This month the Melody of Divine Love group performed on Sunday, July 22, 2018. The theme for the month was “Celebrate Canada”.

We chose to celebrate Canada Day with the residents of Erin Meadows Retirement Home in the month of July. Despite the month of July being one when most children are away on vacation, the Cooksville Centre, with Swami’s abundant Grace was successful in putting together a wonderful performance with a limited number of children.

The SSE children and adults gathered at 3:00 p.m. at the Erin Meadows Retirement Home to set up the musical instruments and the audio system. Residents started to gather around the hallway, waiting eagerly for the program to begin. The session started with an introductory speech, followed by a reverential rendering of the National Anthem, with the keyboard as accompaniment. After everyone was seated, 3 Aums were chanted and the program begun with the chanting of the Gayathri mantra. The first bhajan was a Ganesh bhajan “Remover of Obstacles” and was sung to invoke the blessings of Lord Ganesh. Following this, another melodious bhajan “He is Love so learn to Love” filled the hallways with divine vibrations. The next song was “A gift to You” which instilled calm and peaceful vibrations. Following this song a rhythmic number, “This land is your land” was sung to celebrate the glory that is Canada.

Perhaps the solemnity of the poem called “A Single Red Leaf” set to lilting background music made everyone gathered to understand and reflect on the simple symbolism of the Canadian Flag and relevance of the maple leaf to the Canadian way of life. The sense of national pride was further elevated when the 2010 FIFA World Cup version of the song “Wavin’ Flag” was sung. The song and the poem inspired all gathered to be grateful for the freedom that all people in Canada cherish and enjoy. This sense of reflected patriotism was followed by a fast paced “Canada in my pocket” and a story called, “The Ship”.

This story was a befitting end to a beautiful program. The story reminded everyone about the importance of prayer and the most important aspect of praying for others. The children sang two more songs and ended the session with closing prayers and a Vote of Thanks.

As a reward for their devotion and unfailing enthusiasm, the children were treated to cookies, cakes, and ice –cream.