What other souls were stirred by the
sound of the bell I am now ringing? Were they school children summoned to their
studies? Were they souls called to worship by its chimes? Did it ring out glad
tidings of weddings, births and victories. Did the bell toll in sorrow for
loved ones lost in sickness, age or on the battle field?
I should think the answer is yes to
all of the above questions, for the bell is an old one and would have had ample
time to have heralded the joys and sorrows of the above experiences. Its roots in the old part of our country would
suggest it, as also the worn appearance of the clapper, which too testifies
that the bell has been called into service many times.
It had made its odyssey to my farm
over twenty years ago. It came from near Washington
D.C. United States
My oldest brother had found it
crouching in the corner of an old antique shop, dusty, forgotten, and destined
to decay into the ground with the ancient building. He rescued it from a rusty
grave and drove it three thousand miles to here in the hopes that it could
participate in the activities of the Yeomen’s Guild of Gallantry of which at
that time I was the Master. It never had that happenstance. It had to wait
until its fortunes might turn with mine, and sure enough two years ago they
did. With plans in hand and the bell in the back of my pickup I betook myself
to another brothers farm who, with the same noble spirit that had inspired the
first, fabricated a caisson from the steel and wheels of worn old farm equipment,
on which to mount it.
Hanging proudly now from its new
tower, it journeyed back to my farm where it has taken up an honored position,
next to my study where it inspires and delights me.
I ring it for the recitation of Angelus three times a day. Three rings in the morning, twelve rings at noon and three rings at the close of day.
Ringing it joyfully in thanksgiving to God for all the
gifts he has bestowed on me and my family today, yesterday and to come. Ringing it, that He might hear and answer my many
petitions I have for him that day.
And the musical notes of the sound
are as if He is answering my petitions, the peals as it were of the bell, as so
many blessing pouring down upon my family and the whole earth, blanketing it
with life.
Sometimes
my family can gather with me, sometimes not. But in either case there is something
eternal about the sounds of the bell that adds a romance to the ebb and flow of
life. Spring has arrived with all its sounds and sights of new life, and the
bell adds its cadences.
So a bell that had graced the
steeple of a church or the bell tower of a school now rings joyfully over the farmland
from its new home, to continue its purpose of calling, calling to all who have
ears to hear. You too might hear it.
Have a great day,
David Cools
