Joel 2:1 “Blow a trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm on My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming.” (NAS)
Crunch, Crunch, Crunch. Sounds are all around us when we hike. Our boots on the trail, our dog’s pitter-patter through the brush, or splashing in the creek or lake are all sounds we do not hear in our day-to-day life.
On the top of the trail between Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau in Switzerland, I heard a sound that was not from nature but fit into the clear turquoise sky as if the mountains were singing their own mournful praise to God. Mountain people have used fire to communicate across mountains for millenniums, but the Swiss use the mountain music of the Alp Horn. Perhaps you have seen pictures of men in their traditional costumes with a long odd-shaped horn resting on the ground in front of their legs. You may have even seen it at Folklore shows throughout Europe when groups of Alp Horns are trotted out and played together.
Only once in my three years hiking and living in Switzerland did I hear it as it has been used for centuries. Alone, making a plaintive sound, unseen, and playing a tune only known to the unseen musician and his heart. I stood still until there was no more echo in the valley. I wanted the music to go on and on. In that glacier paradise with the cerulean sky, I was one with the past and yet, alive for that moment, skin tingling and present in the moment.
What sounds in nature makes you want to stop and praise God for being alive?
What type of music inspires you?