Being Part of the Symphony

Balbir Matbur: Part of the Symphony

“I plant trees, but I am not the doer of this work. I am the facilitator, the instrument—I am one part of the symphony. I know there is an overall scheme to this symphony that I cannot understand. In some way, we are each playing our own part. It is not for me to judge or criticize the life or work of another. All I know is that this is my dance. I would plant trees today even if I knew for certain that the world would end tomorrow.”—Balbir Matbur in Heron Dance interview (Issue 11) from Inward Outward, Daily Words, October 19, 2016, inwardoutward.org 

Our tickets at the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra were in the third row for many years. At times, we felt we were part of the orchestra. We knew who sat where, when someone new was there, or when someone was missing. We learned a few by name. Many orchestra members were still there when we first came to Little Rock over forty years ago.

I especially remember one moment many years ago when the first cellist had a twenty-second solo close to the end of the performance. Suddenly, his deep, melodious sound was heard above the rest of the orchestra, and then, just as suddenly, he faded back into the background to support the other instruments.

If I had been him, I would have been too nervous the whole night, waiting for that brief moment when the soloist’s voice soared above the rest of the orchestra. The professional cellist, of course, seemed as comfortable blending in the symphony as he was with his solo. He also continuously maintained direct eye contact with the conductor while playing his brief solo part. I later wondered about the many hours he must have practiced this short solo until it was almost part of his being.

The cellist taught me that we spend most of our lives as members of the orchestra with our unique instruments and talents, blending and giving depth to the composition assigned to us. Sometimes, we are called to speak out above the symphony’s music. Before we do this, however, we should be prepared by practicing, knowing our part intimately, especially the timing, and keeping our eye on the conductor. Most of the time, we are called to spend our gifts blending, supporting, and, in many ways, encouraging the sounds of others.

The Topping Out Ceremony of the ASO Stella Boyle Smith Music Center will now be Tuesday, January 30 from 10 - 11 a.m.

New Symphony home

Walking Prayer and Meditation

Thich Nhat Hanh: Walking Prayer and Meditation

“People say that walking on water is a miracle, but to me, walking peacefully on the earth is the real miracle. The Earth is a miracle, each step is a miracle. Taking steps on our beautiful planet can bring real happiness.”—Thich Nhat Hanh, The Long Road Turns To Joy, a Guide to Walking Meditation.

For many years, I would walk around the block in my neighborhood for twenty minutes before going to work at the hospital. This seems to quiet the committee meeting in my head. Putting my feet on the earth, even the pavement of the road, reconnected my head to my body as I become “grounded.”

When I am outside, I realize there is a world greater than where I live daily. There is a power greater than myself.
 I have trouble meditating by simply sitting, but some movement, such as walking, can lead me into that meditative journey. The Vietnamese Buddhist, Thich Nhat Hanh, is one of the most well-known meditative walkers. This pocket-sized book contains simple mindfulness exercises to practice as we walk.
He introduces us to several methods of following and listening to our breath as we walk. He teaches us to be aware of the ground, our feet touching it, and our breath.
My pattern became breathing in on the right foot and breathing out on the left. This was like walking the labyrinth and paying close attention to the path. In mindful walking, as I stay with my breath, no more rooms are available for that committee to meet in my head.
Thich Nhat Hanh compares walking to eating, nourishing our bodies with each step. With each step, we massage the Earth. When the baby Buddha was born, he took seven steps, and a Lotus flower blossomed under each step.
Thich Nhat Hanh suggests we imagine a flower blossoming with each step.
 We can also practice mindful walking anywhere, between meetings, in hospitals, at airports, and walking to our car. The Buddhist monk also offers several poems to recite while walking: “I have arrived, I am home, in the here, in the now. I am solid. I am free. In the ultimate, I dwell.”

Murfee labyrinth El Dorado

MLK Day Remembered

MLK Day Remembered: Racism, Inconvenient Time

“I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro’s great   stumbling block in the stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen’s Council-er or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate who is more devoted to ‘order’ than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says, ‘I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I can’t agree with your methods of direct action;’ who paternalistically feels he can set the timetable for another man’s freedom; who lives by the myth of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait until a ‘more convenient season.’

Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection.”—Martin Luther King Jr, “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” April 16, 1963.

thank you John and Shannon for these pictures

I receive letters, emails, and blogs from friends encouraging me to speak against racism. I also remember being at a dream retreat, where my spiritual director repeated the story of Jacob’s dream of a heavenly ladder several times. Jacob renames the place of his dream Bethel, the house of God or God is present. I remember Bethel AME Church in Little Rock, where I fell in love with that African American congregation. They taught us about racism and poverty when I was a deacon at Trinity Cathedral in Little Rock. We plan with Bethel a celebration of the anniversary of the 1957 desegregation of Central High School. Later, our daughter and two grandchildren would attend that historical school. A few years ago I participated in a prayer breakfast at our sister St. Mark Baptist Church to celebrate MLK’s birthday with my spiritual director. Being there was empowering for both of us.

Today, people worldwide celebrated the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. on the third Monday of January. His actual birthday was January 15th, 1929.
Our liturgical calendar also honors MLK on his death on April 4th, 1968. I feel ownership in his death, since I was a senior medical student in Memphis when he was assassinated. At that time, my world focused solely on finishing medical school. His death made it more difficult for us to get to the hospital, since Memphis was briefly under a curfew and martial law.

I do remember that the dean of St. Mary’s Cathedral carried the processional cross from the cathedral and marched with other ministers in Memphis to Mayor Loeb’s office, petitioning to end the injustices that brought King to Memphis. I also remember Dean Dimmick’s speaking out with his feet had significant consequences for him at the cathedral, losing nearly half its members.

So here we are over fifty years later. How do we carry that cross, as previously modeled for us, walking out into the streets, homes, schools, hospitals, and countryside, speaking and acting the truth with love against violence, hatred, and injustices still present? The examples of MLK and Dean Dimmick would tell us that nonviolence and love are still the way. The events of recent years, recent weeks, remind us how overcoming violence with violence never is the answer. We are called to pray on our knees, to pray standing and walking as we listen to so many in our country who are hurting.  

 I am a storyteller. I share my story with you, especially with our children and grandchildren, surrounding them with love and prayers, hoping we can empower them to do a better job than we have done.

I will be giving a Lenten program at St. Mary’s bookstore at the Cathedral in Memphis at 10 a.m., Saturday, February 3rd.