Looking at Life through Lyrics

Little Things Mean a Lot (lyrics by Edith Lindeman and Carl Stutz)
Blow me a kiss from across the room
Say I look nice when I'm not
Touch my hair as you pass my chair
Little things mean a lot.

Give me your arm as we cross the street
Call me at six on the dot
A line a day when you're far away
Little things mean a lot

Don't have to buy me diamonds and pearls
Champagne, sables or such
I never cared much for diamonds and pearls
'cause honestly, honey, they just cost money

Give me your hand when I've lost my way
Give me a shoulder to cry on
Whether the day is bright or gray
Give me your heart to rely on

Send me the warmth of a secret smile
To show me you haven't forgot
For always and ever, now and forever
Little things mean a lot


Imagination (lyrics and music by Paul Desmond)
Imagination is funny
It makes a cloudy day sunny
Makes a bee think of honey
Just as I think of you.

Have you ever felt a gentle touch, and then a kiss?
And then, and then, and then, and then,
Find it's only your imagination again?
Oh well....

Imagination is silly,
You go around willy-nilly,
For example I go around wanting you
And yet I can't imagine
That you want me too.

Aren't those wonderful lyrics? I wish you could hear the music that goes with them, but some readers may already be hearing it as I write this.

While browsing through the internet's cyber-library, I came across a site that described bringing nature and animals into nursing homes and other 'classrooms.' The intent is to re-connect or re-involve people with the world that is going on around them. I had to wonder if, in some ways, it would make the recipients feel more not less separated from nature.

But here's what's so interesting about working with the elderly, or anyone in need of palliative care. It's not necessary to re-connect them, because the connection is already alive and present! With the beginning notes of an old tune; a whiff of cookies, or cologne; the mention of a shooting star across a night sky or describing the silver-white sparkle of emerging pussywillows~ the mention of an old memory becomes a vivid reality. Sometimes memories are even sweeter than the real thing.

We're not bringing anything new to the nursing homes, or schools, or any other place where people live and gather. When we come with music and animals, we're reminding ourselves (and seeing it first-hand) that lives have very deep connections that may lie dormant, but never die.
Imagination, and memories, are worth cultivating.