Monday, August 27, 2007


THE SUMMER OF THEIR CONTENTMENT


Now that the cooling days of late August are here, the insects that sing of night are singing of day as well, full in the summer of their contentment… Here in a mountain breezy afternoon I can't begin to count the variety of choruses from earth, underbrush, tree and sky-- it is impossible to distinguish, into their exquisite threads, all the woof and warp of this skywide tapestry of song...

Last night a singing insect of a kind I'd not yet heard (i.e., not paid attention to) began singing through our screen door-- or rather, sounded, for it was not so much a song as an unadulterated call, unrefined for human ears of course, it was a summons to all kindred, with a rhythmic generation more sensation than sound, defying such mereness as ears, meant for entire bodies of the proper size and impulse, a vibration of greater measure than humanity allows... would that I could hear beyond our mundane range to the sonic rainbow this song implied, with its attention-perturbing power.

On and on it went as we do in our own conversations, but this was only one, giving all there was, awaiting a response in its brief turn at life and what it means to say... A little Zen master, unseen, offering nonetheless a cosmic koan. The same heaven was born in us, if we have not been taught - and learned - to forget…

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ciao Roberto-san,
I remember the beautiful summers when I was living in Japan. Japanese summer has always been special for me because one can hear the singing sounds of a variety of "semi", cicada's. Also I have beautiful memories of summer "matsuri's". Roberto-san, do you have a recent photo of you somewhere in your blog? I really love your website. Thank you for providing us nice memories of Japan.
Ciao
Frankie

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much Robert. Your's is a most desireable place for me to visit within the blogsphere. I needed that.