Fiction Friday - Chapter Three of Persephone

Here is the next chapter in the Persephone story. Let me know what you think...

CHAPTER THREE

“See you on Wednesday,” the teaching assistant in Clinical Musicianship closed the class session and started packing instruments into the cases. Persephone followed suit, placing her keyboard interface into its case, and packing it into her carry sack. She and her cohort, comprised of twenty-nine other first year music therapy students, had moved from instrument to instrument playing songs projected on the holoscreens. The repertoire was varied and all from the turn of the century. There were country songs, rock ballads, rap patterns to learn, and all sorts of different artists to experience. Persephone’s favorite song so far was one by an artist called “3 Doors Down.” The song was called Kryptonite, and it felt a bit familiar to her.

Persephone was ready to be heading back to her living space. She had spent the entire day surrounded by people and it was necessary that she have some time alone to gather her thoughts about her first day of her new school routine. While playing music with a group of people had its advantages and thrills, Persephone felt the need to spend some time in silence without having to talk to another person. She walked out the door with her headphones firmly planted on her ears. She had found that headphones seemed to keep people from trying to engage her in chatter, so they had become one of her favorite coping skills in the three days she had been on campus. Being around so many people was not something that Persephone was used to coming from a small desert town in California. Barstow was not small, by any means, but she had been raised in the post-COVID-19 years, so virtual interactions were more the normal way of doing things than not.

Walking back to her dormitory, Persephone thought back over the day. Dr. Licar’s class had ended with a list of reading for the next session on Wednesday, and then all the students filed out of the large lecture hall to their laboratory sessions.

Alastair Palmer, a graduate music therapy student with an emphasis on the effect of music on neurocognitive processes, led the laboratory session for the 2400-2600 section. Mr. Palmer started his lecture by asking the students to complete a series of polls and questionnaires.

The questions and polls had been interesting to Persephone. She wondered what the questions would reveal to Mr. Palmer and to the other instructors. There had been preference surveys, questions about how she had learned about music therapy, competency-based self-evaluations, and several short essay questions. Persephone had used all the available lab time to fill out her answers. Others in her cohort had left the class early, turning in their papers, and walking out talking to each other, but she had used every single minute to answer before leaving to get her lunch.

During lunch, Persephone sat in the Commons area, re-reading her Continuum text. She had already read the entire book during her journey to the school, but now that she had been through a lecture and a lab session, she wanted to take it all in again. She found herself taking more notes and thinking of questions that she had not thought of before she started class. The lab session had challenged some of Persephone’s thoughts about music therapy, and she found herself already thinking a bit differently than before.

She sat in a corner of the Commons, looking out at the lush green landscape, and working on her assignments and readings. There were three chapters to re-read for Wednesday’s lectures, and she still had Clinical Musicianship to experience. They had been instructed to bring their primary instruments to the class, so Persephone was lugging her keyboard interface in her bag. That class was next and would be the smallest of her Monday/Wednesday classes, so she was looking forward to getting to know her cohort a bit better.

Persephone cleared her area, placed her litter into the bins, collected her bags, and walked to the Clinical Musicianship classroom to finish her coursework for the day.

The classroom included seats for about forty students and a note on the board that said, “Find any seat and get your instrument interfaces ready.” Persephone selected a seat on the left of the podium in the center row aisle seat and started unpacking her keyboard and guitar interfaces. She had not brought her brass or woodwind instruments because the syllabus had stated that the primary instruments for the first session would be guitar and keyboard.

The class included some sight reading of sheet music, lead sheets, and other forms of musical notation. The most intimidating part of the course was the improvisation portion. Persephone was more comfortable when she had a piece of music written out rather than trying to find her own music within a less structured format but she gamely played the chords as directed. When asked if she would like to solo, she deferred and the student who had tapped her shoulder in her Continuum class took her place. He was able to put music together in a way that made Persephone pay attention. She enjoyed hearing the music being created around her. She would have to practice her improvisational skills to be able to keep up with her classmates.

The class ended with a review of the music to memorize for the next session, and everyone started packing up. As she walked back to her living space, Persephone thought about the day and about the path that had led her to this profession.

Evelyn had been instrumental in introducing Persephone to a small part of music therapy. Once Evelyn knew that Persephone was interested in the profession, she provided reading lists, virtual session suggestions, and arranged meetings with other music therapists.

“What I do is such a small part of what music therapy is and can be. If this is what you want out of life, then you really need to see as many examples of music therapy as possible.”

Persephone had soaked in as much information and technique from Evelyn as possible. She had continued to correspond with Evelyn even after Evander had “graduated” from music therapy services. He had originally been referred for services to provide encouragement for communication and to engage in self-expression and had completed both of those goals after three years of therapy. Once Evander was using music on his own to communicate and to express his emotions, Evelyn stopped coming to their house. At the time, Persephone did not understand why they no longer had “music time with Miss Evelyn,” but Evelyn continued to stop by the house occasionally for instrument repairs, so Persephone was able to see her and ask questions.

It was on Evelyn’s recommendation that Persephone pursued a degree in Music Psychology before going into her graduate studies. She had managed to get all her music-specific coursework and skills finished before moving into the ideas and techniques of music therapy. If music therapy school did not work out for her, she could always work for her brother.

Evander had continued his musical interactions and turned his interest into music study. He now composed music for many different media including videos, games, and, just recently, a blockbuster movie! He seemed to enjoy writing and performing music to elicit emotions and responses, and she could see where her degree could support his work. Working for her brother, though, was not Persephone’s ideal end goal, so it was important to study and do well in her courses.

Lost in her memories, Persephone walked to her living area by rote. She unlocked her door, set everything down, used the bathroom, and then stretched. It had been a long day of listening and getting acclimated to the way things were done in music therapy school, but she was in her space now. She unpacked her bag and glanced at the schedule that she had posted next to her desk. Tomorrow’s courses were “Music from the Turn of the Century: HipHop, Country, Pop, and Rock” and “Clinical Observation - Holographic Therapy Practicum Observation – Older Adults.”

Her messaging system chimed, and Persephone moved to the console. There were best wishes and love from Mom and Dad and a pickle picture from Evander (inside joke!). The professor for the clinical observation class had sent a welcome message with a list of materials to bring to class tomorrow. The notes she had written in Dr. Licar’s class were waiting as well, so Persephone took a deep breath, and started her homework.