Author Archives: Susan Featro

Snow Day

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Yesterday, we had a snow day from school.  With snow, sleet, and freezing rain coming down throughout the morning and early afternoon, school was cancelled.

 

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Snow days are a rare treat.  While it’s always nice to have a scheduled day off, those unexpected days off are a refreshing break from routine.  Whenever I have a scheduled day off, I almost always plan something – make my doctor’s appointments, plan a little trip, get set up to do a project, make plans to have lunch and go out shopping with friends or with my mom, or reserve the day for catching up on grading for the university courses I’m teaching.  But when those snow days come up unexpectedly, there are no plans that have been made, and it’s not safe to go out and travel the roads anyway.

 

On a snow day, I can enjoy leisure reading, a bubble bath, or time on Facebook with no guilt whatsoever.  I can enjoy an extra long meditation session or bake something tasty and sweet. I can work ahead on things I know I have coming up.  I can play some new songs on the piano – just for fun, not in preparation for any upcoming performance.  There are no expectations;  there’s no nagging voice in the back of my head, listing all the things I “should” be doing.  I’ve been given permission to be totally in the moment and to ask myself what I feel like doing.  That really feels great.

 

Do you have memories of spending “snow days” in fun ways as a child…or as an adult?  How often do you allow yourself to have those days in which you have no agenda…no expectations for what should be accomplished by the day’s end?  I enjoyed yesterday’s snow day very much, and I look forward to the next snow day.  I now want to play with the idea of allowing myself to have that same experience more often…even when there is no inclement weather in the forecast.

Self Care and Self Love

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This past week, I was hit by the flu.  I picked it up somewhere, and my immune system was weakened enough that I ended up noticing a sore throat as my first symptom, and then things went on from there.

 

While there’s never a good time to be sick, I was upset that this struck during “mid-term exam time” at school…but I was thankful that it didn’t interfere with any musical performances I had scheduled.  Being sick gave me the opportunity this week to really practice self care and self love in a way that I hadn’t before, so that is the blessing that came out of this.

 

Many spiritual teachers remind us that everything we experience can be seen as an opportunity to learn more about ourselves and to learn about life.  This was a growth experience for me, because I went about being sick differently than  I had in the past.

 

Before, I had never been a person to slow down.  I had always tried my best to keep going – not wanting to miss time from school/work, not wanting to cancel lessons I was teaching or plans I had committed to, not wanting to take a day off from working out.

 

This time, the flu left me with no energy, and the fact that I couldn’t get much sleep because of the cough left me even more weary.  I decided to listen to my body and take care of myself by resting…a lot.  I used sick time I had available at work;  I cancelled students’ lessons;  I skipped my morning workouts;  I didn’t even go to InterPlay – and participating in that active, creative improvisation-based class that centers around movement, storytelling, and song is something I truly love to do.  Instead, I spent a lot of time in bed; I took hot baths; I drank countless cups of tea.  I took it easy.

 

And it worked.  I am now feeling better and slowly reentering the routine – but with a focus on self care and self love.  I’m taking it slowly and remembering that my body needs to be treated well in order to perform well in the world.

 

I sure hope that you do not have this terrible flu.  It really was not fun.  But if you do, or if you’re feeling that your health is compromised in any way, I encourage you to follow my example and treat yourself well.  This was new to me, and I now am grateful for this experience and the lesson I learned from it.  In the beginning, it was almost like I needed to be given permission to slow down and take care of myself.  So I give you now permission to treat yourself with care and love.  It will leave you feeling healthier and more alive and will lead to you to be better able to go out into the world and do all that you do.  And even if you are feeling at your peak, I still encourage you to practice self care and self love.  Please feel free to share in the comments any ways that you practice self care and self love.

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Reflecting after the Concert

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It’s been 9 days since my Holiday Benefit Concert.  On December 16th, I performed a full concert of holiday music at the Tamaqua Community Arts Center, with my concert benefitting the Tamaqua Community Arts Center and the Tamaqua Blue Raider Foundation. I was joined on stage by special musical guests Faith Roberts, Stan Stewart, and Tom Flamini. These musical guests lifted their voices and created beautiful music that uplifted all of our spirits. It was a special afternoon for me, because I love to sing, play the piano, play the guitar, and share my music with others. It was also a special afternoon for me, because it brought together so many wonderful people.

