Sylvia's Journal

I am not sure why after May 15 each year I turn to a new leaf in my diary and create a new word document in my blog collection that now spans 14 years. It is like the division of earnings into fiscal years that start at arbitrary days. So, this is a new page and the start of a new year in writing. The harvest last year was thinner than I had wanted, only 32 pages of writing. I have been busy because it was the year on Zoom and I could said ‘yes’ to everything that seemed even remotely interesting. Everything was within reach and I got busy.

Today is the 1^st day of a Memorial Day weekend that is the saddest I can remember. The heavens started crying yesterday, before I could bring my washed winter woolies in. Everything is soaked and will continue to be soaked until the long weekend is over. It is sad because this is the official start of our northamerican summer. The first summer since our 14 month isolation in which we are finally allowed to congregate and remove our masks. Whether one agrees with this policy decision or not, it lifted people’s spirits. Restaurants have opened their sidewalks for the faint of heart and more indoor spaces for those who believe the pandemic is over.

It is also sad because today we hold a memorial service for one of the members of our Quaker Meeting who succumbed to multiple cancers. I am holding all this sadness in my chest which feels heavy as if a rock is placed on my lungs. 

One of the best antidotes to my sadness is music, a remedy I discovered only recently.  Last August I joined a small group of women in a Saturday ritual where we use a technique from music therapy that is called Music & Imagery. The group is led by our (near) neighbor and dear friend Christine, a music therapist. The women are in Montreal and Massachusetts and for a while Maty from Senegal joined us. We have only met on Zoom and couldn’t meet any other way given the distances between our homes. 

We chitchat for a bit about what’s going on in our lives and then we center and draw whatever we find inside. We reflect on what we need more or less of to turn the corner we want to turn, and then draw that too. We give our two drawings a title and then share our artwork, with commentary. Then the music kicks in. Christine selects 3 pieces of music (‘friends’ she calls them) and we listen to these, draw and title the drawings. The last piece of music we each select for ourselves. They can be old friends, favorite pieces or sometimes I search for ‘random’ on Spotify and be surprised. 

Through this group I have discovered so much amazing music from around the world. The playlist for our group is like a treasure chest full of jewels. Ever since the rain started yesterday afternoon I have listened to this playlist. It can rain the whole weekend because the playlist is long (8-10 pieces of music for each weekly session since April 2020), adding up to at least two full days of songs and instrumentals.