gentleness

Max Richter's Sleep is such a peaceful haven of non-demanding, easy-going, supposedly sleep-inducing music. It's a great concept -- music that is deliberately meant to send its listeners to sleep -- though i haven't actually tested it out myself. It is incredibly gentle.

.

It actually takes quite a bit of strength and control to be able to play music gently. i didn't really understand this when i was younger, even though my piano teacher did point it out to me. i think i couldn't quite hear how my own playing sounded. It's only in recent years when i've gone back to playing the soft gentle music i've always enjoyed, even when i didn't know what it required of me, that i've realised just how much finger strength you need to do it well. Needless to say, i don't have this finger strength, and my playing inevitably sounds to me as clumsy as tortoises doing the can-can, a la Saint-Seans. 

.

It's the same with many other things. True strength is gentle. Some of the strongest people i've known, have also been the most gentle. There is no insecurity about them, so they have no need to hit out at other people in fear or self-defence or competition.

.

Night-time in Singapore is soft and gentle. The temperature is so much cooler, there's almost always a breeze. Life feels more peaceful at night -- amazing what a difference the physical environment can make to one's mental state.
.
.