Spontaneous Song

As our group entered the Chapter House on the northeast side of Nidaros Cathedral, our quiet voices carried in a rolling motion off the curvatures of chapel's stone foundation. I tallied chairs and estimated the house might seat an audience of 70.

I pictured Christmas Eve, a small wedding or some other intimate gathering. To the others, I turned and asked, "Can you imagine a concert here?"

All agreed: That would be something.

Something within this mini-cathedral moved me to sing the first line of the Norwegian table prayer – the one Dan, the boys and I sing at home in three-part harmony. As "I Jesus navn går vi til bords" reverberated off the stone ceilings, I marveled at the magnificence, gained confidence and finished the song with goosebumps.

The comments rang: "Wow!" "You must sing in a choir!" "That was incredible."

"What's incredible," I said, "is this place. It makes an ordinary voice sound extraordinary."

Truly an awesome moment of Spontaneous Song.