We are not meant to live in isolation. What makes us healthy and whole is the connections we form with one another.  With our families. Our friends. Our colleagues and our community…  The thing we need the most to feel healthy has become harder to get.

After more than 30 years in the field of social work, I know one thing to be true. We do not need to be victims to our situation. We have choices to make, each and every day about how we want to live our lives. How we choose to show up for ourselves and each other.

Practice #14 - Sing

“Good morning to you. Good morning to you. We’re all in our places with jam on our faces ‘cuz this is the way we start each new day.”

When my kids were little, they used to joke that I had a song for everything. I’d wake them up with a song. I’d put them to bed with a song. They’d catch me launching into song at the oddest of times. When I was folding clothes. Giving them a bath or pushing them in the stroller. Silly songs. Camp songs. Real songs and songs I made up on the spot. I’ve even been caught singing commercials.

I learned from the best of them. One song my kids like to remind me of is one my father used to sing when we would drive over the George Washington Bridge on our way into New York. it went like this. George Washington Bridge. Ge-orge Washington Washington Bri-dge. George Washington Bridge, Ge-orge Washington Washington Bri-dge (repeat). Simple? Yes. Monotonous? Yes. Did we love it? Absolutely. Sitting in the back of our old wood paneled station wagon we’d all join in, laughing as we sang.

Singing makes us happy. I’d be happy to explain the psychological reasons why, and there are plenty of them, but I doubt it’s necessary. You can see for yourself.

Try this;

Sing. When you’re cooking. Folding laundry. Vacuuming the floor. Sing to your dogs. The birds. Yourself. Turn on some music and sing in your car. In the shower or while you’re pulling weeds. Like the old song says, “Don’t worry that it’s not good enough for anyone else to hear, just sing, sing a song.”

About the video: This is Jessica. One night on the Camino we were having dinner and Jessica, who has a fantastic voice, began singing this beautiful Puccini aria. It was a magical night. Everyone in the kitchen and all the people eating stopped to listen.