At the time, I just noticed it, and enjoyed what, to me, sounded like a song. The birds, the wind, and rake fit together in a rhythm which made a song. As I thought about it later, it seemed to me that that experience held the kernel of all music- heartbeats, work rhythms, and other natural sounds.
The connection between work and art is very distant, now. Work is something so distinct from art. But, I think that there is another way to approach this. The work that we do forms the basis for what we value, and what has meaning in our lives. So, when I heard this rhythm- "Raking between tomatoes" I thought, this is a beat to a song- a real song, that I create when I do the work of keeping my garden, my body, and hopefully my community healthy.
“Can we degrade all forms of essential work and yet expect arts and graces to flourish on the weekends?"
Wendell Berry
