The 7 Ingredients of Caring

Humans are social creatures. We spend our lives interacting with others, giving and receiving. We were not designed to be alone, yet too often, when presented with the opportunity to reach out to another, we find ourselves holding back because we are unsure how to move forward. Whether we are caring for family or friends [...]

Respecting the Dream

We live in a world dominated by fast media. Information bombards us relentlessly. If we’re not seeing images urging us to “Buy, eat, get, have, consume, spend,” then we’re being shouted at by those who want to convince us that, unless we use their product, watch their program, read their book, attend their seminar, we’ll [...]

Adventures of Harley the Cat

About fifteen years ago, my family adopted a cat. Actually, my Mom adopted her, and, since what she said almost always became law in our house, none of us could do anything except tease her about becoming an old cat woman. The cat was maybe a year and a half old, calico, and had extra [...]

Make Way for the Carrot Cake!

I’ve been on a cooking spree lately. Usually, my husband cooks. He’s really good at it, too. It’s not that I can’t, but when he was going to school and I was teaching, back when we first got married, he would cook because, if we waited until I came home after my last piano lesson, [...]

Undiscovered Glory

We’ve just witnessed two weeks worth of athletics at its best, courtesy of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. From an American standpoint, there was much to celebrate (golds in men’s and women’s beach volleyball, men’s and women’s basketball, Michael Phelps’ eight golds from the pool along with his various world records, gold in the [...]

Beginning to Take on Beethoven’s “Tempest”

Two days ago, I began listening very seriously to Beethoven’s Sonata No. 17, Op. 31, No. 2 (“The Tempest”) I’m going to play it, although right now, it’s kicking up quite a storm of doubt because there are a lot of technical things it will inevitably teach me.
Before, when I heard something, I’d think, “Oh, [...]

When the World Gives You Lemons

I’ve played the piano pretty much my entire life, and I’ve had great teachers who have left indelible marks on my playing, teaching, and the way I think about music. But I’ve also had my share of challenges, perhaps not the least of which is that I can’t see the keyboard, and I use Braille [...]