Rhythm

Jo Bryant, , , ,

There is rhythm all around us. Each day comes with its own sets. Last Friday a friend of my daughter lost one leg in a motorbike accident. As a parent it drew my thoughts to my children and the rhythms and patterns that their lives follow and how one moment can alter those rhythms forever.

Then on Sunday night my mind went back to the same place – for a very different reason.

The Watoto Children’s Choir was in town and giving one performance.

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I went along to the Christian Centre (it is still standing even with my atheist bones having passed through its portals) and stayed on with friends (Church members who were helping to clean up) to have dessert with the choir after the performance.

The performance lightened my spirit in many ways.

The music started to work immediately. Muscles began to jerk, small movements at first…then larger and more prolonged to fit to the rhythms that reverberated in the hall.

The show was interspersed with the children’s stories.

One really made me think about life. About what we so often take for granted. The right to live as we please.

His father had been taken by soldiers and never seen again. His mother died of AIDS. He lived with his disabled grandmother. He was always hungry.

Then he went to live at one of the Watoto villages. He goes to school and lives with a family in a home. He is never hungry. The rhythm of this child’s life has changed.

Once during their lives while living at a Watoto village, these children travel for six months with the choir raising not only money but awareness.

At the same time we were watching these children perform, I remembered that Her Majesty had also done the same with another of their choirs for her Jubilee.

They travel a continent, and then they go home to continue with their journey through their own lives.

On Sunday night I felt the rhythm shift in my own life as the choir filled the hall with their music, their smiles, and their ability to look forward.

This is a video I made of their performance.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

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Published by Jo Bryant

I was born in the land of Banjo Paterson, gum trees, and weather extremes. I am a freelance photographer. I love to make images that make people happy. To capture forever a precious moment. I am also a freelance writer/editor. I live in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand, but still like to claim my Australian heritage. I graduated with a Bachelor of Communications in 2008. I am writing my first novel. I love to write poetry, short stories, and also write for the web. And there is nothing that is on a par with a sunny summer's day spent at Waihi Beach.

28 Comments

  1. This is an amazing post and it reminds me not to take things for granted. I am sorry to hear about the young woman. To be so young and to experience something like that. My thoughts are with her and her family. And thanks for sharing the stories and music of these wonderful performers. I wish I could have seen them live. These events always make me appreciate life more.

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  2. I heard this choir in Melbourne a couple of years ago. Brilliant! Thanks for sharing their poignant story with the blogging world. I especially love the sepia-toned photograph, you have captured an intimate moment there.

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  3. Firstly, am sorry to hear of your daughter’s friends’ accident.

    The ‘rhythm’ of life, though always in our midst, for some reason becomes background music. Then along comes something that alters us and makes us listen a little closer. Anyone with conscience realizes and doesn’t hurt to have a open mind.

    I have heard the choir as well here in Canada. Powerful and moving. A much needed kick in the pants for some – we all need our eyes opened from time to time. Global outreach at its best.

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    1. Hello there !!!!
      Thank you for your thoughts on his accident.
      Love that you have heard the choir…they were such a joy to listen to.
      🙂

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  4. Evidently, the message behind these performances is as important as the entertainment factor. I hope these kids make a difference through their songs and dances. They certainly are enthusiastic in their efforts.

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  5. So sorry about your friend’s daughter. What a tragedy, and it certainly shows that we can only live one day at a time. The performance by these kids is wonderful, and very thought provoking. Thanks for sharing their experiences with me, through your video.

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    1. It was actually my daughter’s friend. A young man who still lives here in town. He is doing okay though still in hospital. I am glad you liked their performance.

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  6. Moving post, Jo, the light and joy that is present in their performance is a testament to these children’s spirits. Glad your atheist bones left everything intact. 😉

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  7. This is just wonderful, amazing Jo and I’m so thrilled that you posted it. What a great bunch of children, how could anyone ever forget them? So much energy and rhythm I wouldn’t be able to keep still for a minute watching them. Here’s to a bright future for these special young people.

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    1. Agreed Gilly. And they were so much fun to talk to after. One boy told my friend that when he grew up he wanted to be a spy…James Bond style. Many of them who graduate university actually go back to the villages to work with the younger children.

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  8. That’s so sad about your daughter’s friend. 😦 I am glad she is still alive, but I know it will require adjustment. I like the message(s) in this post and wow, those kids have such ENERGY! You’re so right about the rhythms of life…and we have to be flexible enough to adapt and adjust when the rhythm changes (as it always does and will). Thanks so much for sharing the music and the thoughtful reminders with us. 🙂

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    1. Thanks Corina…it was actually a young man. When I was thinking about this post it was the one thing that kept coming to mind. Life’s rhythms and how easily they can change.

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  11. the rhythm of life, something we feel instinctively when we are young, and have to relearn when we are older …. nothing stays the same …. so glad to see those young people singing and dancing to create change in the rhythm of other lives, thanks jo!

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  12. Music and singing can bring amazing results, it is so uplifting and what I love about it is the universal language – we can all communicate with music even if we don’t speak the native language. Great, inspirational stories too.

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