THE JOY OF MUSIC

I've been very blessed to grow up in a musical family. Oh sure, we missed out on the whole Canadian Hockey thing but there was music, by golly, there was music!
We listened to it in all forms and at least one radio was playing something somewhere in the house. My Dad would gather me and my two sisters around the piano and we would sing in rounds. The outcome being that although I don't have a particularly strong voice, I can carry a tune and I can pick up harmony pretty darn easy.
Sister one would start with "1 Bottle of Pop, 2 Bottle of Pop" and the next sister would jump in: "Fish and Chips and Vinegar!" and then it was my turn! "Don't throw your junk in my backyard!".. Anybody else do that??? Any other non-hockey obsessed Canadian families?? No....OK, nevermind. Guess you had to be there...
We all took piano but my little brother was the gifted one and excelled.

Yea, he's a maniac. And he does this for a living.

Recently I went to a concert my parents were singing at. It is a small church based community choir and even though they don't attend the church, they just enjoy the singing with a group thing. 

That's my little momma sitting down while my Dad beside her, and the other men, are showing off their talents. 

The rotund fella leading the group has got to be one of the most exuberantly passionate people I've ever seen about song in all it's forms. The guy was in his glory!

There is something intrinsic about a corporate sing song. I feel it in church everytime. The power and strength of it and how it encourages the whole body (I mean individually and corporately).

Yesterday, we went to Hamilton to visit my son and on the way home we stopped into a music store, Long and MacQuade in Burlington. Talk about a candy shop for music lovers! And Busy! the place was rocking around the clock. I have been in need of a new bow for Morrie for quite sometime. The bow I presently have is a student bow and has already been fixed once. So I've saved my pennies and was ready to invest in something a little more substantial. I tried a couple of different bows, one for $155 and another, a Yamaha, for $415. I settled on the graphite $155 bow and not just because of the price. It just felt right! 

Now, I know Canada is a hockey town. But I encourage you, if you don't have music as part of your life,  save a spot for it. Sing with your kids in the car, join a community choir or pick up an instrument. It's never too late!