Lessons from the Drum Circle

Some of you know that I have a pretty good collection of African hand drums. These are not commercially made, but handmade in Uganda. My favorites are the long drum and the one that was a gift from a church in the mountains where I was the first ‘muzungu’ aka white who had preached in that church. This last time I brought back a djembe which is the common drum circle drum you see here.

On Saturday our church drummer Craig and I went to a big time drum circle with a pro teacher. This event was in Syracuse with about 55- 60 in attendance. I brought 4 of my own drums and had fun playing, explaining them and sharing them. They are nice conversation starters. We discovered that there is a weekly drum circle on Fancher road in the summer. The person who leads it gave a tentative promise to visit us at our Spirit Moves Café Service in the spring. Craig and I had a blast and I was given an opportunity to work on my rhythm. 3 and ½ hours worth- you can tell from my hands.

Jim Donavan was the teacher. He taught us a few relaxation exercises, a few things about our drums and lots about drumming. Here is what he observed. Playing with a group in a drum circle takes:
Cooperation- work together, no solos, no hot shots.
Competition - Not! It is a non – competition thing.
Clarity - this is about focus, letting other distractions go, getting a clear beat and hit on the proper place on the drum head. Be there and enjoy the pulse.
Calm – playing in group and alone can be relaxing. I happen to focus on getting it right instead of just enjoying and working together as we learn together.

What I learned was that I want to learn the pattern by seeing, but sometimes the pattern goes too fast and the eye cannot quite get it. So you have to hear the pattern. Alan learned to listen AND look. Truthfully, that has always been what I enjoy about Uganda and worship there- hearing it and feeling it. The pulse of the drums catches me up and gets my whole body and heart into the worship time. Yeah, I even dance there too, but that is another topic.

What are you doing to get your full being into what you are doing?