I was signed up for the morning shift to set up the posters, but I did not anticipate the amount of wind. Posters flew and tumbled in the strong breeze, but eventually we made everything work out. Eating some pastries, the students conversed with the participants of the symposium about our work in the HAP, NAP projects. There were many people interested in reading the posters and talking with the students and enthusiastic about the projects.
One woman talked to my HAP group about our choir group at Seasons at La Jolla and asked us to explain our motivations for doing this. Personally, playing music is an important part of my life; it is soothing, comforting, and gives me the freedom to be myself through my own interpretation of the notes. Since the benefits of singing for people with dementia and other impairments is delineated in research papers, I wanted to utilize this engaging, safe method of therapy. Interacting with these patients through our shared enthusiasm in music was incredibly fulfilling, and I felt so happy to hear and see that they enjoyed singing together. Also, for the students, it is a valuable learning experience to be there and converse with various elders.
I want to thank Professor Lewis and Professor Bussell for providing me with such an extraordinary experience. This is a program like none other; it teaches students about life values and helps us look beyond what we usually do as students in our twenties. We gained not only factual information but also wisdom through our experiences with a diverse population of seniors. I do not see a wide gap between the youth and elderly; we will all age someday and surely it will happen very quickly. Society is only stronger when different generations cooperate and respect each other, and true respect comes from direct communication and interaction. The LCS program helped students gain this invaluable real world experience. I sincerely hope that this program will continue for a very long time; I am so proud that such a sequence exists in our university.
One woman talked to my HAP group about our choir group at Seasons at La Jolla and asked us to explain our motivations for doing this. Personally, playing music is an important part of my life; it is soothing, comforting, and gives me the freedom to be myself through my own interpretation of the notes. Since the benefits of singing for people with dementia and other impairments is delineated in research papers, I wanted to utilize this engaging, safe method of therapy. Interacting with these patients through our shared enthusiasm in music was incredibly fulfilling, and I felt so happy to hear and see that they enjoyed singing together. Also, for the students, it is a valuable learning experience to be there and converse with various elders.
I want to thank Professor Lewis and Professor Bussell for providing me with such an extraordinary experience. This is a program like none other; it teaches students about life values and helps us look beyond what we usually do as students in our twenties. We gained not only factual information but also wisdom through our experiences with a diverse population of seniors. I do not see a wide gap between the youth and elderly; we will all age someday and surely it will happen very quickly. Society is only stronger when different generations cooperate and respect each other, and true respect comes from direct communication and interaction. The LCS program helped students gain this invaluable real world experience. I sincerely hope that this program will continue for a very long time; I am so proud that such a sequence exists in our university.