Thankfulness

It’s time once again for the holiday that goes by too quickly and is almost unnoticed - Thanksgiving. It is a great holiday though since it encourages us to try to understand what being thankful is all about. I just went through all my Thanksgiving blog posts for the past 7 years, and I realize that I still don’t understand true thankfulness. I don’t think that I have ever been in such need that I felt the overwhelming gratitude that someone feels when they are rescued from poverty or a calamity. I’m not saying that I want to be rescued like this so that I can understand it though - sometimes we get what we ask for! We each have different paths to hike in our lives, and for some reason mine has been relatively easy - or at least that’s the way it seems. I have had very strong optimism for my whole life. Part of that comes from being raised in a mostly stress-free way without a lot of need, but it also comes from my childhood when I had an experience that I have written about before where I almost drowned and somehow gained an understanding that this life is not all there is. As such I’ve never really feared life or dying. That has been a blessing, but it also removes the impetus to push hard when difficult times come. I think that everything happens for a reason, but I’m not sure what this experience meant for me. As it relates to thankfulness, it makes me feel part of something bigger which gives me wisdom that thankfulness is at the core of our existence. Feeling thankful has been a learning lesson for me though. I’ve had to learn to say “Thank you!” and “You’re welcome!” as a reflexive thing even when I don’t have the emotion of thankfulness. I’m not saying I never feel thankfulness, but sometimes I’m deep in thought and have to break out of it to be in the moment and show my gratitude. I’m kind of like the kid who has to be reminded by his mother to say “Thank you!” when he or she receives a gift. But I keep trying to be in the moment and show my thankfulness. Now you won’t believe me when I say “Thank you” for reading my musings and listening to my music and for being part of my life. I really do mean it. I don’t say it enough, but I do understand how much the giving and interaction of every person in my life has blessed me and buoyed me up. I try to do the same for everyone I meet. How about you? Do you say it often and understand thankfulness in your life?

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What have I been up to?

I had 14 senior facilities last week, and I played thankful songs and Thanksgiving songs for them all. It’s a good purpose to encourage the folks with these kinds of songs. Everyone needs it in their lives.

My Wednesday online show was songs about dancing, and it was so much fun! I was dancing as I was playing, and I know that many in the audience were doing the same!

My Sunday online show was favorites and requests, and there were some songs I haven’t played in a long time as well as a new Kris Kristofferson song. I really got into it although for some reason I was struggling with getting the words right on many of the songs. Oh well! Just an off night, I guess. We still had a good, if goofy, time.

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What am I up to this week?

I have 7 senior facilities this week. 2 have cancelled with either Covid or not enough folks coming in to an adult daycare facility to justify my coming. I will do some more thankful songs and Thanksgiving songs to help celebrate the holiday.

My Wednesday online show 7-8:45 mountain time will be thankful songs. This is a fun group of songs to do with such good spirit. I really look forward to it, and I hope you’ll join me if thankful songs sound like something you’d like to hear this week.

My Sunday online show 7-8:45 mountain time will be favorites and requests as always, and I have another new song to learn that was requested to do as well as starting to get into the winter and holiday spirit. Come on out!

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That’s it for this week. Once again I need to mention that I will be doing a special Christmas show with Don Richmond sitting in at Society Hall in Alamosa on December 12th at 7:00 pm. You can find more about it on their Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/share/1AxX92v7Nb/

Happy Thanksgiving to all, and I hope you are healthy and happy.

Tom

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Details this week:

Who:  Tom Munch 

What:  playing and singing an online concert of thankful songs

Where:  facebook.com/tom.munch and tommunch.com/online-concerts  

When:  Wednesday, November 26, 7-8:45 pm mountain time

Who:  Tom Munch 

What:  playing and singing an online concert of favorites and requests 

Where:  facebook.com/tom.munch and tommunch.com/online-concerts  

When:  Sunday, November 30, 7-8:45 pm mountain time 

Dancing

Dancing is one of the most wonderful things we do as humans in my opinion. There is something primal and spiritual about moving your body in a rhythmic motion that expresses joy and connection to the earth and spirit. Going all the way back to our ancient ancestors there are instruments, drums, and traditions of group and individual dances. There is just something innate in our being that makes us want to move in a rhythmic and repetitive way to a beat. I do it unconsciously when I play music. It seems to hook me into the very ground I stand on. I know that some religions do not see it as proper, and I guess I understand why they say that, but to me it is a very lovely and even holy thing. I can’t say enough of how it makes you feel like you’re plugged into life. And it doesn’t matter whether it’s just tapping your toes to couple and group dancing, every form that moves you is enough to trigger that joy.

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What have I been up to?

