Voice lessons are all about best use of the voice – catching overtones, tuning perfectly, collaborating with accompanists, singing powerful, gracefully, cleanly, and with control. Until this week I hadn’t had a voice lesson since before my surgery, and my lessons in the last year had mostly been taken in the shadow of the painContinue reading >>
Why me?
A year ago I took my younger choir to sing in the beautiful chapel of the old Jesuit retreat center outside of Boston. Another example of Jesuits adapting to meet current needs, the center has morphed into not only a retreat center but a retirement home and nursing home for elderly priests. It is aContinue reading >>
Just as it is, right now
With my eyes closed on my mat, I hear the teacher’s voice invite me to rest my hands over my heart. “Take a moment of stillness to set an intention for your practice today.” I have heard these words many times before. Yoga classes often begin in this way, with a moment of mindfulness, ofContinue reading >>
Grateful for faith
I often sing without thinking. So many songs have been on my rotation for so long that I have stopped noticing them, and even though I once examined the lyrics to be sure they fit me, I now spit them out mindlessly, my brain sensing it can sit back when I know the words inContinue reading >>
Let your mercy be on us
I was using a microphone, though I probably didn’t need it. I was just doing my job, singing a psalm like I do every weekend. I was exhausted. The weight of difficult months had leached energy from my soul just as certain meds can leach calcium from your bones. One’s bones. My bones. Due toContinue reading >>
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