Sometimes, I am told to count my blessings. It is a fun thing to do and I try. But, I keep finding new blessings I forgot to count or something I have had for a while but didn't know about. I have been trying to keep an eye on my mind, watching what ideas and images come up. When I sat to meditate today, a simple tune, probably The Wild Horseman, came to mind. Where did that come from? I don't listen to the radio, I don't use an iPod and besides, tunes of that simplicity aren't usually part of the media. It's my wife. She is learning and re-learning the piano. So, in this world of heavy metal and sad ballads, she sends me simple, elegant, time-tested tunes. She sends them into my mind without my noticing.
When I am on a walk and The Spinning Wheel starts playing (perfectly!) in my head, I recognize her handiwork. I have a suspicion that old and tested elementary tunes of this sort grip the mind more deeply and completely. Listening to Berlioz or Mahler puts complex, multi-instrument sounds into my ears and my brain either forgets about them or simplifies them down to a tune. But the piano pieces are relatively direct tones and one instrument and I can and do grasp much of what is going on, without even being conscious of doing so.
I had no idea when we got the piano that I would be thankful for these basic pieces and her practice in my life, just a short time later. Her parents paid for her initial lessons and she spent long hours working and re-working the tunes as a girl. Now, decades later, her old skills and new resolve are enriching my brain. Another blessing to add to my growing list.
