Grand Hotel

About to board my flight to Singapore, some 9 years after this blog began with a trip to Asia. Nothing has changed since then. Everything has changed since then.

On the change side, back in 2011 I had no grandchildren, worked at school with my wife, my Mom was still with us, had no Pentatonics Jazz Band, hadn’t been to Ghana in the Orff-Afrique Course, didn’t have the pleasure of sharing the school and San Francisco with Interns and had a President I admired who, for those who were open to it, brought out our better selves.

But I had the same love and commitment and gratitude for this work of making music with both children and adults then as I do now, worked at The San Francisco School, played most of the same Bach and jazz pieces, went each Friday to the Jewish Home, went every two weeks to the Men’s Group and so on, all these and more of the faithful consistencies that have walked by my side for so long with no sign of stopping.

In the inner world, everything is constant and recognizable, changing mostly in degree and yet more proof that these have been worthy endeavors, bringing pleasure to me and some small measure of hope, healing and happiness to others. 

In the outer world, the changes are starting to feel dramatic. The unmistakable signs of climate change, the circus in the Senate and about to enter a huge geographic area with face masks, fear and uncertainty. This cannot simply be ignored. 

So in one sense, it’s Grand Hotel (see the classic film if you haven’t) where “people come and people go and nothings ever changes.” Until it does. 

May the benevolent gods stay with us.