Better, I Think...

 I am heading to work today with less pain in my joints. That is a good sign. I took my temperature like I do every day, and it was elevated. That is not a good sign. It is not "COVID range" but it is a bit higher than it usually is these days. I am still heading into work to get stuff finished up and do my job. Yesterday's day of rest worked well to combat the effect of gravity on my arthritic joints, but led to a continuation of interrupted sleep last night. I did not sleep for long stretches of time last night, and I can feel the effect now.

It is time, though, to head back for this last day of the work week and get things done. I am eager to see if my additional storage and/or curtain has arrived (I doubt it) so I can finalize everything and get back into the process of learning where things are put...now.

Anyway, it is time to turn my thoughts back towards my job and my profession. You see, I distinguish between the two in very specific ways - definition and attitude. First, I think there is a definite difference between my job and my profession. The job is defined by the expectations of those who sign my paychecks. There are times when the requirements of my job have nothing to do with my choice of profession. Having to move into smaller spaces is an example of this type of situation. There is nothing in my profession that states that I will have to expect that space will be taken away and given to me at any time, but that is the reality in my job. My profession is defined by other music therapists - educators, clinical supervisors, and fellow clinicians who support and develop the standards of my career choice. Second, my attitude towards both of these things is very different. I struggle at times with my attitude towards my job - things happen that I have little to no control over and that make me feel all the feels. My attitude towards my profession stays relatively (at least, when compared to my job attitude) even - I still love being a music therapist.

I find that there is a marked difference in how I approach each part of my professional life - my job and my profession. Things happen in both that cannot be understood by those in the opposite part of my life. Not many music therapy professors would understand that a significant part of my job is assisting my clients in remaining safe from themselves and from others. There are some realities to doing my job that were never discussed in music therapy courses as part of the profession. I am never sure if those types of things are due to the nature of my chosen clientele or if other music therapists find the same things in their own client interactions.

During professional interactions, I speak differently, I think of different topics to speak about, and I interact with you all very differently than I interact with my co-workers. It is an interesting dichotomy that challenges me quite often. I think part of this dichotomy is why I write a (almost) daily blog - it is a way to reach into the profession part of my life while being immersed in the job part of my life.

This blog reflects the dual parts of me pretty well, I think. There are posts that are completely about me and that have nothing to do with my job or my profession. There are posts that try to tackle some of the bigger questions happening in music therapy as a profession. There are other posts about what my specific job entails. Everything falls under the topics of music, therapy, and me, and that's why my blog is titled what it is. This is a way for me to sort through thoughts, concepts, challenges, and all things me, therapy, and music.

Thanks for reading.