The Brook's Song

The Brook Would Lose Its Song If We Removed The Rocks

During difficult times, life can be described as a rocky path. Rocky paths are not easy to traverse when we are trying to reach a goal, whether it be a mountain meadow in nature or in our personal life.

In nature, each brook or stream has a unique sound, or melody, determined by the number and size of rocks in the stream. No rocks? No “babbling brook”. A quiet stream does not tickle our ears like one that contains rocks. In a still forest, a babbling brook can be nature’s symphony to soothe our souls or heighten our experience while we might hike past a quiet stream or pool which could become stagnant because of its lack of motion .

Life is like a brook. It inevitably contains rocks due to life’s circumstances. The rocks alter our life’s melody. The size of rocks(difficulties) change the timbre of our life stream. Large rocks can produce deafening, ugly discord in our souls, temporarily destroying the peace. Even smaller rocks alter the tempo of our life’s melody, yet they cause a sound which prevents monotony.

Life’s boulders can have a devastating impact on the events and peacefulness of our souls. While different sizes of life rocks alter the notes of our life’s musical score, and illness and discord can cause a totally dissonant melody, pebbles csn add a richness to what otherwise could be a boring tune.

Loud and crashing boulders eventually move out of our life. While they might have a negative or life altering effect on our life stream, their banging against each other might also have positive effects as they break into smaller rocks and eventually are ground into a fine sand which cushions our life and makes walking in our life stream easier.

Life has been compared to a painting in which an artist begins with a blank canvas. Boring! But as the artist begins splashing color onto the canvas, it becomes increasingly more interesting. Some paint splotches are bold or dark, but they are balanced by small and bright splotches of color. So too with our life stream. Without assorted rocks thrown into the waters of our quiet streams, our life brook would be silent. No music. Sheer boredom! Although there is peace to be found in a quiet stream, there is joy to be found in the gurgling of a brook.

The next time life’s boulders come crashing through your life stream, remember they will disintegrate into increasingly smaller rocks, changing your life’s musical score. But just as the large kettle drum has a place in an orchestra, so too do our life’s assorted rocks have a place in our life’s symphony providing rich sounds.

A quiet stream is beautiful, but how many times does a gurgling, babbling brook make you smile? It is the rocks that create the sound which delights you. It is the rocks of life that add a diverse richness to your soul.