Lessons I Learned from My Dog

My heart broke on May 11, 2016. That's when I brought Maestro to the vet clinic for what I thought was a urinary tract infection. That's when the vet discovered the lump. "It could be nothing," Dr. Maya said. Then, she paused and looked me in the eye as we both said, "Or it could be something really bad." My heart sunk. We both knew that at Maestro's age, a lump like that is most likely very bad. She prescribed some antibiotics and asked to see Maestro the following week.

One week later, there was some improvement in the pee department, but the lump was more pronounced. Through tears, Dr. Maya recommended a prostate flush and ultrasound to confirm what we both believed to be true: cancer. Maestro, pragmatic as always, simply looked back at me to say, "It's OK, Mom. I know already. Clock is ticking."

Maestro was diagnosed with Transitional Cell Carcinoma. It's an aggressive cancer that is common in spayed and neutered cats and dogs. We could have put Maestro in drug and radiation therapy but really, what responsible pet parent is going to put their furkid - one who has already lived a full and long life, through that kind of pain - with no guarantee at the end? It's far more loving to keep him comfortable and happy until he was ready to go, and trust that Maestro would let me know when he was ready to make that journey.

I broke the news to "our" students as soon as Maestro's diagnosis was fairly certain. When one told me, "Let's make the last bit the best bit," I set out to figure out and fulfill Maestro's Bucket List.

Maestro's Twilight Adventures

Instinct and observation told me that Maestro had up to a month, but more likely mere weeks. If you knew that you had weeks to live, what would you want to do? I figured that Maestro's Bucket List would be similar to anyone else's: do your favourite things, visit your favourite places, eat your favourite foods, and spend quality time with those whom you care for.

Each morning, he'd tell me with his eyes, "Yeah, it's getting harder but I'm going to give it my best today." I'd smile at him through tears and try to muster up the courage to get through the day. Maestro threw himself into each twilight adventure with gusto. He wasn't going to leave until he was ready.

As each item got checked off Maestro's Bucket List, I could sense him fading a little more. My heart broke repeatedly as we walked this bittersweet journey together. He lived minute by minute, moment by moment, while I was trying so hard to burn every second into memory. 

I did it my way and I did good. Credit: R-M Arca.

By the time Maestro had said his good-byes to everyone he loved, enjoyed one last night stargazing, and one last walk around the neighbourhood, he was ready to go. Once he told me, I didn't hesitate. On June 2, after 14 fun and music-filled years, chock full of adventures, Maestro, Musespeak's trusty Studio Assistant and my fur baby, crossed Rainbow Bridge. He went where and when he wanted to. Maestro's vet came to the house to help us send Maestro on his way. It was beautiful, smooth, and peaceful.

Lessons I Learned from My Dog

Today marks the seven-week anniversary of Maestro crossing Rainbow Bridge. As anyone who has grieved for a loved one knows, it's an emotional roller coaster, with grief hitting you in waves.

I've had some time to reflect upon what I have learned from my sidekick and furkid. If one could put Maestro's life philosophies into words, I'd say they are:

Work hard. Play harder.

Maestro, like many Lakeland Terriers, loved the water. (Credit: R-M Arca).

Maestro took his job as Musespeak's Studio Assistant very seriously. It only took him two weeks to memorize a new teaching schedule for the year. He scolded students and me alike if we didn't stick to the schedule.

But when it was playtime, he played even harder. The intensity was sometimes frightening, especially when it came to water, his Awful Mad Kitty, and his hole punch.

Tell it like it is.

If someone's scales were subpar, Maestro would tell you. Why beat around the bush?

At last month's year-end party, my students all shared stories of Maestro walking out of their lessons when he wasn't pleased, or breaking out into song when he was pleased with how they played. Once, he scolded a student while she played a Mozart sonata. Through laughter, I asked her to tell me why Maestro was upset with her playthrough. She knew. I knew. 

Go big or go home.

