Welcome Back and Several Other Things That I've Been Thinking About
Vacation is over. It was a good time of "not being at work." and I am not ready to get going into the world of music therapy tomorrow, but that is the price of vacationing and then having to work right after vacation. I have three more weeks before my fall break starts - 13 days of solitude and getting things done around here.
I am, however, starting to think about how to do things around my various music therapy practices. It is absolutely fascinating how the brain will do things to keep itself entertained when there is nothing else to distract it. 29 hours of driving down the amazing interstate system of this country is a great way to get creative thoughts flowing. My dashboard has started to look like a bulletin board - there are color-coded (of course) post-it notes (of course) stuck to it. There are lots of ideas and thoughts and half-formed concepts that require a bit more work before they are finished up and ready to go.
This is the thing that I like about going on vacation. When I'm forced away from my regular routine and materials, my brain starts to think about things that I want to accomplish in my regular life, and things start going fast. I usually feel a bit frustrated with it all because I am not near my materials or my regular routine, but I think that encourages me to capture the ideas and let them percolate in my brain (and on paper - this is why I love my bullet journal system!) until I can get home.
Before I left for vacation, I spent a bit of time thinking about developing specific themes for every month. I wrote out a list of coping skill foci and I have developed additional ideas for this concept of monthly routines as well. In addition to coping skills therapeutic music experiences (TMEs), I will be including unusual instruments in each month's storage box, books that are relevant, sheet music and file folder activities that support each month, and anything else that I think my clients would be interested in. This will support my session strategizing in the moment and during each month. I like the idea of having some structure while still being able to change things up to accommodate the needs of every client who comes to my music therapy room.
...because that's the reason for music therapy, right??
I did a really good job of avoiding most social media during my vacation, but I did read lots of comments about various topics that have made me think about other things a bit more than I usually have time for during the hectic work week. I have lots of opinions to write about in the next several weeks, including more in my Cultural Considerations series. While I don't often share all of my emotions on social media feeds, I do reserve the right to spew my opinion about things on this blog - after all, it is MY blog, so I can do that whenever and however I want! You have been warned!!
It's time for me to finish up, clean out the car, take a much needed shower, start to organize stuff in my boxes and monthly themes, and try to get ready to go to work and do something client-oriented tomorrow morning while struggling through jet lag, time zone lag, and sheer exhaustion. Three more weeks. Lots of thoughts. Too much to think about and to get finished and to share with others!
Time to get started.
I am, however, starting to think about how to do things around my various music therapy practices. It is absolutely fascinating how the brain will do things to keep itself entertained when there is nothing else to distract it. 29 hours of driving down the amazing interstate system of this country is a great way to get creative thoughts flowing. My dashboard has started to look like a bulletin board - there are color-coded (of course) post-it notes (of course) stuck to it. There are lots of ideas and thoughts and half-formed concepts that require a bit more work before they are finished up and ready to go.
This is the thing that I like about going on vacation. When I'm forced away from my regular routine and materials, my brain starts to think about things that I want to accomplish in my regular life, and things start going fast. I usually feel a bit frustrated with it all because I am not near my materials or my regular routine, but I think that encourages me to capture the ideas and let them percolate in my brain (and on paper - this is why I love my bullet journal system!) until I can get home.
Before I left for vacation, I spent a bit of time thinking about developing specific themes for every month. I wrote out a list of coping skill foci and I have developed additional ideas for this concept of monthly routines as well. In addition to coping skills therapeutic music experiences (TMEs), I will be including unusual instruments in each month's storage box, books that are relevant, sheet music and file folder activities that support each month, and anything else that I think my clients would be interested in. This will support my session strategizing in the moment and during each month. I like the idea of having some structure while still being able to change things up to accommodate the needs of every client who comes to my music therapy room.
...because that's the reason for music therapy, right??
I did a really good job of avoiding most social media during my vacation, but I did read lots of comments about various topics that have made me think about other things a bit more than I usually have time for during the hectic work week. I have lots of opinions to write about in the next several weeks, including more in my Cultural Considerations series. While I don't often share all of my emotions on social media feeds, I do reserve the right to spew my opinion about things on this blog - after all, it is MY blog, so I can do that whenever and however I want! You have been warned!!
It's time for me to finish up, clean out the car, take a much needed shower, start to organize stuff in my boxes and monthly themes, and try to get ready to go to work and do something client-oriented tomorrow morning while struggling through jet lag, time zone lag, and sheer exhaustion. Three more weeks. Lots of thoughts. Too much to think about and to get finished and to share with others!
Time to get started.
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