This week I have spent my time between filling in funding applications and delivering services. I ought to include writing procedures which I find quite interesting if honest. I have often found working for organisations that expect people to fit policies and procedure rather strange. It feels as though it is the wrong way round. If a policy or procedure does not encompass the needs of the people it is written for then surely it is the policy and procedure that needs to change as the person may not be able to (I will leave you to reflect).
Writing funding applications is again an interesting task. Trying to see beyond the guidelines that you are given to what the funder is wanting to hear about the project, which sometimes feels like second guessing, other times the funder is clear and it becomes more possible to write an application that has a chance of success. We have a pretty good success rate which is why we have been able to introduce new projects. We recently secured some money for a digital project so we will now be able to produce both video and audio recordings with those we work with, this will enable us to use musical interventions when people need it. It feels like another exciting opportunity lies ahead of us.
Kenny and I were at Marian House on Tuesday afternoon. It’s not a place we go to every month now so we had not been there in August. What a joy when I walked into the room and a gentleman who is non-verbal greeted me with a huge smile as did his wife who was there to visit. It was one of those “glad to see you back” greetings. On Thursday we were in the park at Saughton. We must have had as many as fifty people singing or listening. It was great to have the group from Alzheimer Scotland. One lady is a long standing friend of two people who come regularly to Forget Me Notes and when she sees them her face lights up. The three of them were dancing and singing together expressing the joy that their friendship brings..
At Together in Song on Friday it was a packed house. We were celebrating theatre and film with a whole variety of songs. Songs like ‘Supercalafragalisticexpiallidotious!’ I am pretty sure I have spelt that wrong but the spell check is not helping me out. You all know the song I am referring to don’t you. We also did ‘If I Were a Rich Man’ and the singing was fun and infectious.
In the morning Alan and I were at Ashbrook and we had a visitor to the group from Salon Boom called Rachel. Her role is to listen to those with experiences of dementia and then tell their stories in ways that will enable us to learn. We decided that we would introduce ourselves to Rachel through the songs we had chosen. Singing a song and then sharing how we had come to Forget Me Notes and what it means. I come to Forget Me Notes each week to learn from others and I wasn’t disappointed on Friday. I heard people share stories of Covid and how Forget Me Notes had been there for them in dark days. I heard people talk about the songs we sing but I heard even more about the relationship we share. I discovered that one of our group took part in the Morecambe Music Festival, a festival that played an important part in my life when I was younger. I played in a brass ensemble and told the group a part of my story. It was at that point one of the group spoke about how they experience the group at Ashbrook and described the group as an “Ensemble of Support”. Could there be anything better than that?
In all that we have tried to achieve at Forget Me Notes, to be considered as an “Ensemble of Support” is simply wonderful. If I am honest there was a tear in my eye and a smile in my heart as I listened. While listening I realised that what we aspire to be has been reached for different people at different times and I was truly humbled.
I hope we can continue to be that “Ensemble of Support” to people this week and I hope you can be a part of someone’s “Ensemble of Support” too.
Have a great week!