Following the dream-like visit to Rome, I was on a high.\u00a0 I felt as though I was in two worlds; trying to balance my consultancy work in the Swiss Economic Cooperation Office in Berne on the one hand, and my deepening soul exploration.\u00a0 From Thonon I would cross the lake by boat and take a train from Lausanne to Berne through manicured vineyards terraced up from the lake and mountain countryside.\u00a0 It was a commutable distance if I got the first boat\u00a0 \u2013 even if I did not stay over and return the next day.\u00a0 Returning was wonderful, as I timed it for the paddle-steamer; one of three elegant turn-of-the century boats which were still plying the lake of Geneva in those years.\u00a0 Weather permitting, and it usually was fine, I had a chair on the deck for the return crossing to France with the gentle throbbing of the engines in my ears and vibrating in my body and exquisite snow-capped mountains circling Europe\u2019s largest lake to feast my eyes on: the Jura, les Dents d<\/em>\u2019oche<\/em>, and in the distance Mont Blanc.<\/p>\n During these times, I was devouring books on sound, frequency and vibrational healing.\u00a0 Music – Physician for times to come<\/em>\u00a0 was an anthology edited by Joseph Campbell and particularly interesting.\u00a0 A month or so after my visit to Rome, I read an article on my way back from Berne which resonated deeply with me.\u00a0 It was by David Hykes, who had been a leading pioneer in the worldwide revival of sacred sounds since 1975.\u00a0 His approach \u2013universal sacred music called Harmonic Chant<\/em> blends spiritual cosmology, music, meditation, sound yoga and healing harmonisation.<\/p>\n He had founded the Harmonic Choir in New York in 1975 and introduced the Western world to modern \u2018harmonic singing\u2019 and \u2018overtone singing\u2019.\u00a0 I was enthralled and felt a strong desire to connect with this man and his world.<\/p>\n The address of the Harmonic Presence Foundation in New York was given at the back of the book.\u00a0 I thought I might even have to consider finally making my first trip to the US!\u00a0 But then I noticed another address for the Fondation Chant Harmonique <\/em>in Pommereau, France.\u00a0 France?\u00a0 I could hardly wait to get off the boat.\u00a0 Disembarking at the little port, walking quickly through the historical fishermen\u2019s buildings and up the steep incline to my front door, and then three flights of stairs, I entered breathless.\u00a0 Turned on my computer and googled \u2018harmonic chant\u2019.\u00a0 Up came 165 entries, and the first at the top of the list was \u201cDavid Hykes, Pommereau, Harmonic Chant Retreat, 20-21 October 2005.\u201d<\/p>\n I looked again. These dates were for the coming weekend!\u00a0 The day was Tuesday.\u00a0 The retreat would happen in three days\u2019 time.\u00a0 I had not missed it!\u00a0 It was yet to come!\u00a0 I found out how I could get there – TGV from Thonon to Paris, change stations and then a further two hours by train to Beaugency.\u00a0 Pommereau was a dot somewhere in the countryside \u2013 not on the map.<\/p>\n When I finally got to speak to David, having left a message on an answering phone, his American accented voice was gentle, and he sounded welcoming.\u00a0 It was \u2018en route\u2019, and I was going to a Harmonic Chant weekend retreat in Pommereau.\u00a0 It would be in French ,and he would collect me at the station on Friday early evening.<\/p>\n As an indication of just how important this retreat felt, and how imperative it was that I got there, Ronald was returning on Thursday from Angola for a short \u2018home visit\u2019.\u00a0 And here I was contemplating leaving him on the very first weekend!\u00a0 But equally, an indication of how we interacted and supported each other\u2019s priorities, was clear in his response when I told him.<\/p>\n Does this \u2018feel like a wave that you have to catch now?\u00a0 It\u2019s all about timing\u2019.\u00a0 The fact was that this indeed felt like a wave, which if rode at the right moment, now, would carry me further to where I needed to be in my exploration.\u00a0 This made total sense to him.\u00a0 So, on Friday morning after our coffee and croissants in the little town square he saw me off at the station and left with his newspaper.<\/p>\n I travelled through beautiful early autumn French countryside to Paris on the TGV and then more slowly arrived in the Loire where David met me at Beaugency station.\u00a0 It was still light, but the sky was turning into pinks and golds as we drove the half hour through the woods to the retreat centre; an isolated, converted rambling farmhouse and barns on the site of an ancient Cistercian monastery.\u00a0 There was a light mist bathing the scene in an ethereal cloak as we arrived.<\/p>\n A couple of people were inside in the warmth where a huge open fireplace held several big logs and a convivial fire.\u00a0 Oh yes.\u00a0 This felt very good.\u00a0 There were musical instruments all around, many Indian stringed instruments, percussion instruments, and an old baby grand piano in the corner.\u00a0 (I thought it looked too close to the fire)\u00a0 There were rows of lovely, intriguing books, some of which I recognised from my own shelves.\u00a0 And in the background tanpura<\/em> music was playing gently as a foil to our quiet exchanges.<\/p>\n David was visible in the kitchen area off the main open living and dining space.\u00a0 It was all one volume, and he was preparing our welcome dinner with the assistance of a participant, who clearly was a regular at these retreats.\u00a0 The aromas were wholesome.\u00a0 From the conversation, I gathered that quite a few of the group had been to Pommereau before.\u00a0 It was interesting for me to be among these French people.\u00a0 Around the long table twelve or so of us were getting to know each other, and I was expressing myself in French.\u00a0 It was adequate, but every so often David and I would share something in English.\u00a0 I got by but was quieter than I felt, and I listened intently.<\/p>\n That night, snuggled up in my small single cubicle under the roof, I breathed out in gratitude and appreciation and marvelled at this unfolding in the space of three days!\u00a0\u00a0 I retraced my steps from the initial reading of David\u2019s article on Tuesday afternoon on the lake, to my being in a sleeping bag under his roof that night.\u00a0 Deeply aware of how the universe conspires to assist us when we are clear in our desire or intentions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Further synchronicities propelling me forwards on my journey. Meeting David Hykes and starting a new chapter on my Soul’s journey.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":402,"template":"","categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-400","episode_posts","type-episode_posts","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-part-2-music-and-my-soul"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mylisteningheart.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/episode_posts\/400","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mylisteningheart.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/episode_posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mylisteningheart.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/episode_posts"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mylisteningheart.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/402"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mylisteningheart.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=400"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mylisteningheart.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=400"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mylisteningheart.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=400"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}