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Martha's Big Adventure

Sound Waves

By MARTHA RANDOLPH CARR

The sounds around us, and these days there's even more, can be either beneficial or whittle away at our sense of well-being. Volume, quantity and quality play a part in how we take in the auditory wallpaper that envelopes each of us every day. Spend any amount of time in a big

Martha Randolph Carr

metropolitan area like New York City and you will start to feel saturated by noises of every kind.

Voices, traffic, construction, the subway all start to amass in our heads. Add to that the drama of arguments or ambulance sirens and you can see how our emotions and blood pressure start to get entangled in what is really none of our business. No wonder iPods are so popular. Even people who live in what used to be referred to as the quiet suburbs now have to contend with the inventory of cell phones and increased traffic along with the old standards of droning lawn mowers, leaf blowers and TV's running in the background.

For anyone, like myself, who walks to most of their destinations along city streets the large variety and the volume of the sounds around us can sometimes feel not only overwhelming but as if it is chipping away at our inner sense of peace.

It can become necessary to find ways to calm the senses once we have gotten behind closed doors. Simple meditation may not be enough. The solution to the onslaught becomes how we use the sounds that are under our control, which then makes it easier to accept the other portions.

Don Campbell, who is famous for The Mozart Effect has been translating music for over thirty years, showing us how we can use music to improve learning, health and generate a sense of overall well-being. His newest book and CD called Sound Spirit is meant to address an even deeper element within each person, the spiritual connection. He leads the listener through new ways to "listen, pray and pursue their own harmonic journey to higher consciousness." The purpose behind his new work is to help us remember our natural state of spiritualism.

"Music penetrates the depths of mind, body and soul. Every sentence we speak, every prayer we think has a rhythmic and tonal flow that opens multiple doors of intuition, inspiration and actual physical responses," said Don. Hence, the reason why aggressive noises can become more than the listener can bear. However, we can use the same knowledge to reverse the trend and even go beyond where we see ourselves in the present moment. "The elements of music can re-pattern the way we think, feel and move," he said. That can also mean that if you're trying to build a better life for yourself and your family the quality of the sounds you surround yourself with can play a part in whether or not you're successful and how you feel about the journey.

But don't stop there. We can even learn to listen more effectively when out in the world so that sound pollution bothers us less. "By learning to listen with our inner ears, to move ever so subtly to rhythm and then to feel the power of tone always leads us to joy," said Don. In other words, respond rather than always react to the sound waves.

Add in those moments when we can escape the sonic blasts and choose the music we hear and we may start to see ourselves as happier overall. "Music aligns the inner and outer worlds. It modifies our breath, heart beat, brain waves, muscle tension and skin temperature and quickens our inner spirit; the wireless connection to God," said Don.

Rather than try to endure the sounds or just complain we can learn to adjust and take care of ourselves whenever possible. It's a good rule to carry into every area of our lives on our path to becoming even more of the person we envision. More adventures to follow.

Martha Randolph Carr's latest book, A Place to Call Home, a memoir about the reemergence of U.S. orphanages is available wherever books are sold. If you'd like Martha or Don Campbell to come and speak to your group visit: www.newvoicespeakers.com. Author's email: Martha@caglecartoons.com or visit www.martharandolphcarr.com