Theoretically, I suppose, sound and noise are technically the same – being vibrations in the air that we pick up with our ears. So, sound is what we hear, while noise is commonly described as unwanted sound. So much depends on individual perspectives. I, for example, enjoy the sound of the breaking of waves whenever we are at the seaside. This beach is at Port Alfred.
On a very chilly night, the crackling roar of a fire in the grate is a comforting sound – while the roaring of a wild fire is anything but!
I enjoy listening to bird calls early in the morning, identifying the calls while I am still lying in bed is a pleasant thing to do. Many people regard the loud, discordant calls of the hadeda ibises unpleasant – they do tend to wake us all up rather early – and yet I love listening to them. A call that stands out for me, once I have made it to the kitchen in the morning, is the persistent call of a fork-tailed Drongo waiting for its customary square of cheese.
An unpleasant call for most people I know, is the screeching call of peacocks. These ones were photographed outside St George’s Hospital in Port Elizabeth.
A sound that pierces my heart is that of a lost calf in or near our suburb.
While the braying of donkeys gets up the noses of some residents, others take these sounds in their stride and even enjoy hearing them call at whatever time of the day.
Something Over Tea 