Christmas in July

Yesterday I sang at a Mission home and it was an unusual but very uplifting experience. This is a place for some people who otherwise have fallen through the cracks and seem to have no family in the area and not much of anything. Many of them are not very functioning or responsive when spoken to.    Many of the residents are elderly, some severely disabled, others are both.   It was only my 3rd time singing there and I had planned some gospel music but it turns out the people I played for last time were not there.

I started off singing some well known songs like "You are My Sunshine," "This Little Light of Mine", etc. but very few were singing and I was aware that there was an awkward feeling in the room and I was unsure how to proceed a few times.  Finally, I asked "is there a song anyone wants to sing?" and one of the workers said, "Miss Carla likes to sing Silent Night." and so we sang Silent Night.   Miss Carla smiled her toothless smile and said afterwards, "that is a beautiful song!"

I said, "let's have Christmas in July--why not?!" and so then we sang, "Feliz Navidad," "Joy to the World," "O Come all Ye Faithful" and on and on like that --meanwhile the room was hot from an old non functioning air conditioner but no one seemed to notice. It was great to see the staff at their desks singing along. Although there was one grumpy staff member who walked through the room during a rollicking rendition of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer"  who slammed her door behind her. Bah humbug!

It was a lesson in going with the flow. Had I just continued trying to lead the group with songs I thought they'd like, this experience would not have happened. Let the people lead and I follow.  It was such an uplifting experience!

P.S. Thanks for coming by and if you are looking for music for a wedding or special event-here is my page where I have samples:
http://blueoconnell.com/services.htm