Whether it was playing the hole punch or singing Happy Birthday, Maestro believed in committing to something fully. "Go big or go home," also applied to his tastes in musical instruments. Maestro preferred the $30 tambourine over a kids' toy. He looked pleased as punch to pose with the $600,000 Steinway piano. We got into an argument at Long & McQuade one day over the $250 tablas.

Never give up!

When Maestro was diagnosed with arthritis and Intervertebral Disc Disease, he didn't let that stop him from working or going on adventures. 

With acupuncture from Dr. Mark at the Bridlewood Veterinary Clinic, laser and aquatherapy from Dr. Catherine at Canine Aquafitness, Maestro was able to keep trucking along for a few more years.

Aquatherapy helped manage Maestro's canine arthritis and Intervertebral Disc Disease.

Live well. Live NOW!

Maestro was a huge supporter of eating well, sleeping well, and getting out there to enjoy life. He loved the Rotation Diet. He preferred fresh foods. He loved carrots.

He also enjoyed living in the moment, as surely all of our furry, feathery, and scaly family members do. That is one lesson that will take many of us years to get.

"What a huge legacy he has," one of my students said one lesson, as we looked around at all the different ways Maestro has left his mark in the studio: his student incentive programs, Maestro's Market, his bed and Maestro's Music Tricks. Like this paw imprint that he did days before his death, Maestro has left his mark in countless ways that will be felt for years to come.

Maestro was so proud of himself when he completed this. Credit: R-M Arca.

New Site, New Blog

Sometimes, we just need a fresh start. Managing a Wordpress multsite with several blogs while juggling music teaching, freelancing gigs, and trying to get Maestro's Music Tricks off the ground simply wasn't working. 

My webmaster hat and writer's cap have collected quite a bit of dust over these past few months. A bit of website decluttering and reorganizing was well overdue.

When I undertook the project of revamping my dojo's website, my dojo mate in Saskatoon and I settled on using Squarespace. We found the process of building a new site that could be managed by members from our different training locations a relatively smooth process. Web maintenance has been a snap because Squarespace manages all the plugin and framework updates. I can only assume that they are dealing with brute force attacks because we haven't had any issues with our club site.

It's been working so well, that I decided to take the plunge and migrate my site to Squarespace. So, here we are.

The other big decision I made was to consolidate all of my blogs. All six of them. The separation by topic to do different branding only makes sense if one has time to put into branding them individually, which I don't. As for the "new" blog name, as much as I loved the names for all my blogs, The Musical Muse is the only one that could cover all the topics I write about.

It will take some time to tidy up the blog posts to make them fit their new home. It will also take some time to get the Maestro's Music Tricks e-store built. so please be patient. In the meantime, if you would like more information on my gamer-inspired music practice aid, please drop me a line.

Photo credit: Philip Wilson

Reflecting on My Facebook Free Lent

Happy Easter! The season of Lent is usually associated with sacrifice. However, it is also a period to retreat, reflect, pray (and/or meditate) and give alms. After which, there is a period of rebirth and growth.

On Giving Up Facebook for Lent

Some people give up sweets for Lent. Others give up swearing. I've done both. This year, the glaring vice I could see was my "Facebook Login & Refresh My Notifications Repeatedly" Addiction. It didn't matter whether I turned off most notifications in my Facebook settings. Nor did it matter that I uninstalled the app on my mobile devices. I used to log in — a lot. It certainly didn't help matters that I have personal and business contacts on Facebook and belong to international Facebook groups (TL: The groups never sleep).

So I gave up Facebook for Lent — cold turkey — on Ash Wednesday. There was no big announcement on my Wall. Perhaps I should have posted one, but at the time, I didn't see the point.  My immediate family and close friends knew in advance, and I had faith that I wouldn't be the only one to remember that there are other means to keep in touch with each other during my "Facebook Fast" beyond a Facebook Wall.

Halfway through Lent, I started to hear from a handful of friends who noticed I wasn't posting to Facebook. It gave us a wonderful chance to catch up: one-on-one — just like old times.

