"The Little Details"

July 15th..HOT HOT...it's also Emily's 25th Birthday...

This morning I went to Infusion at the Hospital.  I thought I would jot down some of my Routine before I start playing.  The first thing I do before leaving the house is play my Singing Bowl....I draw in eternal peace and breath out eternal love, breath in eternal compassion and breath out eternal kindness.  It's the coolest when I add "toning" with my voice.  I am getting pretty good at matching the Singing Bowl's Tone...I know what you're thinking...She's a Nut!

By the time I reach the Hospital, find parking, lug the Harp over the river and through the woods to the Infusion Center, I wish I had my Singing Bowl again.  Stressed and HOT.  I am always greeted with smiles and warm "good mornings"  I unpack my Harp in a back hallway and then take a walk around the Infusion Center, trying to get a feel for how crowded it is, how much area is there for me to set up in and what position will reach the most Patients.  The Nurses are so awesome...and today was no exception.

It was like a zoo when I got there at 9:15am   Almost every room was filled.  I stick my head in and introduce myself and tell them I am from the Therapeutic Music Program at the Hospital and if they would like to listen, they could turn down their TV...if not...turn it UP.  So picture several hallways, each one lined with small cubby rooms with curtains.  Each room has a TV and a Recliner for the Patient and usually one chair for a friend or family member.  I can move my Harp to another area of the Infusion Center, but right now I am not mobile enough to wheel it anywhere, so I pretty much stay put.  The Gear for that is expensive and will have to wait.

After doing my "rounds" I go back to my Harp and Gear and do my Singing Bowl Meditation without the Bowl....same breathing in eternal peace, etc.  Surprisingly, I am so relaxed and ready to play after doing this, I can't imagine not preparing myself for the Session.  I spend the next few minutes just getting a good feel for the atmosphere of the Infusion Center...watching the Nurses ready everything for the Patients, the drugs, blankets, pillows, snacks and drinks and most of all, the compassion and kind words to ease some of the fear and discomfort.  It's actually a pretty jolly place with lots of smiles and little jokes back and forth with the Patients.

Today, after about 20 minutes of playing, I started taking mental notes of the most obvious effects of my Harping.  You could almost hear a pin drop.  There was soft chatter in the rooms with the Nurses.  Most of the TV's were off or turned down.  Although the Nurses were just as busy, there was a noticeable reduction of stress.  The Nurses would walk by singing.  The Patients with their IV Poles would pass by and thank me, or they would be singing too.  An Oncologist stopped on his way by to see his Patient and listened for a minute and said, "a very nice feeling".

Right before I left at 11:30am...a Patient was brought into a room at the far end of the hallway, facing me.  She was so thrilled to have music....and very disappointed I was wrapping it up for the day.  So I told her I would play 2 more songs...to pick 2 of her favorites and if I knew them, but I doubted I would, I would play those, otherwise I would pick something close.  One of her favorites was "Somewhere Over the Rainbow"...got that!  The second one was "Bridge Over Troubled Water"...GOT THAT TOO!  we laughed together and when I was done, I hugged her and told her I hoped to see her again....but I would rather she be done with Treatment and on her way to a Healthy Life....I actually got a little teary.