We are born with it, all of us that
walk the earth in human form. With a yearning, a longing, something inside us
that says, "I want, I need, I crave.....something. I am incomplete... ."Something is
missing, and with our first cry we felt the pining for it....There is an
emptiness inside of us that needs must be filled....
For
all our earthly days, most of us are on a quest for that elusive something -
and we give it various names as we seek: happiness, love, peace, money,
success, power... For me, some time
back, my visualization of that which we needs find took musical form.
Anyone
who has ever sung with one or more other persons has experienced it - the sense
of unity, of a joint happening that brings sweet pleasure. Its enjoyment depends on the ability of each
person to sing each note in a way that will combine with the others in a way
that does not jar, that does not result in dissonance. And when they succeed in this, one might
compare the result symbolically to the image of peace - of a state of being in
which we are not at odds, where we do not war with each other, but rest easy
each in our place.
But
my own inner longing tells me that what is wanted, what is possible is more
than peace. And, in my musical
metaphor, I find the most perfect expression of that something more... It
happens in the moment that, rather than merely singing the same notes, notes
that rise sweetly together, adding power and beauty to each other, a new note
is heard. A note is sung different from
the others, but not dissonant. No, it
is a note that, with its own special quality and essence, adds something to the
whole that brings us to a whole level of joy and fulfillment. It blends with the others with a kind of
unity, but retains its own individuality.
And it is exquisite, to those that have ear to hear.
Whatever
technical explanations there are of harmony in music, what it is and how to do
it, are beside the point here. For, I
am suggesting that harmony, the bringing to the musical table of a variety of
different tones that come together in a rich and consonant whole, is the
perfect metaphor for the ideal condition of humankind.
It
is more than mere peace, the absence of discord, that we seek. It is even beyond love, though love is a
part of it, and love is one of the powers that can bring it about. For, as we've all found to our dismay, we
can love and still have problems, conflicts - even sometimes brought about by
the imperfection of that human emotion.
Harmony is the joy of singing our own song, freely and honestly, and
finding ourselves singing beside and with others who, singing the melody that
they in turn were born to sing and delight in, blend their voices with ours in
a sublime chorus that feels absolutely right.
It
is this metaphor that I came to when I chose the title of this book. For I believe that we were created for this
- to find our way to the harmony of souls and lives and gifts that alone will
finally fill the emptiness and still the yearning we live with - to feel
complete. To feel we are finally home -
the place where we are meant to be and need to be. It is not, moreover, a static place, an ending. It is a place that is safe, is loving, is
joyous, and a place where we can continue to express all the songs we have in
us, together with each other -- creating new harmonies -- in a sense, a
heavenly choir on earth.
Images
of home abound - and move us, often to tears.
Consider the power of Martin Luther King's "I have a dream"
speech. It brings us in imagination to that place he speaks of, where black and
white together will join hands in love.
Interestingly, he includes here a musical reference - to the old Negro
spiritual that cries "Free at last, free at last." Not only does this
relate to the feeling of bondage, of frustration and unhappiness and
hurtfulness we all live with, but it gives us a musical image of home.
This
is no coincidence. Think how people
working together, playing together, marching together, are moved to song. Think how the mother sings her child a
lullaby to "lull" him or her to rest. Think of the poignancy of Judy
Garland's singing of "Over the Rainbow", and of the song,
"Somewhere", in West Side Story". Music is an instinctive part
of our life's journey, and one that has power to both evoke images of home and
to bring us closer to that place of rightness and joy.
This
book, which started in my mind as a book of stories in the mode of
"Victories Without Violence", by A. Ruth Fry, has taken on a life of
its own. I'm not sure of its journey,
of the roads it will travel, of all the places it will visit. It seems to want
to explore the ways in which people have encountered their dissonance with
others and moved together toward the harmony for which we are made. Some of the stories here are
"true", that is, they actually happened in the earth realm. Others are the product of imagination,
whether in song, story, television show or movie. Some show people merely avoiding violence, others depict amazing
transformations of distressing situations and/or angry people. All present
images of reaching toward home.
It is my fervent prayer that I may
follow faithfully the spirit that calls me to this work, and that it may give
some small assistance on their journeys to those on the long road home.
Contact Liberty Goodwin,
401-351-9193, or E-Mail: friendliberty@quakerworks.net,
If interested in this book in
progress
HOMESICK FOR
HARMONY
A PARTIAL
FIRST DRAFT/OUTLINE
Surprise,
Courage, Seeking the Good, You Get What You Give, Laboring With the Other,
Transforming Love. This part of the
book will include short (one-two-page) discussions of each concept, followed by
stories from life that illustrate each.
Surprise: The first step in
change - the potential victim does something unexpected, forcing the aggressor
to stop a minute and think about it. Result: Window of Opportunity.
Courage: Not only is
courage necessary to approach someone weaponless and non-threateningly, but it
sometimes impresses the other enough to transform the situation all by itself.
Seeking
the Good: The realization that a measure of good lies
hidden in the other empowers one to reach out to him.
You
Get What You Give: The same words can bring an opposite
reaction if said in different ways.
Peacefulness and respect are contagious.
Laboring
With the Other: Using sensitivity, active listening,
understanding, clearness, honesty, openness, caring, and sometimes firmness to
reach a mutually acceptable means of dealing with the conflict.
Transforming
Love: The greatest power for change in any human
being is real, accepting, unselfish love.
Especially when rooted in Spirit, it can touch the other in a miraculous
way, bringing harmony in its wake.
Cinematic
Conflict Handling, TV's Better Side, Biographical Role Models, Fine Folk in
Fiction, Story Songs That Inspire.
To some extent, what we read, watch,
sing and hear helps mold our world views, our concepts of the way things are,
what is possible, and what should be.
Fortunately, there are numerous impressive examples of desirable
behavior in relationship to human conflict to be found in the various
media. Brief summaries of some of them
will make up this latter section of the book.
NOTE:
Somewhere in the book, there will be some stories of the amazing
experiences of the author during a long and unique life.
SUGGESTIONS & QUESTIONS
WELCOMED
Contact Liberty Goodwin,
401-351-9193, or E-Mail: friendliberty@quakerworks.net
*