\"It works the same in our human relationships. When children give heartfelt thanks to
their mothers and fathers, they immediately experience something warm and fulfilling inside.
When a husband takes his wife in his arms and thanks her for the fine meal she has just prepared,
she will almost always reciprocate, giving love back to him for his thoughtfulness and
appreciation. Thus, he benefits from the moment as much as she, or even more so<\/span>. <\/p> <\/p>
\"Let's listen now to Laudamus te<\/i>.\"<\/p>
<\/p>
The conductor, waiting for the signal to continue, took control again. <\/p>
The first four notes, \"Our Father in heaven\"[the author's choice of words], were
pronounced first. A greatly entertaining musical dialogue back and forth between the sopranos
then ensued. The members of the audience listening were happy to do their part, approving and
accepting the beautiful lyrics, \"we praise you, we bless you, we adore you, we glorify you\" sung
by the sopranos.<\/p>
<\/p>
The opening session of Zion conference was being broadcast to stake centers throughout
the world where even more stake and ward priesthood leaders were gathered with their wives;
however, another small broadcast outlet had been initiated that was unknown to the Conference
Center's technical team. <\/p>
<\/p>
At the back of the auditorium in one of the control rooms, the audio of Grant's talk was
being piped in. The room had not been used for anything on this day and is only of mention to us
now because Carolyn had happened to stop in there earlier that morning to set up her laptop
computer. That done, she had logged in to check on Coco and the two kittens at home. <\/p>
<\/p>
Some years back, Carolyn had set up a pet cam to use when she and Grant were away. It
included a two-way audio control panel in the kitchen which allowed Coco to hear her voice
through the internet. She later added a two-way speaker and audio feed in the front room since
Coco tended to go there quite often and take naps on his blanket. On occasion, she would let the
audio connection keep broadcasting so the cats could hear sounds and not feel so much alone.
Coco enjoyed these little \"audio treats\"; they filled his day with a variety of very interesting and
adventurous sounds and gave him something to do when Carolyn and Grant were not at home. <\/p>
<\/p>
During the past half hour, Coco and the two kittens had been somewhat preoccupied with
what had been going on in the backyard—the neighbor's large dog had gotten loose and jumped
over the fence. It was an urgent situation that required all of the cats' presence at the back
window of one of the bedrooms. The issue soon resolved itself (the dog got bored and leaped
back over), so the kittens returned to the living room. Satisfied that the dog was now \"following
rules,\" Coco joined them.<\/p>
<\/p>
There had been muffled noises coming from the control panel speakers all morning long.
Much like white noise, the sounds had been mostly ignored by the cats. Entering the living room
now, however, Coco heard Grant's familiar voice speaking and became keenly interested. He
moved towards his corner blanket and, while en route, discovered that Tiger had already taken
up residence there. With a brush of his paw (like Carolyn moving him away from the kitchen
table), he guided Tiger to a more suitable spot nearby. Tiger, thus, was left to wonder, Maybe <\/i>I
shouldn't have been sitting<\/i> there<\/i> in the first place<\/i>? <\/i><\/p>
<\/p>
For some unexplained reason, Coco, over the years, had taken a liking to certain pieces of
music. The \"Hymn of the Poor\" piece of Shostakovich was one of these. Laudamus te<\/i> would be
another. Hearing this piece for the first time, the soprano voices back and forth sounded a lot to
him like the chirping sound birds make. He raised his head towards the control panel and smiled
with his eyes in approval. Meanwhile, the kittens chased each other around the couch; when one
caught up with the other, there were minor paw-to-paw skirmishes. As a result, neither kitten
noticed the music flowing into the room. <\/p>
<\/p>
W<\/i>hat's wrong with these young kitten<\/i>s<\/i> nowadays<\/i>? <\/i>wondered Coco, the old and wise cat
of the family. Why don't they stop what they are doing and appreciate<\/i> these delightful sounds! <\/i><\/p>
<\/p>
Suddenly, there was a car noise outside, and the loud and heavy beat of rap music echoed
through the neighborhood. The bass sound was loud enough that it shook the windows. It lasted
for the better part of a minute, causing Coco's fur to stand on end all that time. Finally, the car
drove away. The loud and boisterous music from the street spoiled what had been a beautiful
moment for Coco, like the real-world noises of a city encountered on the drive home after
enjoying a temple session.<\/p>
<\/p>
Many types of music can be inspirational, but we should heavily weigh the truth found in
sacred and classical music (as well as the softer, more polished music of other genres that we
have grown up with and enjoy) against the truth found in music elsewhere. Inspirational music is
like a complete family meal on Sundays or at Thanksgiving, having all the side dishes,
trimmings, and a fine dessert at the end. Loud and irreverent forms of the music of today found
in movies, on TV, or at concerts can be partially uplifting, not uplifting at all, or even destructive
to us. They are akin to eating a burger or taco at a fast-food restaurant or devouring a quick
microwave dinner. Fast-food music is okay once in a while, but once consumed, it generally
leaves you feeling empty and malnourished, making you wonder just what exactly you have
\"eaten.\" <\/span><\/p> <\/p>
A person who drinks deeply in the wide variety of performances of the Tabernacle Choir
and similar types of music, and does so regularly, a few times a week at least, will likely
encounter in their soul all the principles of Zion found in this book. Gratitude and love for sacred
and beautiful music, whether as a listener or as a performer, is a heavenly gift. All members of
the Church should seek after it<\/span>.<\/p>"}