I talk a lot about the gifts my upbringing and my Newfoundland & Labrador heritage has blessed me with. The more I reflect on my strengths and resilience, the more I realize that my exposure to the arts was essential to solidifying and building upon those gifts.
Art, especially music for me, has taught me so many things. It taught me how to marry and balance my heart and my head. How to understand what I was playing or hearing, but know that in order to really make music you must surrender and get into the feelings and emotion of the piece.
It strengthened my listening and empathy. I always loved playing or singing in ensembles the most. Having to learn to listen and communicate without words and relate to others is such a valuable skill, especially for a young person. There is also a joy of being joined in breath and in something bigger, that is hard to experience in any other way. The connectedness you strive for and get glimpses of is almost other-worldly. There are also a hundred ways to play a piece of music and each one has merit. I learned early to value others' opinions and value diverse perspectives.
I believe that there is a power in art that we've yet to tap into (or at least value fully), especially in the social sector. Art has an ability to open up our heads to new ideas. To plant seeds for these new ideas that we don't even see until they have started to take hold. Art can help us understand the other and communicate with someone who doesn't speak the same language as us. When we perform it forces us to step up and create. Even in an ensemble, it is hard to hide behind others. We're accountable to each other and to our audience.
Being a Force for Good 