Blog Diary:
Last Saturday Tamela Ponder, Music Therapist and I went to the Heart and Hope Conference hosted by Family Network on Disabilities. So many vendors and parents were in attendance. People came from as far away as Tallahassee and St. Petersburg. It was great to meet so many people supporting children with special needs.
Tamela and I were asked to do a break out session explaining how we are combining Music Therapy and Occupational Therapy in our pediatric program. Were in the last time slot, 3-4:30 and after a long day of meeting and greeting we were a bit tired and a little nervous about giving a presentation.
As Murphy’s Law would have it, a few things went wrong. The monitor on the computer for our power point presentation went out and then the computer would not load our power point, so we decided to wing it. Tamela started off with a “Hello Song” and I handed everyone different instruments to play along, only I had them play with an imposed “disability”. Some people had to play sticks behind their backs, others had to shake bells with their non-dominate hands while the third group shook shakers with their eyes closed. It was amazing to see how at first the group was a little awkward but a few minutes in they all came together in unison and there “disabilities” were gone. It was a great metaphor for what Tamela and I see in our sessions.
Our power point was salvaged and Tamela and I explained our JM3 Program and how we are using music and OT to address children with Autism, Down’s Syndrome, and other diagnosis. We explained how strongly we believe in a strength-based approach and what a typical session looks like as well as the amazing outcomes we are seeing.
We ended with a “Goodbye Song” just like we do with our sessions in the studio. A couple of parents had brought their children in. Tamela sang to one young lady in a wheel chair and her eyes lit up as she sang along and moved her hands to the music. Tamela noticed in the very back of the room another young lady with Down’s Syndrome singing along with the music. Tamela squeezed through chairs and made her way to the back of the room so she could sing with the girl. When Tamela got close, the girl became self-conscious and stopped singing. After a couple of measures, Tamela said kindly but authoritatively, “Sing with her!” Suddenly everyone in the room stopped being spectators and once again became a group. As we all sang “Goodbye Sweetheart” the girl’s eyes lit up and she began singing again louder than before. In that moment Tamela’s brilliance, courage and talent as a Music Therapist shined.
I see these moments everyday and it humbles me to be doing the work we are doing and to know that we can, through music, make such a powerful impact on our students.