Wow, hasn't 2020 taught us a lot about connection!

Who would have thought that this year would be the year we all embraced technology to connect in every event in our daily life. We have learned to trust technology and feel unashamed about using it too much - quite frankly - what would we be doing without it?
I remember as a kid, listening to the internet dial tone and waiting everso patiently for it to connect to the internet, which quite often didn't happen and I would think, ahh I'll have to do something else around the house or garden - potentially something less fun and interactive (as an only child, theres only so many times you can play the same games before getting really really bored) and if it's raining, game over for anything outside!
I used to often sit with my musical instruments and learn how to be creative with sound, sometimes to my favourite records or songs, other times making up melodies or songs with words. It was only becoming confident enough to play with other people in sync that I realised the potential that playing music had to make me feel connected, on a level which way outweighed any other platform.
Technology offers us so much right now. We can actually see the value that feeling connected adds to us as humans beings. We take for granted our daily meetings and greetings with others and now we can actually measure how connected we are by screen time calculations or how long we've been chatting to family and friends in hours and minutes.
We have never needed connectivity more than right now and I wonder how long it will take for us to forget how great we feel when we can just be in the presence of others, with the delight of body language, waves, hugs and smiling faces. I know it will take me a long time to forget how happy being around people makes me.
This is why connectivity is one of Amped Music Therapy's core values. To feel connected is to feel human, to feel loved, to feel like you can just be yourself. Music is all about connection and music therapy even more so.
Even on a screen, online music sessions help to bridge the isolation that being at home might bring and just sharing a joint musical experience can transcend the blankness of the 4 walls and bring fun, wonderment and joy to the room.
I hope wherever you are, you are able to connect with at least one person every day on the phone, on the internet or through the window. It won't be long - hopefully- before we can get a bit more back to normal and have face-to-face connections once more. But for now, back to that dial tone..
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