Awesome Stories 354

/ February 3, 2018

This week Awesome Stories brings you the medicine of music, giving, and nature.

The Medicine of Music

Music washes away the dust of everyday life from the soul. ~ Berthold Auerbach

Robert Gupta offers a very passionate talk about the power of music to heal. In his own life, he was wondering how to choose between music and medicine. Thankfully, he witnessed the power of music to transcend words and knew that music was his path. Robert offers many touching examples of how music has helped people with neurological challenges find words or relief from their illness. He mentions a woman with Parkinson’s who shakes continually but while listening to classical music found a few moments of relief. Another woman who had lost the capability of speech found words with music and singing. Research shows that music can touch deep places in our brains and emotions and even stimulate new growth in the brain. Thankfully Robert and many others are using the power of music to soothe and heal.

Expanding Consciousnessdolphins, Awesome Stories

Scientists like Toni Frohoff are helping us expand our view of other species and what it means to be conscious. Research is clearly showing that animals have feelings, are self-aware, and experience pain and pleasure. Watching a PBS show on interspecies communication, Dr. Toni realized she had found her passion and would study life among dolphins. One key difference in her approach is that she aims to work collaboratively with the dolphins, listening and learning from them, not simply studying them. As Toni suggests, it might be time to humble ourselves and realize that we have much to learn from other species. Dolphins have been alive on this planet for millions of years and evolved very complex and precise communication. They use names and songs, allowing better communication between pod members. Sadly, dolphin health is in jeopardy around the world, especially polluted coastal areas where they are showing signs of toxic stress from chemicals, cruel harvesting, and ocean acidification. We really need to understand that the health of the world is in our hands.

Giving Freely

As soon as we tie an expectation to our giving, or draw conditions around our willingness to give, our entire world becomes smaller, and so do we. ~ Greta Matos

giving, Awesome StoriesGreta Matos explores the beauty of giving freely in this article on sharing abundance. Greta shares her stories of giving and receiving help along the trails in her traveling adventures. I’ve never heard of Trail Angels, but I can relate to the joy of giving and helping others along the journey of life. I too was blessed many times by the kindness of strangers while traveling. I think in some ways, traveling frees us from our daily routines and ruts, allowing us to return the natural grace and ease in giving with an open heart. As Greta states, when we give freely without expectation, we tap into the joy of giving, the beauty of our abundant world, and in turn, we become bigger too.

May your week be full of beauty, music, and abundance. 

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31 thoughts on “Awesome Stories 354”

  3. Wonderful stories. Music is such a powerful tool – I have found this even in doing the research for my videos. Dolphins are some of my favorite creatures. They are incredibly intelligent. And the story about Trail Angels makes me smile! Giving freely without expectation is something I’ve been working on in my own life. I don’t always succeed, but I try. 🙂

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  8. Amazing that Robert finds some relief in classical music from such a debilitating disease. When I was pregnant and feeling sick all day, classical music was the only music I could listen to. I think we’re wired for it. But his story is touching–thanks for sharing!

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  10. Thanks for sharing, Brad. These are so inspiring, particularly the one about “consciousness” in animals. Many still don’t believe it, and that seems strange to me. Humans are also animals and to think that we are the only species that is self-aware, intelligent, and emotional, is quite ego-centric and downright silly. I’m glad thoughts on this are changing.

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  13. I was enchanted with the violin music Brad and loved listening to his talk. And Music,/sound has remarkable properties to help heal.. Those who stammer also lose their stammer when singing.
    Music most certainly is a most beautiful bridge to bring the light of music to those who often suffer mentally.

    The Wonderful research at last is showing animals have feelings. And I am sure Dolphins in particular can teach us many things.

    And so loved the story of Greta, And love the concept of Tail Angels.. And I loved this quote from the article Brad

    “When we give without expectation, when we are able to acknowledge what a gift it is to have something to give in the first place, that alone will fill us with an overwhelming sense of gratitude, love and compassion.”

    Wonderful shares Brad 🙂 💚

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