Nutella for the Soul

This probably happened to you too. You eat something that leaves an awful bad taste in your mouth. Your first reaction is not to reach for a glass of water. You don’t only want to neutralize or get rid of the bad taste; you want to immediately and drastically change it for something completely different. You grab a jar of honey or Nutella, dip a large spoon into it, put it in your mouth, and let the stuff slowly invade every little corner of your taste buds until it completely erases the memory of whatever was there before.

I find that the same thing is true at the spiritual level. When I am subjected to things that leave a bad taste on my spirit or my soul, I feel the need to come in contact with something that has the opposite effect. In our global village, with all the information available to us, we are exposed to so much stupidity, atrocities and obscenities that we often don’t realize how much it affects us. We are constantly informed of everything bad and evil that is happening everywhere in the world. That’s why I often go back to the things that I know can bring some kind of comfort to my soul. It’s not about trying to forget about reality like an ostrich sticking its head in the sand; it’s more like a swimmer sticking his head out of the water to catch a breath of fresh air.

Just as the bad stuff is so easily available, you can also very find the most beautiful music and songs on YouTube. Here are a few examples of what I consider Nutella for my soul. I listen to them when I feel depressed. They are very soothing to me:

Jesus bleibet meine Freude from Bach

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9EN27Zh_vg

An old folk song from the Auvergne region of France called Baïlèro

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxspdNcRuWk

Dance Me by Leonard

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0FhRTvWDVk

Cecilia Bartoli sings Haendel’s Ombra mai fu

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqIHPWg53vs

Humming chorus by Puccini

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBO94mIQqtY

A Maori song called Hine e Hine by José Carreras

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OobX0ZYR_-A