6 Weeks and 600 Years

Quote of the day:
“I detest a man who knows that he knows.”
--Oliver Wendell Holmes

As I write this, I am listening to 600-year-old music by Giulliame Dufay and drinking 6-week-old beer by Budweiser. (I know this thanks to the ”bottled on” date printed on the label.)

It gives me pause to think that people were listening to the Dufay motets before Columbus sailed, and way before the printing press and the Reformation. They are beautiful pieces, with multiple voice parts accompanied by simple instruments. The descant parts especially give the music an “other-worldly,” spiritual feel.

It’s fun to have the present and the past come together, and to realize that many people over the years have seen the value of this music, and have carried it forward for us.

In so many different ways, I guess the holiday season is about this, too. Carrying the goodness of the past into the present. Allowing ourselves to be moved or inspired to continue it into the future.