It’s 9 o’clock Thursday night. I just spent the last couple of hours at Memorial Park, at the Drum Circle here in Manitou. Luckily for me, that’s just two blocks away from my house, so it’s an easy walk.
Tonight’s Drum Circle mattered more to me than most, as I am going through a particularly hard time. When I arrived at the park, the first person who approached me was Dale, my dear drumming brother, who said, “You look like someone who could use a hug!”
He was right. And so he wrapped me up inside his big bear hug, while I allowed myself to cry a little.
He encouraged me to “be like the duck” and allow things to roll off my back and to get into the present moment; no future, no past. Good advice.
I saw an available drum, so I sat there, closed my eyes for a minute and felt the beat. I then joined in. We jammed effortlessly together, just as we do every week.
What is it about drum circles that I love so much? Yes, it’s the music and dancing, but it’s also so much more. It’s a microcosm of how humanity CAN be.
In drum circles, there isn’t a hierarchy, but rather each person brings their own unique contribution to the circle. We all willingly enter a matrix of love and acceptance, communicating through smiles, nods and a musical telepathy.
Love, acceptance and music is all there is for those few precious hours. Isn’t this how co-existence and co-creation is supposed to be? Every beat, every rhythm reminding us to simply BE who we are: Divine Humans making unique sounds that the world can dance to and be healed.
I sure was. Thanks again, Manitou. You’re pretty special.
Edie Willhite