7:30 BELLS: Celestial Bells--In the Beginning, there was Wind

Strong winds swept Puget Sound this week, as storm after storm blew in. I love strong, lively winds (no hurricanes, please) that bring the world alive. Wind creates movement where there was none, making trees and clouds dance. Wind creates light where there was none, carving new channels for brilliance. Wind creates sound where there was none, setting bells ringing. If I wrote a genesis story of the universe, the opening line would be: In the Beginning, there was Wind.

And maybe that’s true. There are solar winds, and stellar winds created by supernova stars. I wish my ears were strong enough to hear celestial bells ring!

I imagine the forces that blow through my life as wind. Although they have blown me down roads I never planned to take, they have also brought me alive in new ways. Poet Mary Oliver wrote: "Whoever made music of a mild day?"

Even the inspiration behind 7:30 BELLS came from what first seemed an ill wind. Two months before my trip to Italy in 2012, I tore major ligaments in one foot. And so I limped through Florence, Siena, and Venice unable to see all I had panned. However, I spent more time in the places I did go. Rested on benches in piazzas and museums where I had time to really look, reflect, and write about everything I saw. So my feet limped, but my heart soared. 

And so in the beginning, the wind made the 7:30 BELLS ring.

LORE OF THE BELL

Let great winds blowing over you

lead to new beginnings

Regular 7:30 BELLS Posts run every first, third, and fourth Tuesdays.

7:30 BELLS Guest Posts run on the second Tuesday of every month. Join me on March 11 for a guest post with author Frances O'Roark Dowell.