MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE - SING, SING!!: By Cynthia A. Utley While watching this video shared with us by Madeleine Davis Pugh I was reminded of Mama with regard to Alhzeimers. How there were blessed times when my Beloved Tyra, Jon Browning, and their children, my precious nieces and nephews, Lamar(MartyB.), Maya, Morgan, Little Jon and Maddie would gather around Mama, their Grannys bed, and minister Gods love to her through song. Mama would smile, close her eyes, and drift into a past remembrance of that song, then shed open her smiling eyes with a smile that embraced each of them as they continued singing to her. And sometimes Carletta Donaldson brought her precious Mother to visit. And Mrs. Donaldson would stand tall beside Mamas bed, like a seasoned Christian soldier, and sing old gospel hymns to Mama which propelled Mama back into a place in her spirit where she was able to retrieve the words to songs from her mind. A mind that had somehow obviously archived many deleted memories from Mama due to Alzheimers. And Mama would sing with Mrs. Donaldson those hymns her own Mother used to sing to her when a child. Mama would smile, remembering love, being embraced by love, being serenaded by a joyful noise made unto the Lord. My brother Kerwin texted a message to me for Mama of him singing There is No Greater Love, a Fred Hammond rendition. The recording started out with Kerwin, first saying Good morning Mama and him talking about her and the influence her love has had and continues to have on him. Each morning after receiving the text when Mama woke up, Id go into her room, place the recording close to her ear and shed experience hearing Kerwin saying good morning Mama. Shed return his hello because due to Alzheimers she didnt realize it was a recording, she thought Kerwin was standing by her bed. And then his Good morning Mama” would enter into him singing There is No Greater Love, to her and I would witness Mama being embraced by a sons love from miles away but at the same time up close and personal. In this moment, In my mind as I daydream, I dont see any evidence of Alzheimers in my memories of Mama, rather I am being visited upon by memories of Mama’s sweet face as hymns of love embraced her. I see her time after time being serenaded like David serenaded Saul. When the evil spirit would visit upon Saul, David would take his harp and play with his hands, and sing hymns and psalms, making use both of vocal and instrumental music. And relief would come to Saul who’d feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him. [1 Samuel 16:23]. For 6 years, I started Mamas morning with music, either gospel or inspirational uplifting secular songs about love. Her face would light up when Id put on one of her favorite CDs. There is something comforting about the positive psychological effects of good music which has the power to create calm akin to divine pleasure. Sing, sing!!, “Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.[Psalm 100:1,2].~Cynthia A. Utley 12/13/14~
Posted on: Sat, 13 Dec 2014 18:49:16 +0000