I Gave a Piece of My Heart to You and Was Amazed at What I Got in Return

 I read a story once about a young man standing in the middle of a crowd boasting that his heart was the most beautiful of all because it was flawless.  An old man approached him and told him that his was more beautiful, with scars and missing pieces and all.  The young man scoffed and the old man retorted with this explanation.  His heart was beautiful because of the scars.  He had given pieces of his heart to others and some returned pieces of theirs to him while others didn’t.  That is why some pieces don’t look like they fit quite right.  And other places are empty.  He continues to wait until one day they return a piece of their heart to him.  The young man was so touched that he took a piece of his heart and gave it to the old man.  This is how I have felt about this whole journey that I had this summer.  I gave a piece of my heart certainly in Heidelberg – in the city and with the amazing students I met.  Serey, Wendy, Barbara, Anna, Roland, Sven, Bastian, Anke, Betti, and countless others.  I also gave my heart to the American students on this trip that I was blessed with meeting and learning with: Claire, Ruby, Hannah, Mina, Max, Annamarie, Emily, Sarah, Kelsey, Kelsi, Virginia, and Dr. Keith.  You have all made my experiences that much greater by being a part of them.  There was never a dull moment, which made it even harder to say goodbye, especially to my European friends.  The Atlantic Ocean is such a huge bridge to cross to see you again, but definitely not impossible.  So if any of you are reading this, thank you for being such incredible and spectacular people with such an amazing outlook on life.  I hope I get to see you all again!  I will always have a place for you to stay when you come visit.

 I really couldn’t summarize this trip into just one blogpost, or even one book.  I learned so much about music therapy, about other people, about myself, about life.  It’s crazy to think that in 5 and a half weeks I could find out so much about everything.  Putting this all into words is very difficult right now.  Our last night in Germany, Ruby and I reflected on our favorites of the trip and even that was hard.  To pick just one moment or to pick something that could have been a favorite, although food was a pretty easy category.  Coming home, it doesn’t even feel real – that all of these experiences actually happened.  I went from biking and hiking through Heidelberg, picnicking on the Neckar, walking (and shopping) down the Hauptstraße, eating gelato or Milka chocolate almost every day, riding trains, observing German music therapists, staying in Hostels, seeing Bach Festival concerts in Leipzig, standing on top of the world in Baden-Baden, attending the WORLD Congress of Music Therapy, visiting old churches and castles, celebrating Germany’s World Cup win, saying our last goodbyes with tears in our eyes – I go from all of  these outstanding experiences to home.  Who could have ever guessed that I could have done all of this in just 5 and a half weeks.  Heidelberg and Germany and Austria put something in my heart – an attitude of carpe diem.  I already had a love for adventure, but now I will actively seek it every opportunity I get.  I swear that this trip will be what I continue to think about and tell people about when I’m that old lady sitting at a piano trying to find middle C.  With every scar and hole in my heart, new life pumps continuously.  So now that I’m home, I’m bringing new joy and energy to my life.  I have incredible people right here with me that I can make more incredible memories with.  So thank you Dr. Keith for being an inspiration to us all and for showing us how great adventures foster unimaginable knowledge.  Auf Wiedersehen!