Gearing Up For Conference

After a two-year (or is it three? I can't remember) hiatus from attending the American Music Therapy Association's annual national conference, I am getting ready for this year's conference which will be starting at the end of this week (for me). I am looking forward to hearing some presentations and seeing what is going on from the inside these days. I took a bit of a more active role in things this year as well - I got to help with presentation reviews and with platform review (though I was lousy at that bit). It felt good to help out, even a little bit, with this conference, and I am hoping that it will be a good one.

Several years ago, I came to the conclusion that the cost for conference was far greater than the benefit for me. I am hoping that my foray back into the breach of conference life is something that will reinforce that I need to be part of this community more than I have allowed myself to be in the recent past. It will take lots of gee whiz to help me get back into the state of being excited about things, I think. 

At this moment, conference is just something else to do.

I miss the days of being excited to go to conferences, to see people, to present ideas to other music therapists, and to spend money on new instruments for my clients to use. I miss the days of committee meetings and board meetings. I miss the days when I had a purpose for the organization. I miss so many things. I really miss the feeling of camaraderie with other music therapists - the connections that I made that are now gone. That is what I miss most of all.

This year, with the virtual conference happening again, I am less stressed about conference. There is no professional dress, no travel arrangements, no hotel room waiting for me. I do not even have to do my laundry before the conference begins. I can sort through papers and listen. I can wash my dishes and listen. I can work on making books while I am listening to the prerecorded presentations. It will be an opportunity to be genuine in my responses to specific presenters and presentation styles - no one will be able to hear my judgy comments about light placement and camera angles as well as my comments about content. It will be nice to be anonymous while watching. If I decide to leave a session, no one will watch me stand up and leave. (I hate that - both the leaving and the way people watch you leave!!) There are good things about being virtual, and there are bad things, too.

I am taking the Monday and Tuesday after conference off for my professional time. This is so I can finish watching all the things that I want to watch during conference and get my professional development day credits from work as well. Friday is a day off - fall break - so I would not get any sort of professional development time without these two days off. I am looking forward to that time away from work and the immersion of being in the world of music therapy for a bit more time.

So, starting on Thursday evening, I am going to be sitting on my couch or moving around my kitchen and office areas, trying to see if there is anything new to learn about in the world of music therapy. I desperately hope that there is! I will wear my slippers and rejoice in the fact that I do not have to go anywhere in order to participate in this conference. I will tune in when I can and when I am interested. I WILL be interested in this conference for many reasons.

Goooooooooooooo, MJ! 

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