Planting the First Seed
I was born and raised here.
And now, I’m raising my own kids in this same community.
Over the last twenty years as a music therapist, I’ve worked with people at every stage of life. I’ve sat on the floor working on developmental milestones with toddlers in early childhood classes, watched children, teens, and grown adults wrestle with anxiety, ADHD, and depression, supported adults and children with disabilities, and sung at the bedsides of elders nearing the end of life.
And in all of those rooms, I’ve seen the faces of parents - old and young.
Parents who are scared.
Parents who are overstimulated and burned out.
Parents who desperately want to do right by their kids but are running on fumes.
I’ve seen spouses trying to hold it together while their partner slips away.
Adult children navigating the heartbreak of watching a parent decline in health.
Actual children - far too young - trying to make sense of why a parent died or why grandma or grandpa can’t play with them like they used to.
There’s a common thread that ties all of it together: the human need for connection.
That’s why I believe healing a community doesn’t start with politics or policies. It starts with people. With us. With the moms, caregivers, and families who carry both the visible and invisible weight of daily life.
And maybe it starts small.
By gathering. By sharing stories. By listening deeply. By supporting one another in the mess and the beauty of it all.
Because when we come together like that, we create something fertile. Something that can grow. We become the ground where new dreams take root.
As my friend, Victor McDermott wrote for the Harmony Gardeners:
“Sow the seeds of possibility in every boy or girl
If we believe in them, they will heal our world
Cultivate a fertile space in our community
In our garden so we can sow the seeds of possibility
Anything is possible if we believe
We plant a dream when we plant a seed.”
And the dream I’m planting is this: The Village Collective of Jackson
A community where moms and families feel connected.
Where children grow up surrounded by love, music, the arts, and a true village.
Where families of all kinds are seen, supported, and celebrated.
This is just the first seed.
Will you plant with me?
