Today We Heard The Violins

Most of us have been the recipients of bulk e-mails and while I find I don’t always have the time to read them there was something that caught my eye in one I received yesterday. First, it was from a friend and fellow traveler of ours named Martin and second, it was about violins. For those of you who know me, you know that I have a passion for violin music. There is something about the music that can move me to tears and, as my friend Lois can attest, I listen to it everyday.

This e-mail article was about an experiment done at the Metro station in Washington DC in 2007. Early one morning the renowned violinist Joshua Bell dressed in ordinary clothes and a baseball cap began to play his Stratavarius violin. He played some of the most beautiful and complicated Bach concertos. Over the period of one hour twenty people stopped walking to listen to him play and $32.00 was dropped in his violin case. It was a study about perception. The questions that were raised were these: In a commonplace environment and at inopportune moment do we perceive beauty? If so do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize talent and beauty in an unexpected content? It made me stop and think. Being a devout violin fan I believe I would have stopped and listened to the music. But, how many things do we miss by being preoccupied and in a hurry and can we find beauty in the unexpected?

Today after lunch Tom and drove to a beautiful little town called Priego de Cordoba. We had heard that they had the most beautiful fountains in small piatsa at the end of town.It was a beautiful and sunny day and so we walked the several blocks to get a glimpse of them. The locals will tell you that these are historical monuments and that in the summer this area is swamped with tourist.

We turned the corner and in the middle of a small park were three beautiful and very small fountains. For a moment I was surprised by their size, expecting to see something like the Trevi fountains in Rome. We sat there for a few moments on a bench with a cool breeze and the warm sun and the most incredible thing began to happen. The fountains are a series of three small fountains interconnected by the flow of water. The first one was built in the 16th century and the last in the 19th century. They were at slightly different levels and as the water flowed over a series of rocks from one pool to another it made the most beautiful sound. And, while the fountains were nice, the sound of the water was exquisite.

We sat mesmerized for the longest time just listening. It was well worth the effort to have come. We held hands in silence and sat in the warm sun. We’re sure we heard violins playing.