Lewis the Lion, fresh into Mersing in Malaysia was climbing the stairwell of his hotel when suddenly he stopped. He could hear so many sounds around him. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the strange sounds of this new country. In his head he made a list of all the sounds around him and this is what he heard:
*The call to evening prayer at the local mosque. He thought the singing sounded soothing and melodic
*Pigeons cooing en masse. It was if they had all come back to roost for the evening on top of the city’s buildings
*The whirring of air conditioning units. Malaysia felt very hot and sticky with its tropical climate and Lewis the Lion could understand why people had turned their air-con on!
*Motorbikes or rather mopeds in the street below zipping by. There seemed to be a constant flow of them
*The television in the lounge with music and voices that were speaking in a foreign language. Lewis the Lion couldn’t be sure what language it was but he thought it might have been Chinese.
As Lewis the Lion reflected on all of these sounds that painted a rich picture of his new landscape, he gave thanks for the gift of hearing. Only last night he had made friends with Nahid, a friend who was deaf and Lewis the Lion realised how thankful he was to hear the world around him.
The mosque rings out its melodic morning prayer in Mersing
Why don’t you try to do what Lewis the Lion did and just for a moment, stop everything and listen to the sounds around you.
What do you hear? Compare your answers with a friend. Did they hear the same as you?
Now, like Lewis the Lion take a moment to give thanks for the gift of sound.
