When I’m told to hum in a sea
of hummers, I think first of the birds
whose wings thrum the air,
of the delight when one flies into
my airspace and hovers like an
iridescent helicopter, rotors
whirring, before it dashes off.

And now, in this space of worship
on a rainy morning with hundreds
of my fellow humans, I hum,
eyes closed, absorbing the harmonics
of people unified in this moment,
putting subtle song into the air.

And now, there they are, humming along—
the ones who taught my sister and me
to sing harmony, I often joke, before
they’d let us sing melody, to fill out
the family quartet:

Daddy sang bass, Mama sang tenor
Me and little sister would join right in there
Singing seems to help a troubled soul…

It did help, and it does now,
reminding me that we are not alone,
that generations of loved ones still
surround us. And if I listen closely,
I hear him. I hear her. I hear little sister
joining the angels among us—

One of these days and it won’t be long
I’ll rejoin them in a song…

No, the circle won’t be broken.
There’s a silver lining behind every cloud.

Together, in this great human family,
listen to us hum.

•••

“Daddy Sang Bass,” music and lyrics by Carl Perkins