sound impressions

I awoke this morning from the chanting again, in a nearby temple, followed by the voices of the fishermen getting their boats ready in the dark, and then the calls of the roosters from all directions, with the crickets and birds slowly joining in. And I laid there in bed just listening to all the morning sounds and realizing how different sounds create different sensations inside of me, and can I choose the environment I want to live in and receive the influences from the vibrations I hear?

While I was swimming yesterday before dusk in the pool, I could hear the faint clanging of the gamelons as they began to play the ceremonial melodies that had become so familiar to me when I was practicing with them….and then later found myself humming one of the simpler repetitive ones of 8 notes, that created such a mood of expectation. And in bed at night suddenly heard my neighbor singing.

When I took a walk through the village the other morning from every house the television was echoing among the sounds of nature. Yesterday and today the sea has been very still, so there is not the repetitive sound of the crashing of waves on the shore that usually muffles voices and sounds of the motors they sometimes use on the boats. So suddenly fishermen were speaking to each other across the sea to other boats or to friends on shore…such a rare occasion to hear someone yell out, or to be able to hear their conversations, with the lapping of the waves being the stronger of the background sounds usually.

There is also the difference of hearing German spoken among the owners and their guests compared to the rounded playful singy song melodic sounds of the Balinese, and the overtone chanting of the priests, and the sweet "engrish" sounds of the waitress saying "saw reeee…you finnish? (sorry, are you finished eating?) Yesterday I laughed so hard as Nicole imitated one of the contestants on the Balinese "American Idol, A Star is Born " talent show, that was singing a Harry Nillson song "Can't live, if living is without you…" and she was imitating how she was acting like the best singer that was ever on stage and singing "Con eeve ib ibin iss widow oooo .." and when she finished the judges asked her what language she was singing in?! and she said, surprised, "Engrish" (which is the word for English in Indonesian). (She won) Or when her guest Yurgen said that in Ubud there are t-shirts that say : EAT, PAY, LEAVE ( I assume you all know the book EAT,PRAY,LOVE about bali ) so we also laughed at that great ingenuity! And on the other hand was so grateful for USB sticks and laptops and that he was able to give me amazing gamelon music that he had recorded from different ceremonies he had been at and me feeling how it rings inside of me.

So only when a rare motorbike sound is heard from the road that reaches the sea, is there any memory that there is a whole world out there of cars, trucks, bemos, and motorbikes, but to get to the resort you must leave your car 200 metres away and walk. And not to forget the barking of the dogs and the frogs croaking all night and the running water from the lily pool fountain, or the quiet sounds of them sweeping or working in the nearby outdoor kitchen preparing our meal, all done with rarely a word said, and if so then it is a giggle…and of course the belly laughing at almost every meal here, with many inside jokes between them, but when translated I too have a good laugh. And the constant laughter and teasing of the Balinese among themselves, or whenever they see me walking on the street, with or without temple dress and flashlight, it is giggles, or kids yelling "ha- low" and me giggling and saying "hello" back. Rare to hear a baby crying, and have yet to hear a child cry or any fighting between them or any scolding going on from parents.

And when suddenly a fisherman yells out to someone, do I realize that I haven't heard a yell in months, and how comforting the sounds of nature are to me here, living by the sea and the forest.