Alyice on January 14th, 2010

Echo Challenge Melody

“Life is like a beautiful melody
that grows and blossoms over time.”
– Alyice Edrich

It’s echo time! This time the prompt is “melody”. From the moment I read the word, I knew just what I wanted to write about. All my life I have been awe-struck with how a simple sound can stretch the imagination, heal the soul, and soothe the savage beast. Melody is everywhere and its pitch is infinite—from the whispering sounds of trees on a windy day, to waves crashing against the ocean floor, to the underwater calls of whales, to a group of instruments playing together in unison as they form one amazing chorus after another. Music and melody go hand-in-hand.

When I was a little girl, I loved to sing. I loved everything about music, the way it lifted your spirits after a bad day, the way it allowed you to release pent up sadness, the way it brought hope, and the way it seemed to unite people. Sadly, my mother didn’t like my singing. She’d often tell me to quit singing, explaining that my high pitched voice hurt her ears. For years, I was ashamed of my voice, often struggling to even get the words out of my mouth when asked a question. But one day, all that changed.

When I gave birth to my children, they didn’t see my voice as hurtful. They didn’t find the tone of my voice deafening or horrible. They didn’t tell me to stop singing or to lower my voice. In fact, it was quite the opposite.

They loved my voice. They loved hearing mommy read them stories, and they couldn’t wait for mommy to teach them another rhyming activity like Patty-Cakes or This Old Man, and they giggled and sang right along when mommy made up funny songs. And the most precious moment of all was when they’d fall asleep in my arms as I sang them a lullaby.

As my children grew older, I grew more and more confident in sharing my voice with the rest of the world, even going so far as to join a church choir—in which my mother would later agree with my choir director that I had a lovely voice.

But it’s the long road trips I cherish most—when my children, my husband, and I would drive to far off places simply for the pleasure of the drive. We’d get in the car and hit the open road, then crank up the stereo and have such a good time. It didn’t matter if some of us sang better than others, it didn’t matter if we sang off key, and it didn’t matter if we couldn’t get the melody down correctly—all that mattered is that we were singing and having fun.

Today, my children are teenagers and it still brings joy to my heart and a smile to my face when I hear them whistling or humming a tune, or singing to songs on the radio. It tells me that they are comfortable with their own voice, and in their own skin. And it tells me that they are happy. And there is no greater joy than knowing your children are happy—and healthy.

Until next time…

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Comments (4)

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Gena @ Vintage Rose Studio says:
Hello again!! What a wonderful post on Melody – well done!
Posted at 7:04 am January 19th, 2010
{Echo} Week 5- Melody Roundup « Art By Chrysti says:
[...] Alyice Edrich [...]
Posted at 11:15 am January 20th, 2010
shona cole says:
Oh what a touching story. How wonderful that your children could appreciate your voice. It seems you have learned to be a graceful, even gracefilled mother despite your experiences!

Shona
Posted at 11:48 am January 20th, 2010
Alyice says:
Thanks gals. Shona, I love that word, “grace-filled”. I need to remember that.
Posted at 12:59 pm January 20th, 2010

AlyiceEdrich.com
I'm a freelance writer, mixed media artist, SMVA, and the owner of The Dabbling Mum.

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