If you can’t read music
Then reflect on the sounds
And figure out
What they are trying to say.
If you can’t read music
Then learn how to appreciate silence
Especially the ones
Haunting you in the dead of night.
You will probably miss it
In the big crowd
Those gyrating mass of bodies
Seeking relief
From existence gone mad.
The solace of music
Is in the intimacy of a living room
With just a few living souls
Following the gentle cadence of notes
That elicit scenes from childhood
Of adolescence gone
Of loved ones who will come no more.
If you can’t read music
Then find it
In the newly born baby’s lips
Following the rays of sunlight
And suddenly flashing
An angelic smile
After nine months
In the mother’s womb.
If you can’t read music
Then find it in the periphery
Of your garden
Where plants unexpectedly sway
To the sound of joy
Or the sound of grief
Even as butterflies hop by
Looking for moments of calm.
If you can’t read music
Find it in your chest
And read the palpitations
Of an agitated heart.
Music is everyone’s journey
To nowhere.
Each music has its own guidepost
Pretty much like
The untrodden path
You have chosen for yourself.
By and large
Feel the sound
Figure out the rhythms
See where they will lead you.
If you can’t read music
Then look for a good teacher
Who can read life
More than the notes
You find
In the music stands.