I Need Music

I tried to write yesterday, but the words just were't there.  I was going to tell you I had "the blah's", but who doesn't?  That sounded too close to a whine.  I thought I'd pick up the pace today, so I'm wearing a little make-up, my hair is clean and styled, and I'm wearing a cute top.  I does help me feel more like myself than like the slug of yesterday.

Last night before turning out my light, I read a book review by Atul Gawande in the March 23 edition of The New Yorker. My husband reads the magazine religiously and passes on to me the items I might enjoy.  Gawande is a favorite.  He's a surgeon who writes beautifully on medical issues.  You may have read one of his best-selling books.  He reviewed a book by Anne Case and her husband, Nobel laureate in economics, Angus Deaton called The Blight.  The crux of the book is that the American economy and the structure of work have changed in ways that have created a climate of despair among white working-class men without college degrees.  This population is experiencing a public health crisis from "deaths of despair" - alcohol and drug abuse and suicide.

One statistic in the article that resonated with me is that only one-third of the general population
attends religious services today.  I was already aware that attendance has fallen off considerably in most of the mainline denominations to varying degrees.  Many survey respondents indicate that they are "spiritual but not religious".  If you want to rile up my priest, just quote this data point! 

As she so rightly points out, even Jesus gathered a group of disciples as his companions.  Whether or not it was exactly twelve exactly males is beside the point.  Even the God in human form needed community. The National Cathedral and my own church, St. Thomas, Springdale, are streaming worship services on YouTube as we observe social distancing.  I greatly appreciate the effort that goes into these services, and they are keeping me as connected as possible in this unique time.

Even so, it doesn't feel like Lent to me.  I'm reading and hearing the Lenten scriptures.  I'm informed by excellent sermons on the texts.  Can I put my finger on anything in particular?  I realized that I'm strongly dependent on the hymns of each church season to draw me into its essence.  I can pick out hymn tunes on the piano, but there is something about the entire congregation plus choir singing together that touches a deep place in my soul.  Singing resonates within our bodies, and the effect of many voices filling the nave ushers me out into the world with a refreshed heart. I will miss that until we can meet again.

I sang in a choir in high school that often featured an anthem with this text.  It soothes my heart today:

God be with you 'til we meet again;
by His counsel's guide uphold you,
with His sheep securely fold you;
God be with you 'til we meet again.