We all have a story

We all have a story. Some are short and sweet, while others are long and complicated.  But whatever our story is, it is created in God's hands.

While I was at the ESA IC Convention the other week, I was thinking about this. I was thinking especially about how the clients of Easter Seals and the patients of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital all have a different story. Some endure more treatment than others.  Some survive the odds and beat childhood cancer, while others don't.

As I was thinking about this, I began to think about my own story. What makes my story unique? What makes me different from everybody else? What gifts and talents did God give me? What situations has God put me in that make me who I am today?

For me, I thought about how I was born with a VSD, or Ventricular Septal Defect. A VSD, simply put, is a hole in the wall(septum) that separates the two lower chambers(left and right ventricles) of the heart. I was tiny but mighty when I was born. My parents had to feed me every two hours when I was born.(And if you know me, I still eat almost every two hours!) Growing up, I saw my pediatrician along with a pediatric cardiologist who specialized in Congenital Heart Defects from OSF Hospital in Peoria. At OSF Peoria, through the Children's Hospital of Illinois, there is a Congenital Heart Center that treats both children and adults with CHDs.  CHDs are present at birth, and many require immediate attention and surgery.  According to the ACHA, heart defects are found in 1 in 100 babies.

I am very lucky that my VSD has not caused any issues, nor has it restricted me from doing anything I wish to do.  Many small VSDs close as the child grows-mine did not.  As I have gotten older, I now understand how lucky I am. Many children are born with multiple CHDs and require multiple surgeries with long hospital stays.  But yet here I am..I've never had heart surgery or long hospital stays. I know some will say I am lucky because I haven't had to do that....but some days when I hear the stories of other CHD survivors, I wonder why I am the lucky one. Why did God choose them and not me? While I will probably never know the answer to this question, some days I find myself asking it..I especially began thinking about this during my senior year of high school when a young woman in my community had her sixth open heart surgery.  All I could do was pray for her, because even though I have a CHD,I had no idea what she was going through.

At the beginning of this post, I talked about how we each have a different story, and how we are all created in God's hands. Whenever I question why I am the so called "lucky one", I remind myself that I was created in God's hands, just like everyone else. I remind myself that God doesn't put people in situations that they can't handle. We may not know if we can handle something when it first happens, but we must remember that God put us there, so He will help us through, as long as we trust in Him.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11~

What are you going to do with THAT degree?

For those who don't know, I am studying music therapy. There are a few questions I always get asked when I tell somebody that I am studying music therapy: What are you going to do with THAT degree? Are you going to be a teacher? What kind of job are you going to do with that degree? Where would you work?

First, let me explain how I discovered music therapy. When I was younger, I wanted to become a teacher(for like half of my childhood). As I grew older and began to develop my passion for music, I knew I wanted to a have a job in music.  At first, I wanted to become a music teacher. As my sister went away to Maryville University, my parents had told me that her school didn't offer a degree in music. One night as I was looking at a brochure for Maryville, I was reading the list of degrees offered...I suddenly came across "Music Therapy". I looked up at my parents and said "what is music therapy?" My dad tried to explain it to me the best he could. As a curious teenager, I went online and looked it up. As I came upon the AMTA's website, I found the definition(http://www.musictherapy.org/about/quotes/). I knew that it was what I wanted to do with my life. Towards the end of my junior year of high school, I visited WIU and sat in a senior music therapy class..that day they happened to be discussing the definition of music therapy-I was hooked and knew that was what I wanted to do..

So here I am the summer after my freshman year of college, and it's still what I want to do with my life. Yes, there are those days where I think about studying music education, but then I am always reminded of why I am studying music therapy.  

This afternoon as I was outside, one of my elderly neighbors stopped to talk to me. He asked me what I was studying, and I answered. He then proceeded to ask if I was going to be a teacher..and I said no.  I explained how that's not what I want to do with my life, and how I want to be a music therapist. 

I love when people ask me what I am studying..and then what music therapy is because it gives me the opportunity to advocate for music therapy. But it becomes frustrating when people think that I am studying to be a full-time music educator-because I'm not! I am studying music therapy so I can become a music therapist. If I wanted to be a full-time music teacher, I would be studying music education. Yes, I teach trumpet lessons, and I love my students, but I don't want to be a band director. 

*What am I going to do with my degree? Become an MT-BC and share my love of music while helping others.

*Am I going to be a teacher? No, I am not going to be a full-time music educator or band director. I would love to teach trumpet and adaptive piano lessons, on the side, though.

*What kind of job am I going to get? I plan on getting a job where I will be a music therapist. (And obviously I will still play my trumpet!)

*Where will I work? Somewhere where I can be a music therapist. My dream job is working with children in either the school or hospital setting. And of course I will always have the dream of owning a private practice.

If you are interested in knowing more about music therapy, check out the American Music Therapy Association's website. (www.musictherapy.org) Explaining music therapy would need to be its own blog post!