Musical Reflections

Last year on Christmas Day, I received the following e-mail:

“My best friend passed away this morning. She was in the hospital unresponsive. I had taken your “Christmas Music for Tranquility” CD to her yesterday; her family played it early this morning. The whole CD played and as the CD player shut off, my friend took her last breath. Her daughters told me it was beautiful. I’m getting a CD for both of the daughters. Thank you for your beautiful music.”

I am deeply touched and humbled by this beautiful message. I feel so blessed to create music that touches your heart and soul.

Today, more than 50 million family caregivers provide care for aging adults and as former First Lady Rosalynn Carter says, “There are four kinds of people in this world: 1) those who have been caregivers, 2) those who currently are caregivers, 3) those who will be caregivers, and 4) those who will need caregivers.”

It seems like so many people that I come in contact with are involved in the caregiving journey. Is it our age or a sign of the times we live in? And honestly, I’m no different from the masses – the caregiving journey touches me personally, too.

My parents recently moved into an assisted living complex. It has been an interesting few months for our family – aging parents and baby boomer “children” giving care, including conversations about finances and health care directives, down-sizing personal belongings and ultimately, assisting with the actual move into a beautiful new location.

Throughout the caregiving journey, music can be a powerful way to connect. From listening to big band sounds or classical favorites or relaxing music to “idol down,” music is an easy way to enhance your life, as well as those you are caring for.

Yesterday, I presented to the Edina Professionals Servings Seniors (EPSS) group – a networking organization where everyone in attendance is passionate about serving seniors. We had a great time together!

And seniors love the harp. Its music is gentle, relaxing, calm, mellow, beautiful … this age group appreciates and “gets” the harp. And I love sharing it with them via live performances, as well as CDs.