Stop, Look, and Listen

Tonight, I had the privilege of seeing an early version of a documentary film called Alive Inside, which showcases the work of Music and Memory, an organization trying to get iPods with personalized music selections into the hands of nursing home residents and Alzheimer's patients across the U.S.  The effects of personally relevant music on the lives of the older people in the film were staggering--people with little access to their memories could be almost taken back in time by listening to music they loved in childhood.  Clearly, as the film asserted, music is able to reach beyond the ordinary pathways of brain or memory function.
 
Now, I am not a nursing home patient, and aside from forgetting sometimes where I put down my cup of coffee, I have a reasonably good memory. Yet, the power of music to evoke feelings or times past definitely resonated with me.  A piece of music popping into my head often prompts a blog post. A song on the radio can make me cry in two seconds flat.  Even at my synagogue, where I saw the film, I am struck on a regular basis by how the liturgical music transports me back to my childhood going to services with my family.
 
So, why am I writing about this? Well, I can't help but hope it will lend support to the really good people who were involved with the film and the people who are affected by getting music in their lives.  And, it was something that transformed the tone of my day, which made it blogworthy.  And, it was a reminder that it's really good each day to stop and hear the music, stop and see what's around you, stop and think about what you can do to make something outside of yourself just a little better.
 
Happy Friday.