How I Gave Up Facebook for Lent

One thing I did was instill a Lenten Lapse Penalty. This was something I did the year I gave up swearing for Lent. For each lapse, I dropped a toonie into the Lent Jar. After Easter, I donated the money to charity.

However, I knew a toonie was too low of a penalty for this bad habit of mine. I set the penalty at $25 per login, with the monies going to charity after Lent.

I must clarify that it was the main Facebook site that I gave up for Lent. Since I'm self-employed, I had to keep the Facebook Messenger and Facebook Pages apps active for business.

There were a handful of times that I did have to login to the main site as there are certain page settings that can only be changed on the site. After discussing it with friends, we agreed that so long as I only logged in to do that one thing (or two), it was alright. The main thing is that I had to log in and out without getting sucked in by the notifications, Ticker Board, or News Feed to call it a "Lenten Success."

So, what did I do during my little Facebook Fast? Highlights include decluttering, plowing through my To Do List, taking fresh air breaks, praying, reading, and chatting with family and friends via phone, text, email, face-to-face communication — and a lot of thinking.

Facebook Free and Reflecting on Everything

It was hard at first. Later, I felt quite liberated. As the echoes of Facebook News Feed Chatter faded from my consciousness, I could hear myself think. Not only that, I could start to sense what God (or the universe, if you will) was trying to say to me.

My part-time job has waves of busy-ness and periods of quiet. Sometimes, my coworkers and I can chat quietly but often, I have time on my hands to think.

During these tranquil moments, I took inventory, thinking about where I am physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually, financially, and socially. I reflected upon what needed to change. New ideas popped into my head, plans started to formulate, and approaches shifted.

On Regrowth and Coming Full Circle

Most of my social media interactions pre-Lent were on Facebook. I used to keep up with news via Facebook. Without it, I tuned into the radio more. I also wound up spending some time  cultivating my other social media accounts, such as Twitter and LinkedIn. As Lent progressed, I developed an actual social media posting and networking schedule.

One fringe benefit to my part-time job is that I move around more than I do teaching. There are a lot of stairs, so as the weeks turned into months, I noticed little things: like how my pants started to fit better and my energy level increased. More importantly, that my immune system is improving.

Old doorways reopened. Who would have thought that I would be doing the same things I did when I began my career, just with a few changes?

A few accompanying and recording gigs came my way, followed by my return to arts administration. Instead of being a full-time employee, I work as a freelance administrator and marketing specialist in martial arts and the fine arts.

Once these opportunities opened up, it became much easier to keep Facebook free. I was just too busy (still am). Then I got hooked on another app to help me organize my life: Trello.

The thrill I used to get from seeing an updated FB notification has been replaced by the thrill of moving a task on a funky looking card into my "Achievement Unlocked" column.

I knew I turned a corner when I had to log in to adjust settings on one of the Facebook pages I manage. When I looked at the red "33" on the Facebook notifications icon, I felt...nothing.

A friend asked me, "Was it hard?" Certainly. I stuck it out till the very end, though. I'll still make a donation since technically, I still had to log in (and because it's just the right thing to do).

All in all, it was a great experience. I highly recommend going Facebook free for an extended period of time. I gained a new perspective on things, from debt reduction to health, right down to how I'm going to approach my Facebook use going forward. I embarked on new endeavours and revisited old paths. Change is good.

As I type this, part of me is dreads logging in to face the growing number of notifications. Perhaps I'll hold off on logging into Facebook for a little while longer.

Music and Movement Class Ideas

Last week, I ran group classes with my students. We explored rhythm and timing through music and movement. It required a bit more planning than usual (and a lot of energy), but based on student feedback, it was well worth it.

Music Group Class Idea #1: Teach Them to Dance

Rhythm seems to be a universal sticking point with students. I wanted to address this in a fun and unexpected way: dance.

I chose two dances that I knew my students were unfamiliar with: the Minuet and the Syrtos. The Minuet was a no brainer to me as all my students learn to play a minuet at some point in their music studies. Like many, they pause between the bar lines during the learning phase.