I had 10 senior facilities last week, and they were all very sweet. I did songs for Veterans Day, and thankfulness, and the Edmund Fitzgerald (since it was the 50th anniversary of its sinking on the 10th). The folks really appreciated it.

My Wednesday online show was playing songs about flying, and it was a fun one. Who knew there were so many great flying songs? Everyone really enjoyed it.

My Sunday online show was favorites and requests, and it was another really fine show with great requests and a couple new songs. I love this group so much!

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What am I up to this week?

I have 14 senior facilities this week, and I think I’ll be playing mostly thankful songs for Thanksgiving. There are so many nice tunes about being thankful, and a healthy dose of gratitude is a good thing to keep in our minds.

My Wednesday online show 7-8:45 mountain time will be songs about dancing, and I’ve been pulling songs out of my list for a couple days that really fit the bill. I’m up to 58 so far. This includes songs where dancing is the major part of the song’s topic to songs that are traditional dance favorites. It should be a blast. Come on out if this sounds like a good time to you.

My Sunday online show 7-8:45 mountain time will be favorites and requests as always, and I’m sure it’ll be very nice like it often is. These Sunday nights are always very special with lots of good folks in attendance and good tunes in our ears.

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That’s it for this week. I hope you are making memorable holiday plans and that you are healthy and content.

Best always,

Tom

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Details this week:

Who:  Tom Munch 

What:  playing and singing an online concert of songs about dancing

Where:  facebook.com/tom.munch and tommunch.com/online-concerts  

When:  Wednesday, November 19, 7-8:45 pm mountain time

Who:  Tom Munch 

What:  playing and singing an online concert of favorites and requests 

Where:  facebook.com/tom.munch and tommunch.com/online-concerts  

When:  Sunday, November 23, 7-8:45 pm mountain time 

Flying

I’m doing a show Wednesday on the theme of flying, and that has me thinking about flying on planes, in dreams, with birds, and in metaphor. To start with I’m not a good flyer on a plane. When I was a kid I loved flying. I flew with a school group to Washington, D.C., for the bicentennial and also with another school group to Europe a couple years later. Both those trips were great fun on planes without a lot of drama, but at some point I rode on a really bumpy flight down the Front Range of Colorado that permanently messed up my equilibrium. I’ve never been the same. Now when I fly I am dizzy and disoriented for almost a day after I settle back on terra firma. Maybe I’ll get over it. I’d like to. Then there’s flying in dreams. I used to have dreams on a regular basis where I would fly. Sometimes it would be flying over an ancient snow-covered mountainous landscape at night with the cold wind in my face. Sometimes it would be simply lifting off in a crowd and floating by the ceiling. Sometimes it would be holding someone’s hand to help them lift off as well. I never made much of these dreams other than loving the free and weightless feeling although I know some spiritual writers say that this is some sort of spiritual evolution. On flying with birds I mean mostly the thrill of watching birds soar on the breeze so graceful and effortless. It is so wonderful to watch a bird ride a thermal updraft or dive at high speed. Mesmerizing! Lastly flying has always been used metaphorically to symbolize the ultimate feeling of freedom and grace. I guess it is because humans are earthbound without the help of wings. I’ve always felt that the sky and the expanses of the universe are our true home. I love when flying is used in poetry, literature, and songs to express this longing for timeless peace and happiness.

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What have I been up to?

I had 8 senior facilities last week, and I enjoyed them all. I mostly did songs for Veterans Day and Thanksgiving - thankful songs. Those are really fulfilling to play. I know it was meaningful for the folks.

My Wednesday online show was songs from 1945, and they were so neat to do. I love singing these oldies, and I don’t get as much chance to do them as I once did. I know the group liked them. They had a contest to see how many they knew.

Friday I thought I might be playing at the Garden of the Gods Club, but they decided to not do any music for November and December and the slower months of the year. I have mixed emotions about that. I enjoy playing instrumental tunes on the guitar although it’s really not my forte. We’ll see if and when I’ll be back there.

My Sunday online show was favorites and requests as always, and it was a good one with lots of great requests and a couple new tunes. This is consistently the most meaningful night of the week for me with the great interaction and tunes.

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What am I up to this week?

I have 10 senior facilities this week, and I’m sure I’ll be playing more songs for Veterans Day and Thanksgiving - especially since I’ll be playing a veterans breakfast on Veterans Day as well as a couple other tribute shows that day. 

My Wednesday online show 7-8:45 mountain time will be doing flying songs as I wrote of above. This is going to be a nice mix of songs about all the elements I wrote about - planes, dreams, birds, and metaphors. It ought to be a blast. Come out if you can.

