There is a man who always sits in the front row at church, a row typically occupied by brave and enthusiastic congregants or by pastors. He is neither, upon first glance. He sits through the worship with his head bowed. From all appearances he looks bored, disengaged with what's going on around him, or perhaps even sullen. So why does he sit in the front row?
He sits in the front row because he is deaf. By sitting as close to the platform as possible and by sitting down in his chair, he can feel the vibrations of the music and thus participate fully in the worship. He looks down so that his eyes don't distract him from what he's feeling. Because he is lacking a sense of hearing, his other senses are heightened and more acute than mine. Consequently, I can only imagine the nuances between the different instrument and voice vibrations. In some ways he is more engaged than I am in the music; and in that I can learn from him. I love watching him because he has something truly special to contribute to worship on Sunday mornings.
He sits in the front row because he is deaf. By sitting as close to the platform as possible and by sitting down in his chair, he can feel the vibrations of the music and thus participate fully in the worship. He looks down so that his eyes don't distract him from what he's feeling. Because he is lacking a sense of hearing, his other senses are heightened and more acute than mine. Consequently, I can only imagine the nuances between the different instrument and voice vibrations. In some ways he is more engaged than I am in the music; and in that I can learn from him. I love watching him because he has something truly special to contribute to worship on Sunday mornings.
3 comments:
Angela - I can't even tell you how much I love your blog. There's a little lift in my spirit when I see you have a new post up.
I just came across your blog. I just returned to San Francisco after a month in Johannesburg. I loved SA. I'm thinking of going back to live... but I must admit... it's a little scary... just for things like spiders and bugs... ;-) yep I'm a city girl. Thanks for the Blog
Thank you for the kind words, Accidental Poet; you made my day! Coming from you that is a treasured compliment as I respect your writing so much!
Bodytemple - San Francisco is one of the most beautiful cities in the world! I don't have much to say about bugs but if you go where life holds meaning and purpose for you, the bugs (if any) won't matter much. :-)
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