Sunday Morning Synthesis Avec Chat

It is Sunday morning, the day after the concurrent sessions of the online version of the Midwestern Region conference, and I am sitting here (sometimes accompanied by my cat - hence the lapse into French in the title above) thinking about the things that I experienced yesterday.

I acted as a moderator for two presenters - I'm not going to put their names here because I didn't ask permission - and was thankful for the opportunity to learn about things that I've forgotten about instruments, about attitudes, and about thinking way outside the box. All four of the presentations that I moderated were things that interested me (which is why I selected them to moderate to begin with), and I feel inspired to try some new old things. I am remembering things that I've put aside thanks to the two presenters.

For me, remembering things long forgotten or finding one new idea is what makes going to conferences so valuable. I've started feeling like there really isn't anything really new to me out there, and that is a fallacious thought! There is always something new to learn, to experience, to share out there. If nothing else, there is always something forgotten that needs to be remembered and then used again.

I am currently putting together a bunch of presentation proposals for the AMTA National Conference. I didn't go last year, and I didn't really miss being there at the conference, and I wasn't all that thrilled about going to Atlantic City, but now that everything will be online, I'm getting excited about presenting again. I have several different proposals started and will be working on getting those submitted for review. I'm hoping to return to presenting during this conference.

I am finding myself spending lots of time thinking about the future these days. I'm sure that I'm not alone in this. I wonder how often we will be doing online conferences from now on. I hope that we make provisions for one of these at least every other year so that folks who don't want to or who can't afford to attend in person can share in the spread of information. I am one of the few people in the world who knows the challenges of putting together an online music therapy conference, but it is certainly doable. I hope it proves to be a rewarding experience for the folks who are learning how to do this (I've been doing it for 10 years now), so they will continue to present these conferences.

I am going to spend some time in a CMTE course this afternoon, so before I get wrapped up in learning more about music therapy business, I am going to spend some time making my house a bit more livable. It is time to clean the kitchen floor.

As I am doing that, though, I am going to be thinking about the things I heard yesterday and how those things will affect my client interactions this upcoming week.

Thanks for being here.