Bill's Musings

You’re there, perhaps driving, perhaps enjoying a solitary coffee, maybe watching the weather channel. In the background, either the radio or television is playing. You’re in a zone. You notice, suddenly, a certain song playing. And you’re flooded with memories. Good, bad, or ugly, these memories are your own. And thus is the power of music.

There are few things in our lives that hold the power of evoking memories such as music does. Certain smells and tastes can provoke some nostalgia, certainly. But music is unlike any other. One song can make you laugh, cry, long for someone, have hunger pains, angry, even rejoice. These anchors in our minds have strong ropes tied to them, and reel us back with but a note or two.

While working at a retirement home not long ago, I took a moment to listen in to a person I knew who played piano…