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April 2013

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Ones mans junk is another man’s treasure. Art is the window to a man’s soul. These are all common phrases we hear about art, yet each one has a different twist to the understanding of art. Out of all three the first one is my favorite. It is short, simple and to the point. There is no arguing the statement. Beauty is truly in the eye of the looker.
I can speak from first hand experience in this regard. When I went to Jamaica last summer for a music therapy trip, I a great experience mingling, talking, and helping the local people. One day when I was walking along the beach with a friend I noticed an old shack with a bunch of canvas paintings hanging on the outside wall. I was intrigued so my friend and I walked over and began to speak with the shop owner. He said he didn’t have a store, so he just hangs his work on the outside of the abandoned building and/or on the ground. His work was beautiful, I feel in love with it instantly. It was his families work, his father taught him and his sister. The daughter does the canvas paintings and the son made all the wood carvings. I knew I wanted a to buy a painting but I did not bring any cash with me on that days outing, I told him I would be back in a couple of days. Well I got caught up with my trip and did not get a change to go back to his shop until my last day in Jamaica. I was worried I would miss him before the day was through, so while the group I was with was waiting for dinner I walked to his shop, and it began to rain, (remember his shop is outside) I was worried I was going to miss him so I began to run. Luckily I caught him just as he was putting up his last paintings. After talking prices and doing some bartering I was able to purchase two wonderful canvas paintings. Now I will always have an authentic piece of Jamaican culture that will always be a part of my home, wherever I go. Some people might look at my paintings and not understand or see what I see in the paintings, because they are more than just that, they are a reminder of what I experienced and how that trip changed my life and perspective on music therapy forever.

Beth

This is a word I do not have much experience with.

I am a notorious planner. I love writing and executing plans. I do not like do deviate, because then I am not being efficient with my time or plan of action.

I know being a music therapist this is not an ideal mindset. Sometimes your client could be having a bad day or everything you planned is not working, then what? You have to IMPROVISE… dun dun dun. Those dreaded words, but if that is what is needed than you should go forth into uncharted territories. Though I am not the best at this, I am striving to think more on the spot if something is not working or the client has mastered this and needs something more challenging.

Another way I have had to expand my improvising skills is when I play viola. I have NEVER done this before and that has definitely been a new experience. The one thing I can say though is I’m happy to finally be using my primary instrument within sessions! This has been fun and an engaging way to incorporate viola into the sessions.

The nice thing to know and something I keep telling myself through this whole process of learning how to improvise within a session and with my primary instrument is that it can only get better, I don’t think I can get any worse!

Beth

As I am stepping into the senior intern position, awareness is a word that will become more a part of my daily routine. I am not saying before I was a bumbling idiot, but now there is more responsibility and expectations from me. I do not want to disappoint.

I believe that when leading sessions I will become more aware. I am speaking specifically about the out of office group sessions that I did with the previous intern. Now I will be stepping into her shoes. She has been a wonderful intern to work with. I have learned a variety of things working with her (driving skills/directions ARE NOT included in this portion) Marjie has been a blast to work with and I could not imagine a better intern to have worked with. We are two different girls, but together we have had a lot of fun!

Back to awareness, I believe tomorrow I will better understand the word after I step into senior intern shoes and am responsible for leading sessions. I am excited for this new chapter in my internship and cannot wait for the new opportunities and experiences I will be facing.

Beth