Do-Re-Mi…
“Forever - is composed of nows.” From (690) by Emily Dickinson
Do-Re-Mi...
by
Kelly Anderson
Do you remember the scene in The Sound of Music when Maria teaches the Von Trapp children to sing? She describes the notes of the tonal scale, do-re-mi… Do- a deer, a female deer; Re- a drop of golden sun… can you hear it? In song, Maria tells the children, “ When you know the notes to sing, you can sing most anything”. It’s an adorable scene. But singing isn’t really that simple.
Knowing the notes is a starting point, but to actually be able to sing most anything you must also hit the notes, at the right time, with the right tone, on the right octave, while singing the correct words. And you need to hold the note for the prescribed count, and then hit the next note, at the right time... It requires breath control, embouchure, and articulation. It’s more than do-re-mi, it’s complicated. To sing well requires the development of many skills and strengths.
The same is true for just about any endeavor - playing a musical instrument or sport, communicating in a new language, and so many other things. The specifics vary, depending on the activity, but the approach is pretty universal. You start with the basics - playing scales, like do-re-mi; doing drills, like dribbling, passing, and shooting; completing exercises, like memorizing letters and words. You begin to learn the essentials, develop muscle memory, and condition yourself for endurance, speed, precision, flexibility, and control. You build physical, mental, and emotional strengths through a collection of focused exercises. And, if you’re really serious, you develop a routine of effective daily practices.
They say that whatever you do every day, you will eventually do well, and it will forever shape your life. Just as individual drops of water collect to fill a pond, and individual snowflakes form a blanket of white, individual moments of each day construct a life. If you’re committed to learning and building a new skill - committed to continued growth and transformation - there’s no magic involved, just the discipline of effective daily practice. Success may look magical from the outside, but the key is dedicated work on the scales, or drills, or exercises. Every. Single. Day.
I think this truth also applies to profound living. A routine of daily practices clears a path to a profound, meaningful, and purpose filled life. A life in which you thrive. Faithfully spending time in silence, meditation, nature, or journaling brings you into the present and makes room for your own voice and reflection. Regularly following the words of wise mentors guides you along your winding, often hidden path. Daily expressions of gratitude and acts of kindness connect you more deeply to others and the world around you. While the chosen practices will be unique for each individual, focused activities offer an invitation to intention and awareness and a starting point for personal daily practices from which essential truths are discovered and profound living grows.
Christine Valters Paintner said it beautifully, “Practices help us to embody new ways of being. As we commit to living into a particular practice, our hearts are shaped by the daily engagement. Practices provide us with sacred containers through which we can foster presence to our experience and cultivate a radical sense of compassion for ourselves, our community, and creation.”
You can choose what to focus on and therefore what to be. - Thich Nhat Hanh
Recommended Resources
A routine of daily practices clears a path to a profound, meaningful, and purpose filled life
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