Break Chronicles: Day Eight of Sixteen

I am halfway through my break now, and I am starting to think about work again. I am not really planning sessions or anything like that, but I am starting to figure out my timeline for the next six months. Even though I still have six months at my current job, I am finding myself more and more looking at the future.

I am both exhilarated and terrified by this change in my life. The last time I had such an enormous life change was in 1996 when I moved across the country for graduate school. It is more than time, though. I never intended to stay where I am as long as I have. The problem is that I am unsure how I will earn money starting on July 1st.

If all goes as planned, I will start the new year in my own home. I will have another four days of time away from work to arrange things in my house and my life. We have an educational enrichment day away from work, so I am going to spend some time taking stock of what I have in my music therapy resources. The music therapy room is getting more and more full, and there are so many things left to bring home from work. I want to make things a bit more effective in my living area to accommodate the stuff coming.

I have a difficulty with using my closets effectively. There is a closet in my music therapy material room that is currently full of big plastic totes full of stuff that needs to be gone through and organized. After that, I need to use the closet in a way that will make it better and easier to access materials. The monthly boxes will go into the closet on the top shelf. I will store the other themed boxes there as well - clearly labeled so I can find what I am looking for easily.

Yesterday, I went thrift shopping with my Mom and Sister. They do this weekly and have favorite stores as well as favorite staff members. I get to go when I come home to visit. I will be making more tours of my local thrift shops this year. I respect all the things that they find and get and move on into other things or give to other people.

Anyway...

I bought some book bundles at the thrift store. I have twelve new books to use as the basis of my theme packets that I am trying to get started. I selected the bundles I did because they included some books by Doreen Cronin, and I love her stories and the illustrations by Betsy Lewin. I have some inspiration.

The project I want to do is to design therapeutic music experiences (TMEs) based on children's books. I would like to offer a series of TMEs that center around each book. I have already started with Llama, Llama, Mad at Mama, and I am hoping to get things going on this project really soon. That will be a good project for March. That will be after the adolescent symposium and OCMT 2026, so March would be a good launch date! I would also love to offer a limited edition subscription box around these themes, but that is a summer project, I think.

I always get many ideas when I am here away from my home. It is when I am unable to act on things that ideas bubble up. So, I record them in my book and act on them later. It always happens this way. Perhaps I should schedule some time to go away from my home to spur my creativity.

Here are the things that I want for myself, in no particular order or level of importance:

  • I want to share my ideas with other music therapists.
  • I want to create TMEs, books, art, and new food experiences for myself.
  • I want to create a life where I can work and play and do things when I want and where I want.
  • I want to be in less pain because of my work.
  • I want to travel.
There are all sorts of things that I want for myself, and I am getting myself ready to do new things. It is time to stride into a new life with confidence.

Happy almost New Year!! Just a couple more days until we walk into 2026 with a sense of the unknown!

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