 

During the Christmas season, our to-do lists seem to get longer with holiday preparations that need to get done, family and work parties to attend, and gifts to buy and wrap. It’s easy to get caught up in it all and not take the time to slow down, reflect on what we’re feeling inside, and allow Christmas to come alive in our hearts. I don’t see Christmas as an all-out celebration of joy, jolliness, and peace on Earth. Those who attended my concert heard me sing pieces of music that speak to the fears and doubts we have inside, the struggles we face on the journey, and the heartache that is experienced during life on Earth…as well as the joy & sweet surprises and playful, lighthearted fun that is part of the season. I believe that Christmas is all of that. Christmas is a celebration of being alive and being together, feeling all that we feel and accepting it, while keeping focused on what really matters in life.  For me, two of the most meaningful things in life are people and music.

 

As I performed my holiday concert, making music and sharing comments and stories in between songs, I held a special connection with each person in the audience, and I felt inspired by the energy of the audience. The audience was inspired by my music and message. It was a continuous exchange of inspiration & energy between the audience and me on stage. It was truly uplifting. I was honored to have the opportunity to share my songs and stories with so many people who have been part of my life throughout the years and so many people who were meeting me and hearing me for the first time. I thank all who joined me for that special afternoon.

 

I was already asked about performing a Holiday Benefit Concert at the Tamaqua Community Arts Center next December, and I look forward to doing that. I will post details on that upcoming concert here on my blog. I invite everyone who attended this year’s concert to return next year to continue the connection, and I invite those who were unable to make this recent concert to join us next December.

 

Christmas Blessings to all of you.

 

Holiday Concert Photo, Susan at Digital Piano

 

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Holiday Benefit Concert: 2 Days Away

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My holiday benefit concert is just 2 days away. 

 

I hope you have seen some of the publicity leading up to the event, as I am hoping to perform for a large audience at the concert and raise as much money as possible for the Tamaqua Community Arts Center and the Tamaqua Blue Raider Foundation, supporting special projects in the Tamaqua Area School District.

 

I was interviewed yesterday on WMGH Radio and WLSH Radio, and a track from my CD – Voice Lifted was played on both of those stations.  The (Hazleton) Standard Speaker included the event twice in their “Happenings” section.  The Times News ran an article both last Friday and this Tuesday about the upcoming holiday benefit concert.  TV-13 (Blue Ridge) News also gave great coverage, filming an interview and clips from “Oh, Holy Night.”

 

Making music is a true passion for me.  I am looking forward to having a special connection with all of those in the audience on Sunday as I lift my voice on traditional Christmas carols and other special pieces that communicate all that this season means and holds for us.

Holiday Benefit Concert

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I wanted to share with you all that I am very excited about an upcoming holiday benefit concert that I will do.

 

On Sunday, December 16th at 2:30 pm, I will be giving a solo concert, with a few special musical guests, at the Tamaqua Community Arts Center, 125 Pine St., Tamaqua, PA.  Tickets will be $5 in advance and $6 at the door, with 50% of that money going to the Tamaqua Community Arts Center and 50% of the money going to the Tamaqua Blue Raider Foundation, supporting special projects in the Tamaqua Area School District.

 

I love singing holiday and Christmas music, and I am especially excited to be performing my music to benefit the arts in my community and to benefit the school district that I graduated from and where I am now teaching.

 

I invite you to come.  It would be very special to me to see family, friends, supporters, and fans in the audience.  I hope to have a good turnout in order to benefit the Tamaqua Community Arts Center and the Tamaqua Blue Raider Foundation so that they may continue to do the wonderful things they do!

 

Please contact me if you would like to purchase tickets in advance.

 

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy

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Hurricane Sandy took us for a wild ride last week.  Living in east-central Pennsylvania, I would not have expected to ever experience the wrath of such a hurricane.  There are still people within an hour of me waiting for their electricity to be restored…6 days later.  The amount of devastation in New York and New Jersey is unbelievable.

 

I have found myself unsettled since Sandy blew through.  Even though my power was restored in 24 hours and damage to my home and my parents’ property was minimal, I’ve just been shaken by it all and almost can’t bear to see the videoclips and photos and to hear the stories that are being shared on the tv news and on the internet.

