Taste, touch, sight, smell and sound. If all the senses were on the line and I had to pick just one to keep, I’d keep the ability to hear sound. The race between keeping sight and sound is a tight one but sound has the edge because of it’s ability to make even the mundane special – chores, mornings, the drive to work. I’ve forgotten the details of things I’ve seen but I can remember most sounds – most songs – I’ve heard. Sounds instantly connect me to places, events, people. Sounds make my memories even more vivid.
The sound of music? The sound above all sounds (saved Adam’s voice in the middle of a stressful day and Ivy’s first cry).
Certain songs are like a time capsule for me. The entire Dirty Dancing soundtrack takes me back to choreographing notdirty dances to “This Overload” in my bedroom as a seven year old. The “Fly” album by the Dixie Chicks snaps me back to driving my teal Mazda Protege’ back and forth to school my sophomore year of high school. “Disappear” by The Gabe Dixon Band brings tears to my eyes almost every time because it reminds me of the day Adam left for Afghanistan.
Mine is not a unique condition and that is why the sound of music is the best sound and the sound that unites the universe (whoa. deep.).
When Ivy was in the womb and reached the week where sound became a thing for her, we put headphones on my belly and were super selective about what we piped through them. I played Sara Bareilles for her first because Sara is my favorite. Stevie Wonder sang “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” to her next. All throughout my pregnancy, I lead worship at our church. I loved the idea that she could hear all of that – that she would know my voice and her dad’s voice.
When we wake her up in the morning, we open the curtains in her room and turn on music for her. It might be too early to tell but, as of right now, she is a morning person (like her dad) and I really want to encourage that by making the morning sort of a celebration. She smiles when she makes eye contact with us first thing and I want to be able to remember the feeling we get when she does that. We’re building a soundtrack for this part of her life and this part of our lives.
So far we’ve incorporated:
Queen, Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers, Sara Bareilles, Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Allen Stone, Jamie Cullum, most every Motown song ever recorded, Journey, and more.
We are going to take her to some of the Alive After Five concert series this summer (we bought her a pair of these – don’t worry). We are also hoping to drag her along to Alabama Shakes in August as well.
We will obviously encourage her to find whatever* music speaks to her but can’t help but be excited about imparting at least a little bit of what makes her parents tick when it comes to music.
– Layne
*By “whatever,” we should clarify that, if “whatever” includes anything by Luke Bryan or Florida Georgia Line, we’ll take away her listening device.