Soothing Relaxation: Relaxing Piano Music & Water Sounds for Sleep, Meditation, Spa & Yoga

Anyone new to the BryonySeries blog might wonder why I post piano music on Sundays and how that fits into the BryonySeries world.

That's because one character - John Simons - was a nineteenth century world-renowned pianist and composer before he died and became a vampire.

Today I'm sharing a a piece with several BryonySeries elements by a Norweigian composer - Peder B. Helland - whom I accidentally discovered while writing "Call of the Siren."

He posts his pieces on YouTube under his name and also Soothing Relxation.

Here's how I discovered him.

I had random piano music playing in the background in my room on a January 7, 2022. I remember the date because it was a sunny morning, and I was getting ready to celebrate Old Calendar Christmas with family.

Faith, my calico cat, was pacing on the bed, clamoring for attention. So I sat to pet her while this piece started playing in the background, and I marveled that the day was so sunny outside, the birds were actually chirping.

Well, real birds weren't actually, I later discovered. These were bird recordings in the background.

But that piece, ironically called "Sunny Mornings," broke through my nine-month writer's block with "Call of the Siren," a block that was less about words but finding the "music" in the words, the sound and tempo, and pacing that I felt was especially important to telling this story.

I can never hear that song without this entire memory coming to mind.

I started listening to more of Helland's music (you can find more on this blog by searching his nametag), and shared the ones that "felt" like "Call of the Siren." Those pieces, for me, became the book's unofficial soundtrack.

And I often listened to the "right" piece as I wrote "Call of the Siren," the only time I've ever listened to music while I wrote, preferring silence over distriction.

Sundays on the BryonySeries Facebook page are dedicated to the BryonySeries Limbo trilogy, which explores what happens when time and progress seemingly stop in a Northern Michigan fishing village. "Call of the Siren" is the second book in that trilogy.

So for reasons of piano music, Helland, the sounds of water in the background, and the fact "Call of the Siren" is today's featured book, I'm sharing this piece with you today.

Enjoy!

Walking

I remember sitting in Sister Laudiose's French class at Providence Catholic High School in the mid-1970s and noticing the sister's wrapped foot.

Sister Laudiose told the class she had foot surgery and was not allowed to walk on it for six weeks. I remember thinking how horrible it would be not to walk for six weeks. Even then, walking, as well as bike riding, was a tremendous stress reliever for me, a way to think, let my mind unravel.

And it still is.

When I became a "real" writer, walking also helped me mentally work out stories. I've written chapters and scenes on foot, and I've "written" many first drafts of stories for The Herald-News after I've moved away from the computer and walked a bit, sometimes even walking around the office building.

Now that electronic music is so handy, I sometimes walk to music, although not always.

Sometimes I catch up on personal phone calls, although not always.

Walking has been a part of prayer and meditation, but sometimes walking is just walking, so the rest of me can be still.

I enjoy walking outside, but I also enjoy walking indoors, where I have to be less aware of my surroundings and less mentally engaged.

I've walked outside in extreme heat and cold (temperatures over 100 degrees and below zero), but I'm a little smarter now and stick to inside walking during these times.

To lose the ability to walk would be a real loss on my levels.

I never take it for granted.

TurnAbout Tour: Vanessa Stephens

It's funny how things work out.

During the week, I stay pretty nose to the grindstone, working under the delusion that I'll get everything done and then can spend long interrupted time working on fiction.

So when plans don't work out according to my vision, I get a little grumpy.

The view from Friday night was discouraging. But the view from Sunday night was amazing. My goal was to finish chapter 17 in the fifth novel of Before the blood, and I very nearly did. I say "very nearly" because it took off in a few different directions than the original intention, and I simply ran out of time to explore those directions fully.

And that was even with going back and adding more depth to some newer characters.

I should be finished editing novel No. 2 by the weekend and plan to write chapter 18, too - but we shall see. The next two weeks are especially busy (more than the usual busy), but I do better at everything else when I can spend some time writing fiction.

I liken it to lying in the grass watching clouds. It relaxes my mind. I like when said aging mind is relaxed and ready for a fresh work week.

And now, enough about me.

The BryonySeries' first TurnAbout Tour continues today with Vanessa Stephens.

What is a TurnAbout Tour?

Well, it's something I made up, as my "thank you" to the writers who graciously and generously hosted the BryonySeries on their blogs last month.

During the Mondays and Tuesdays in June, I'm sharing links to three pieces I especially liked by these writers, giving them additional exposure without them have to write additional pieces. We're on stop No. three today, so if you missed the first two, please scroll back and catch up.

Today's stop: fellow Gothic writer Vanessa Stephens.

According to her website, Stephens is an aspiring writer who spends much of her time writing flash fiction, short stories, working on her debut novel, or spending time with her family. She lives in the Joliet area with her husband and daughter.

And here is a good place to add that Vanessa's daughter is a fan of Bertrand the Mouse. And Bertrand is a fan of hers.

Stephens is new to blogging, but I still had no trouble finding three posts I really, really enjoyed, all of them different in topic and tone. I hope you enjoy them, too.

Weather Vane

This is a piece of flash fiction with one of those great "surprise endings" that make me read a piece again just to get to the ending. The last line, WOW!

https://www.vanessajcstephens.com/life-in-the-flash-lane

Got Books?

This is a short piece on Stephens' discovering of a Little Free Library in her neighborhood.

If you don't know what a Little Free Library is, Stephens' explains it.

If you do, Vanessa's honest and sincere excitement in the discovery will make you smile.

https://www.vanessajcstephens.com/blog/got-books

Four Week Meditation Renewal

I've mediated for years and so has Stephens - until she fell away from it.

In this post, Stephens discusses why she is returning and her plans for persistence.

Again, for me, the liking of this post is less about the mediation and more about Stephens' desire top be a better person, a desire I can truly respect.

https://www.vanessajcstephens.com/blog/four-week-meditation-renewal