 

Yesterday, I found out about a former student of mine who is organizing a project to help those in Rockaway, NY who have lost everything in this storm.  This student, now in high school, was an active member of the Pleasant Valley Intermediate School Student Council when I advised and led this group in my tenure as a teacher in Pleasant Valley.  Nina is collecting canned goods, clothing, blankets, batteries, coats, toys, and more — to help those who need help the most.  I spent time last night getting things together to donate.  As my parents have recently moved to a new house, we’ve been doing a lot of cleaning around here over the past several months, and this is a great opportunity for us to let go of things we no longer need and to pass them on to people who could really benefit from them.  I am inspired by Nina’s continued commitment to leadership and helping the community, and I am so happy to see her initiating this project.  She is a high school student who excels academically, a friendly and warm young woman who brings joy to many, and a person who gives back and helps her school and community.  She had all of these qualities as a seventh grader in my Student Council, and she is becoming more involved and helping more and more people as she grows and works hard at all that she does.  I am so proud of Nina, and I feel better that I am helping in a small way to alleviate some of the suffering of these people afflicted by Hurricane Sandy. If anyone would also like to contribute to Nina’s project, please get in touch with me, and I will pass on Nina’s contact information to you.  She is welcoming additional donations, and I support her project and want it to be a great success.

 

There are many other ways to help.  My friend Stan suggested on his most recent blog post donating through Music for Relief.  The Tamaqua Salvation Army did a fantastic job of helping people in Schuylkill and Carbon County in so many ways over the past week.  Andy Leibenguth and others delivered hot meals to residents without power.  WNEP News did a feature on their great service.

 

While this storm has shaken so many of us, it has also brought people together.  I am moved by the acts of kindness and compassion that continue to make life better and restore hope for those who were affected by this storm.

Homecoming

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This past weekend, I returned to the college where I got my undergraduate degree for the college’s Homecoming festivities.  In all of the years since I graduated, I had never attended Homecoming.  I made special plans to attend this year, because my vocal music professor will be retiring at the end of this academic year.

 

One of the highlights of Homecoming weekend is an “Open Choir Rehearsal,” which is always held on the Saturday morning of Homecoming weekend.  In that rehearsal, the current Lycoming College Choir members sing along with returning choir alumni.  The rehearsal was held in a beautifully constructed building that has been erected on campus since my graduation:  Honors Hall.

 

Dr. Fred Thayer, the choir director, led the choir in some familiar pieces, such as “Beautiful Savior” and “The Benediction” by Peter Lutkin.  The choir also rehearsed “The Star-Spangled Banner,” as the group of current choir members and alumni were invited to sing this piece at the college football game later in the afternoon.

 

Fred allowed each returning choir member to introduce himself/herself and to update the group on life since college.  I could see the pride on Fred’s face as he witnessed each returning choir member sharing a few words about his or her life journey.

 

We also had the opportunity to hear the current Lycoming Chamber Choir perform. As these young sopranos, altos, tenors, and basses lifted their voices, it was evident that they were engaged in a meaningful way with the music, with each other, and with their conductor.  The beautiful sounds that filled the concert hall were sounds that were alive with humanness and connection;  these young singers are very lucky to be experiencing the gift of making music under the direction of Dr. Thayer.

 

A conductor does not simply wave his or her arms in the air to keep the tempo and remind the singers of the dynamics in the pieces of music.  A choral conductor has the privilege of taking individual voices and individual spirits and joining them in a way that is meaningful and that allows each singer’s strengths and talents to be combined in a way that leads to a collective sound that is strong and vibrant.  As voices join, friendships form, and the music strengthens those friendships and the friendships strengthen the music-making.

 

I was moved on Saturday by the special connection that exists between Lycoming College Choir alumni, even those separated in their college singing tenure by 30 years.  I am grateful for my experience singing in the Lycoming College Choir, and I wish the very best to this year’s vocal ensembles and wish the very best to their outstanding conductor and mentor, Dr. Fred Thayer.

On the Move

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It’s been a while since my last post.  I’ve been on the move.  My parents are moving to a new house, and I’ve been spending much of my time helping my parents – packing things in boxes, cleaning, and deciding which things to give away.  I will be working on this project with my parents for several more months.  I’ll admit that it has not been easy to go through my belongings and my parents’ belongings.  A lot of difficult decisions have had to be made.   One thing I’m finding as I’m immersed in this work is how freeing it is to downsize, simplify, and give things away to people who can use them.  In the process of doing this, I’m finding things I didn’t know I had, learning about family heirlooms, and I am also growing and learning lessons.  In letting go, I’m finding it easier to lift my voice to new heights, and there is a clarity that is coming from this process of discovery.

