourth grade class!) and had never heard the Oratorio, I absolutely knew that I had to be part of that tour.
However, since there was already a flutist, I had to sing. And although I had more of a low voice, the alto spots were filled, so I was going to have to sing soprano.
And to top it all off, I was hearing about it rather late in the game, with a good portion of the $5000 cost already due as a deposit. I hadn’t even had a chance to meet the tour organizer, but I sent her a check for $125 with the assurance that more would follow (there’ll be further details about this when I write about the creation of my Illuminating Grace CD).
Indeed, the pace of life was speeding up as a result of my increasing commitment to Ananda. And it was at this point that I received two more opportunities to deepen my inner connection with Swami Kriyananda.
Today was all about slowing down and coming back to center.
Last night’s Oratorio was the kind of deep and powerful experience that needs time to integrate and reflect on in order to fully comprehend it.
Somehow the process made me think of a mandala, because the bits and pieces of the experience — the initial vision, the challenges, the hopes, the compromises, the highs, the lows, the people stuff, the music itself, the thrill of performance — all have their perfect place in the intricate complexity of the whole.
A much needed day of resting and doing a whole lot of nothing was a good start to the process.
I played flute tonight on our final rehearsal before tomorrow night’s Oratorio and came away with the thought that maybe playing flute is similar to riding a bicycle.
What I’m referring to is the saying that “you can never forget how to ride a bike.” Because tonight I was actually able to play flute moderately well despite months and months of hardly touching it due to my shoulder issues (after years of playing only occasionally with no serious practicing).
Which must mean that one can’t forget how to play the flute either.
I started to feel curious about it, so I did a little search on the internet. Here’s an excerpt from an interesting article I found: Learning to pedal is no easy feat. But forgetting is harder. For most people, even after decades-long hiatuses, cruising still feels like a breeze. The key is how the brain remembers the task.
Mastering cycling requires a ton of higher-level thinking: Your noggin’s motor cortices plan and execute precise muscle control, the cerebellum helps you balance and time your pedal strokes, and the basal ganglia keep these movements fluid rather than jerky.
It’s precisely this colossal load of cerebral coordination that ensures the skill sticks around.
Well, it’s certainly true that mastering flute took a ton of higher-level thinking and lots of effort (back in the day)! And I guess that “colossal load of cerebral coordination” is why the skill has stuck around.
Tomorrow is our second “Exploring Ananda Music” monthly music satsang for Ananda’s Virtual Community and we’re looking forward to focusing on the Oratorio.
Starting with Swami Kriyananda’s original inspiration, we’ll also share how he went about writing it, the way it’s been received in performances around the world, and our personal experiences with this powerful and sacred music.
Of course, there will be a little bit of singing too.
It should be both fun and inspiring.
And, of course, it’s a great lead up to our LIVE Oratorio performance on Good Friday, April 15 at 7:00pm in the Temple of Light (yep, a shameless plug!). 😉
I’ve decided to share a bit of a health update here, since it’s become clear to people that there’s something going on… 🤔
A while back I was diagnosed with the Big “C”. It’s actually been a few weeks since I last wrote a health update; partly because there wasn’t anything significantly new or different to report, but also because I’ve been quite busy in other areas.
And therein lies the paradox of my life right now…
On the one hand, I feel (and, evidently, look) mostly normal. People see me singing for Sunday service or other events and have a hard time believing that I’m not completely well. That’s okay, because I have a hard time believing it myself!
The busyness I’m experiencing is largely because we’ve committed to doing our Good Friday Oratorio this year. True, it’s with a very small choir, but still…!
Although Oratorio is a big undertaking, we felt the strong inner guidance that this wasn’t the time for the music ministry to pull back, but rather to go for it. So, I’m definitely busier than I originally expected to be right now.
On the other hand, this is a serious illness and the treatment process is getting more varied and intense.
At the end of this month I’ll start two weeks of radiation. Then in early May we’ll meet with doctors to evaluate having a bone marrow transplant, which would mean time in the hospital and a significant recovery period.
So, my challenge right now is wrapping my mind around both of these realities at once: that I feel fine and filled with energy as I continue singing and serving through the music ministry, while at the same time I’m adjusting to the possibility of being out of action for longer than I can really imagine.
For now, it’s enough to keep taking things one step at a time, even while seeking to understand what it all means in the Big Picture.
In the meantime, I’m beyond grateful for all the prayers and good wishes. 🙏😊
Lately I feel like pinching myself to make sure I’m not dreaming…that singing together in increasing numbers really is starting to happen again!
We were already approved to have a small live choir for this year’s Good Friday Oratorio, but now it looks like we’re going to have another small choir for an event later this month.
Plus planning is getting underway for Spiritual Renewal Week at the end of June, for which we just might be able to have a fullchoir — for the first time in over two years.
Swami Kriyananda singing for the Oratorio in Palo Alto (2008)
I’ve got to keep this short in order to get ready for our first Oratorio rehearsal in the Temple of Light since March of 2020!
Yep, we got the go-ahead to have an actual choir. True, it has to be a very small one of less than twenty singers, but we’re still thrilled. It’s been way too long since we did the Oratorio.
There are two upcoming programs I want to mention in particular, because — surprise, surprise — there’s some wonderful music on offer!
First is an Easter weekend retreat, which will include our first performance of Swami Kriyananda’s Oratorio in the Temple of Light at Ananda Village. Although the choir will be small in numbers, it will still be a powerful experience!
The following weekend is a special Springtime at Ananda retreat, featuring the Joy Singers in a pre-dinner concert in the gardens.
If you’re looking for an uplifting, nurturing, spiritual weekend, I’d love to see you at one of these events!
