As I said in earlier posts, when I was a teenager, I wanted to be a singer. Long story short, I gave up on that and decided to practice music therapy instead.
But I think the residents at the nursing home where I worked for fifteen years considered my group activities entertainment, which was fine with me. If you think of therapy as fun, you’re more likely to want to participate. I also worked one-on-one with isolated residents, and I’m sure they found me entertaining as well. During this period of my life, I found time to actually perform, both with a women’s singing group and on my own.
Now that I no longer have the 40-hour-a-week job as a registered music therapist, I have more time to entertain as well as write. I now sing with two choral groups. I have monthly gigs at a nursing home and assisted living facility. I provide music for services at a local church once a month. When I sing, I accompany myself on either piano or guitar.
I also sing karaoke weekly with the ACB community on Zoom. Here, I use recorded karaoke tracks most of the time instead of accompanying myself. This is when I feel like I’ve come the closest to achieving my dream of singing on stage with a band. But whether I’m singing with canned accompaniment or accompanying myself or performing with a group, people seem to like my singing, and I enjoy enriching others’ lives with my music.
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By the way, you don’t have to be a member of the American Council of the Blind to participate in ACB community events in Zoom or Clubhouse or listen on ACB Media 5. To receive a daily schedule of events in your in box, email: community@acb.org and include your name and email address in the message body. If you use Clubhouse, you can join the ACB club and receive notifications when some events are happening. You can go to: http://www.acbmedia.org where you’ll find all the feeds and schedules. Most ACB community activities are broadcast on ACB Media 5.
Thanks to BeetleyPete for inspiring my Life’s Alphabet series with a similar one of his own that he posted on his blog last December.
Photo Courtesy of Tess Anderson Photography
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New! Why Grandma Doesn’t Know Me
Copyright 2021 by Abbie Johnson Taylor.
Independently published with the help of DLD Books.
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Sixteen-year-old Natalie’s grandmother, suffering from dementia and confined to a wheelchair, lives in a nursing home and rarely recognizes Natalie. But one Halloween night, she tells her a shocking secret that only she and Natalie’s mother know. Natalie is the product of a one-night stand between her mother, who is a college English teacher, and another professor.
After some research, Natalie learns that people with dementia often have vivid memories of past events. Still not wanting to believe what her grandmother has told her, she finds her biological father online. The resemblance between them is undeniable. Not knowing what else to do, she shows his photo and website to her parents.
Natalie realizes she has some growing up to do. Scared and confused, she reaches out to her biological father, and they start corresponding.
Her younger sister, Sarah, senses their parents’ marital difficulties. At Thanksgiving, when she has an opportunity to see Santa Claus, she asks him to bring them together again. Can the jolly old elf grant her request?
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My Corner 