Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Ringing Bells



I was on my way home from work this evening, tired, and not at all impressed with the amount of traffic still out and about at 9.30pm. The Christmas shopping frenzy has obviously started with a vengeance. The cars were bumper to bumper with most people resigned to having to crawl home but there were a few others who were not so stalwart. I had the radio on but couldn't find any station that didn't have mindless "pop" music so I turned it off and opened the window.

The glorious sound of bells came roaring in! Real bells. With people pulling ropes. Big, loud, clanging, donging, uproarious bells, making such a racket. It was absolutely glorious!

I love the sound of bells. They resurrect all kinds of memories and emotions within me. Sometimes, long forgotten incidents will present themselves, unbidden, at the random dong of a solitary bell. The deep, sonorous sound of heavy bells clanging in melodious unity strikes a resounding chord within my soul.

They lift my spirit, gladden my heart and make sitting in traffic jams very worthwhile.

5 comments:

Barbara said...

Ring them bells! They are so much more pleasant than the noise of the street or the blare of someone's car radio. They are such natural sound.

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

I have a similar emotion about bells. The peaceful ringing of bells is like knowing all is right in the world.

Pauline said...

Don't you love it when in moments of stress something beautiful happens? Glad you were paying attention ;)

meggie said...

To hear bells is lovely. The small town where I grew up, didn't seem to have church bells. Or, perhaps we lived too far from the churches to hear them.
The Cathedral Bells in Christchurch sounded lovely.

Tanya Brown said...

Does it seem to you that genuine hand-rung bells are becoming more an artifact of the past? Sad if that's the case. Stanford used to have a carillon player who'd hammer out tunes now and then, but now I think such things are more automated.