White Noise

It was the line in his poem ‘To The Mountains’ that I have had going round and round in my head.

To The Mountains

Peace

whipped around by the wind

warmed by the winter sun

sung to by the battered flax

frowned upon by the commanding mountains

But peace, easy in its age old form

Free from a man’s ambition

Peace, rolling lazily

across the tussock and rock-strewn land

echoing its message from long ago

Inviting a response from deep within

Flirting with my spirit

to arise and come forth

to look to the mountains

from whence my help comes

to the source, the author

of peace.

“Sung to by the battered flax”

It conjures up such a good picture of the flax, with those thin but fibrous leaves beating against each other as the wind makes the percussion ring out. It’s nature doing its thing, all working together in harmony.

Nature ‘doing its thing’ is everywhere. We were on our lakeside walk the other day and you could hear the wind in the trees, the waves lapping the shore. The crunch of the frost breaking under our boots and the stream gurgling early morning. Or today, it was very still, hardly a breath of wind, but the birds were enjoying themselves full chorus. I took a few moments to just listen. Winter brings the fire crackling, while summer brings cicada’s song and bugs all a chattering. There’s nature noise everywhere.

I’ve heard it said that once you get used to the silence you discover that its not a silent world at all. I guess this was displayed in the recent lockdowns. From my perspective, the quiet was WONDERFUL. So peaceful. After a couple of weeks people everywhere noticed more bird life around. We had a couple of Fantails (Piwakawaka in Maori) that decided being inside our house was great. They flew around quite happily often perched on the top of the door just observing us. We did have one that decided to perch on a lampshade and has totally destroyed it with his anxious pooping as he fought with his own reflection in the mirror behind. Perhaps he was a bit more of a nuisance, but generally, it was lovely having their chitter-chatter and lively flitting about the place.

It was as we walked the lake, that I began wondering if perhaps, God has already made all the ‘white noise’ we need. It seems more and more people are needing this ‘white noise’ to sleep and be at peace. Our world makes so many demands on us keeping our cortisol levels so high, when some quiet from all our industrious activity and thinking might be just the answer. To take some time each day just enjoying the sounds nature provides us with. It’s an idea…

What’s your favourite nature noise? Where does the world become peaceful for you? Sitting on the beach listening to the waves rhythmically roll in? In the quiet of the bush with birds calling to each other? Or hearing a stream tumbling gently downhill? I am definitely a sea girl, but I won’t be able to hear the wind in a flax bush without thinking of his line “sung to by the battered flax” … white noise.