By teaching them the dance steps, I hoped to drive across the point that you need to feel a minuet in six counts. I also wanted my students to understand how to translate the dance step articulation to our hands at the piano.

Yes, there were some coordination issues. They were fine for the most part. Not surprisingly, the ones who have rhythm issues were the ones who had the most trouble dancing in time. They learned quickly to try and get in sync with the person beside them and did improve as the class went on.

The Syrtos was a last minute change. I originally picked a Country line dance but changed it after some students told me that they already learned the line dance at school.

This is a festive Greek chain dance. It is often done at festivals and weddings. I selected it purely because of the hybrid time signature:

Some groups could only dance as a bunch of individuals instead of forming a human chain. Others could only execute the dance steps at a slow tempo. I soon discovered that having my students face each other helped the less coordinated ones sync up with the rest of the class.

Music Group Class Idea #2: Exploring Timing Through Martial Arts

I decided to introduce three martial arts to my students in this group class: Tai Chi, Jodo and Iaido.  Nothing too in depth as my intent was to simply show them the importance of timing in a different context.

As I demonstrated, if my timing is off and I'm actually facing a real-life opponent armed with a sword or staff, I'd be gravely injured (or dead). Not to worry readers, my students tried these techniques without contact and used either wooden training swords or broomsticks.

Years ago, I explored Tai Chi. Not once, but twice. It's a lovely meditative art. Although I found it a bit too slow for my liking, I do appreciate its principles and thought it was the perfect way for my students to warm up:

We just explored the first three parts in the sequence. My students were a lot like me when I took Tai Chi for the first time: too scatterbrained and excited. I don't think they reached the point that they could feel energy flowing from their fingertips.

Next up was Jodo, the art of the short staff. My students tried the first three kihon. I even recruited one student who practises Aikido to help demonstrate one of the two-person kata.

It was a good opportunity to test how much I have learned in the past year. Last week also gave me a chance to practice being "sempai".

I introduced Iaido, my primary martial art, to my older students. While demonstrating the first kata, Ippon me Mae, they all asked questions throughout. Even though I demonstrated a set exercise based on a specific scenario, they couldn't help but ask, "What if?":  "What if the bad guy moved this way? Or what if he changed what he was doing at the last moment?"

It was the perfect opportunity to discuss practice versus performance. We practice various techniques so that our muscles remember what to do when needed (i.e., in performance). However, once you are on stage, you just have to adapt quickly and push forward when the unexpected happens. Whether it's martial arts, music or another fine art, mindful practice will help you attain a sense of mindlessness and living in the moment when on stage.

I wound up repeating the kata several times to properly demonstrate "jo ha kyu" timing. Then, I had my older students practice sword cuts. Body tension and posture was a huge theme for the evening.

One class was filled with gamers and geeks. They clicked so well that it was hard to keep them focused. They wanted to go out for pizza afterwards.

Now that is another reason I offer group classes to my students: the camaraderie. I didn't have that growing up as a "piano geek". It delights me to no end to see my students bond and build friendships. In fact, those gamers and geeks are completely stoked that I'm looking making the Zelda symphony concert as an official field trip.

One week later, my students tell me that they had a lot fun. Some of the students who have been with me for several years told me that this was their most favourite group class yet. I might have had a few worries about teaching a music and movement group class in the beginning, but it looks like I didn't have to worry at all.

Special thanks to Steinway Pianos of Calgary for putting up with us. The recital hall was the perfect size for this group class.

On Muscle Memory and Sword Techniques

In January, I celebrated the one-year anniversary of my return to martial arts training. It has been quite the journey, relearning Iaido sword techniques along with Hyoho Niten Ichi Ryu waza. The past year has been an adventure in rediscovery and debugging. It has also been one of adventure as I began studying two additional martial arts: Jodo and Kage Ryu.

On Muscle Memory and Aging

It's amazing just how well muscle memory works. My body remembered quite a bit, in spite of my five-ish year hiatus. My mental memory? A bit more rusty.