Daring Greatly

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The author whose writing has most inspired me and changed me in this past year is Brené Brown.  Brené Brown (Ph.D., LMSW) is a researcher at the University of Texas at Austin.  Her areas of research include shame and vulnerability.  Yes, I did say she was inspiring.  Really!

 

This past week, Brené was on The Katie Show.  She discussed new book “Daring Greatly.”

 

My first exposure to Brené Brown was in watching her TED Talk on vulnerability.  Vulnerability was not a new concept for me.  For the past 10 years, my teacher and mentor James Jordan at Westminster Choir College has insisted that choral conductors and all creative artists needed to be vulnerable in order to offer pure and beautiful creations that move people and connect people.

 

What is vulnerability?  It’s kind of like emotional nakedness.  It’s being open.  Vulnerability is allowing ourselves to be seen…as we are.  Vulnerability is letting go of trying to control how others see us.  It is showing up and being real…allowing ourselves to be exposed in all of our perfection and imperfection…embracing humanness.  Vulnerability is taking risks…saying “I love you” first, letting others see us cry, saying “I don’t know,” and “I’m scared.”  Vulnerability is letting others see how excited we are about an opportunity…with the recognition that we might not get the job or we might not be the one selected after the audition, or that special person might turn us down for a date.  So many times, we choose to avoid vulnerability by “playing it cool” and acting as if it’s not a big deal…pretending it doesn’t really matter if we get the job/get role we auditioned for/get to go on a date with that special someone.

 

To be vulnerable is to be brave.  We take a risk when we expose ourselves to others.  There is a very real chance that we will be judged, ridiculed, hurt…  Brené acknowledges that being vulnerable takes courage, and we will sometimes experience rejection and hurt.  Yet, it is worth the price, because it is actually more painful to stand outside of our own lives and look in, wanting to engage and participate wholeheartedly…but to hold back, protecting ourselves from the potential dangers we might encounter if we let others see us.  I know:  I have often stood back and not fully engaged with others, not speaking up when I had something to say, not saying how I really felt because I feared others would judge me, not stepping up and taking a leadership role because I still had work to do on myself to become “good enough,” not letting others see how much I care on account of fear that I would be judged as “too sensitive.”  The list goes on.

 

I have now decided:  I would rather go home and feel the painful feelings that follow harsh judgment by a friend, audience member, critic, family member, or stranger after I have lived authentically and lifted my voice, living out loud…than go home and feel the painful feelings that arise from knowing that I didn’t put myself out there…that I stood in the background and didn’t bring all of me to the world.  I choose to dare greatly.  I know I will have to be brave.

 

How have you dared greatly in your life?  How do you plan to be brave in your days ahead?

To Teach and to Learn

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Susan - Back to School Photo - to Teach and to Learn

Yes, even as the teacher, I still get my picture taken on the first day of school. The first day of school is a special beginning, and I want to reflect in this post on my role as a teacher…and a learner.

 

I am a teacher of English as a Second Language.  I am also a teacher of music who gives lessons out of my home.  I’m also considered a teacher when I lead choirs and when I present at academic conferences.  Most frequently, I am a teacher as I go about my day-to-day activities, interacting with family, friends, and those whom I meet as I journey through my days.  At the same time, I am a student.

 

I do not take either of these roles lightly.  I think it is an amazing opportunity, privilege, responsibility, and gift to learn from each other.  It is a beautiful exchange:  to teach and to learn, to share.

 

There is so much that we can learn from each other, and we each have much to share, to offer, to teach.  We teach by example, as well as through our words.  We learn by being open and receptive as we connect with others and as we engage fully in life.

 

Life is constantly presenting us with lessons.  Some of these lessons come to us at a comfortable pace and are enjoyable for us, as we discover and grow;  other lessons are hard and painful.  If we don’t learn the lesson the first time, we can be assured that it will be repeated for us…until we master it.  …Kind of like Outcome-Based Education, which became popular in the 1990’s.

 

I am committed to teaching and learning.  I always strive to be a good teacher and a good student.  I know it is important for me to lift my voice and share myself with others.  It is, likewise, important for me to listen and learn from others who surround me.  The coexistence of these two roles provides a balance, and that is what it is to live and to learn.  Thank you for joining me in the classroom of life.