My Sunday online show 7-8:45 mountain time will be favorites and requests as always, and I always say it’s the highlight of the week because it is. The songs and camaraderie are just great. Tune in if you’d like a relaxing evening of friendship and music.

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That’s it for this week. I do have an exciting concert coming up in December in Alamosa. My good friend Don Richmond has asked me to play a Christmas show at Society Hall on December 12th from 7 to 9. Don will be sitting in on all the instruments he plays, and it should have a lot of the elements of my Christmas album that we recorded together almost 25 years ago. I don’t know the ticket price yet, but I know the sound and the vibe will be great if you’d like to come up to Alamosa for this show. More details to come. 

Happy Veterans Day, and I hope you’re healthy and happy.

Tom

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Details this week:

Who:  Tom Munch 

What:  playing and singing an online concert of flying songs

Where:  facebook.com/tom.munch and tommunch.com/online-concerts  

When:  Wednesday, November 12, 7-8:45 pm mountain time

Who:  Tom Munch 

What:  playing and singing an online concert of favorites and requests 

Where:  facebook.com/tom.munch and tommunch.com/online-concerts  

When:  Sunday, November 16, 7-8:45 pm mountain time 

Choosing

I’ve been thinking a lot about how we approach our lives on a daily basis. There is so much going on in the world and our individual lives at present - and always. It’s so easy to wake up and immediately see our lives as a chore and the world as a mess. But we have a choice. No matter what is going on in our lives we have a choice every morning in how we approach it. It’s not just about being positive, but it’s about whether we smile through our struggles and joys. It’s about seeing the beauty of something simple in the midst of tragedy. It’s really about choosing to love each moment no matter what is going on. It’s about not letting anyone tell you how to feel about anything. I’ve seen so many people in my life who are really living hard lives with physical problems and hardships who are so loving and caring and always smiling. Many of them aren’t deeply religious or involved in any real reason to have this attitude. They just choose to make the best of every moment. It’s as simple as that. Just choose to smile and love. What else is there?

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What have I been up to?

I had 7 senior facilities last week, and it was so much fun playing Halloween songs for most of them. I only had one facility where they thought the Halloween songs were too spooky and dark. I sometimes see them that way too, but I try to play mostly fun songs. I love these folks.

My Wednesday online show was playing Halloween songs again, and there were some really good ones. Mostly they were fun ones although I did a couple favorites that were hair-raising. It was fun!

Friday I played instrumental tunes at the Garden of the Gods Club in the Grand View Restaurant for a smaller crowd. I think a lot of people were home for trick-or-treaters or going to parties. It was still a good time, and I did several arrangements of Halloween songs.

My Sunday online show was favorites and request as always, and it was a wonderful night of requests with a couple songs about time thrown in for the time change on Sunday. What a great group!

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What am I up to this week?

I have 8 senior facilities this week, and we’re far away enough from Thanksgiving that I probably won’t play songs for Thanksgiving although I do have a good list of thankful songs. Hmmm…maybe I’ll do more of those since they’re very uplifting for the most part.

My Wednesday online show 7-8:45 mountain time will be songs from 1945 to continue my series of doing songs by 10-year increments in the past. We’ve done 1975, 1965, and 1955 so far. I thought about 1985, but I really don’t know enough songs from that year. 1945 was a great year for music - especially once the war was over. Some of the songs are timeless, and I love playing them. I think you will really enjoy it!

I may be at the Garden of the Gods Club on Friday 6-9. The schedule hasn’t been finalized as of this writing. Contact me if you’re thinking of coming out to verify I’ll be there.

My Sunday online show 7-8:45 mountain time will be favorites and request as always. These are always very special nights of friendship and music. Come on out if you can.

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That’s it for this week. I’m looking forward to the holidays although I’m definitely not ready for winter yet. It’s supposed to be in the mid-80s today which just seems wrong. I’ll probably stay inside although I did do some yard work this morning (it’s Sunday as I’m writing this). There are always branches to pick up and something to be done outside. I hope you are healthy and happy.

Best always,

Tom

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Details this week:

Who:  Tom Munch 

What:  playing and singing an online concert of 1945 songs

Where:  facebook.com/tom.munch and tommunch.com/online-concerts  

When:  Wednesday, November 5, 7-8:45 pm mountain time

Who:  Tom Munch 

What:  possibly playing instrumental guitar tunes

Where:  Garden of the Gods Resort and Club in the Grand View Restaurant. 888-994-3156

When:  Friday, November 7, 6-9 pm 

Who:  Tom Munch 

What:  playing and singing an online concert of favorites and requests 

Where:  facebook.com/tom.munch and tommunch.com/online-concerts  

When:  Sunday, November 9, 7-8:45 pm mountain time