Body and mind remembered the good habits as well as the bad. That's why this time around, I have been more focussed on debugging my troublespots.

One thing that has changed has been the degree of built-up body tension. I lost quite a bit of flexibility during my time off. Blame it on Father Time and an increased sedentary lifestyle during my hiatus. On the plus side, I am stretching more and taking better care of my elbow and knee joints.

My sword cuts have always been a bit wobbly.  I knew this time, I needed to fix that - fast. My progress was slow at first, with my body remembering my old sword grip, and then spending months breaking that down to correct the amount of hand and arm tension.

It is as I say to my students: "Relax your arm until the point of impact." It applies to pressing down on a piano key just as well as it does imagining your iaito striking your imaginary target.

Exploring Local Martial Arts Seminars

I attended three seminars last year, hosted by my club, Ka Muso Kai. The session in February 2014 with Kim Taylor sensei of Sei Do Kai provided a much needed crash course into Iaido kata and basic Iaido techniques. It also gave me a chance to try out Jodo.

Jodo is the Japanese martial art of the short staff. To this day, the Japanese police use the jo for crowd control. There are 12 basic jodo techniques and 12 two-person kata.

I discovered that I quite enjoy Jodo. I appreciate the practicality of being able to use a staff (or even more practical, a broomstick) for defense and containment.

More practice is needed, however. I am finding that learning something new takes a bit longer than it used to. That pesky memory!

In August, Ka Muso Kai Calgary hosted two weekend seminars: one on Iaido with Kim Taylor sensei. The following week, Colin Watkin sensei taught us Niten Ichi Ryu and Kage Ryu. He's one of the prominent sensei in the world for these two arts. Although most participants were from Calgary, our Edmonton branch, Saskatoon and Antagonish clubs were represented as well.

Hyoho Niten Ichi Ryu is a Japanese martial art that employs two-sword techniques,  hence, "Ni" (two) "ten" (sword). It was developed by the samurai Miyamoto Mushashi (1584 - 1645) who is famous for his Book of Five Rings.

Kage Ryu is another old sword art.  The waza employ the long sword and sometimes a smaller sword.

Traditionally, practitioners use a choken, but as you see, I have a bit of a challenge with that:

Watkin sensei brought over an old sanshaku bokuto for me to use. I just had to give it some TLC:

The Other Aspects of Martial Arts: Club Bonding Over Geekery, Cards, and...Pumpkins?

One thing we have noticed with our martial arts is that club members are huge geeks. Whether it's photography or anime, tabletop games or LEGO, we are geeks (and proud of it).

In the spring, our club attended the Calgary Expo as an exhibitor. It was such a cool experience. We are all looking forward to this year's Expo.

In October, we held our annual pumpkin cutting event. Our sword technique improved by leaps and bounds afterwards:

At our AGM and Christmas party, we played Seven-Card Samurai. Samurai-in-training beating each other up with samurai, ronin, bandits and ninjas and stealing rice from one another? Rice barrels of fun.

***

Which brings me to today. I'm serving on the Ka Muso Kai board for a second term. This year's project: revamping the website.

This month, I began working on the ninth Seitei Iaido kata: Soete zuki. Later this year, I plan to grade for my Shodan in Iaido and my Ikkyu in Jodo.

Now, 14 months in, I face the same challenge that I do as a multi-instrumentalist: how to practice all arts regularly with limited time. Thankfully, the sword arts share some common techniques, but quite often, I am limited to a few minutes here and there. My bokuto and jo are situated where I can grab them and review one technique or one kata between students' lessons.

I have even taken to practising footwork during downtimes in my volunteer shifts or ushering job. Lately, I have taken to practising enzen no metsuke when keeping my eyes peeled during a show or when driving.

That's all well and good. However, like music, I also came to a conclusion: it's best to have one primary art (or in music, instrument) that gets the bulk of your practice time. The others take a back seat and are practised on a rotating basis. It seems to be working for the most part, although I guess the true test is when I go for a grading.