Thanks Nancy for these emails. Dorothy
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From: Nancy Gilliland
Date: Sat, Sep 21, 2013 at 11:03 PM,
To: Dorothy and Audrey
Sweet Dorothy and Audrey,
It was so nice to meet you, Dorothy, and to see you again, Audrey, and have such a LOVELY afternoon. I was elated to be able to play for Barbara Ann and have her be so animated and energetic with her singing. It was just wonderful to hear the Sagebrush Swing gals serenade us again! Dorothy, you did a great job on the videos…they are terrific. It makes me smile (amidst getting choked up) to see Barbara Ann get into the music and have such a good time. It truly was a gift that we all shared yesterday and I am very honored to be part of it.
Big hugs,
Nancy
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>From: Dorothy Bender
>Date: Sat, Sep 21, 2013, at 11:34 PM,
>To: Nancy Gililand
> Actually Nancy -- it was my honor and delight to witness the three of you in concert as other residents and staff sat listening, some singing along, some dancing. It really was an amazing afternoon. You just dazzled me as you responded to Barbara Ann's chord suggestions.
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From: Nancy Gilliland
Date: Sun, Sep 22, 2013 at 10:08 AM
To: Dorothy Bender
You know, Dorothy, Barbara Ann and I were having a conversation when I first visited her at Beau's in April and we both couldn't figure out why we hadn't done more music together. Not exactly working together (since we both have different styles) but that would have been delightful (I had a fantasy of her playing accordion on a wonderful Johnny Mercer tune, "Once Upon A Summertime"…sounding very French), but when we'd get together for lunch…just playing and sharing songs and verses with each other would take a back seat. We decided that other things got in the way…other things like talking about cooking and sharing recipes, gardening and sharing plant cuttings, talking about what was happening in our lives…and THEN we would do music at the end of our visit and one of us would have to leave. It was always bittersweet but when we'd reconnect, we'd pick right up where we had left off. I LOVE that about her and she loves that about me. We would say that we needed a "Barbara Ann Fix" or a "Nancy Fix" and after our visit, our tanks would be full. It was wonderful. We call each other "Canary" and "Chirpie". As she was declining, her emails got fewer and fewer and one of the last ones I received just said "Chirp" and I broke down.
So the way I figure it, every time I come for a visit, music is an essential part of connecting with her and Barbara Ann connecting with herself. I found it wonderful that she was calling out the chord changes for me on Friday when I was unfamiliar with the tune. I have a good ear and can pick things out easily but she is the wonderful sight reader and perfect pitch gal. In fact, on our second visit at Beau's in early May, our friend Chantale gave Barbara Ann a facial and Chantale's MO is that the music has to be very quiet and soothing. They were in the master bedroom and I was in Barbara Ann's room, playing the electric piano…softly. Barbara Ann calls out "I can't hear you…play louder and SING!" Cracked me up!! So I did.
Anything I can do to make her happy is on my list.
xo
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