A Sara Hickman eNewsLetter for July 8, 2004
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hello, kitty cats!

this has been a busy summer...our children have been home with us as
we decided on no camps for kids...just quality stay at home time,
making art, jumping rope, visiting the local museums, seeing friends,
family, and, of course, swimming! so, pardon my delay in getting out a
newsy letter to you! i'm sure you all have been up to lots of fun,
as well!

GIGS
my library gigs for the city of austin have been enriching my soul with
the amount of children i've been able to perform for and with...i've
seen a vast array of children, many with smiles on their faces, all
eager for hugs and laughter and music and stories. it's helped me grow
more confident, and determined, in my wish for all children to be
respected, loved and learned from. there are only two library gigs
left, so come on out, if you can, and enjoy the silly summer shin-digs!

please check my website...there are so many gigs, i am getting
loopy-de-loo just thinking about them...tonight (JULY 8) i sing the
National Anthem for the Barnum and Bailey Circus. my girls and i
discussed whether i should make an animal rights plea right before i
sing the song. it was decided it would not be appropriate, so i will
respect my girls wishes...however, i may wear a tee shirt that says
"ANIMALS DESERVE LOVE, TOO" or something like that...

tomorrow night, i sing for the NEW LIFE INSTITUTE (July 9), a great
group that provides spiritually based counseling for those who cannot
afford counseling. it is going to be a mediterranean party. so, come
ready to shimmie shimmie co-co pop!

saturday (July 10) i will be appearing for two songs at a community
talent show (5 pm..trinity united methodist church) and later at
flipnotics for a full show...9 pmish...

SYMPHONY
i'm excited to say i will be performing with the symphony spring 2005.
kelly willis and i will be doing a children's show together...more on
that as it develops..

and i have been invited to sing with the symphony for next year's
fourth of july performance in zilker park...so, i really need to work
up some fresh punk rock numbers! ha ha.

i'm looking verrrrrry forward to having a "band" behind me!!!

TELEVISION
"gimme the mic" has been running...it is KVUE 24's local version of
"american idol", except that we three judges (me, mark murray and danny
levin) try to be supportive and not mean ever ever ever. the show is on
saturdays at 6:30. i had a super make up artist who is now my new best
friend cuz her laugh was like jingle bells!

the food network's "Food 911" show will appear on sept. 21, tuesday.
this is the show i taped with tyler florence...we had a mad hatter tea
party and i learned how to make baba cakes!!! mmm...cake! it is show
#Fo1E17, if you are dying of curiousity and want to check it out on
foodnetwork.com (i don't know if it is on the site yet, that's just
the info they gave me.)

JURY DUTY
i got called up for jury duty in august! i'm excited! i've never been
called before!

RADIATION MAN has been on the charts at XMKIDS for 8 months...thank you
to Curtis Nichols for pointing that out to me!

GENE and I are working on a new site called "Necessary Angels" that
will be a resource for y'all to check out groups I am involved with or
have faith in as world changing, positive forces. Thank you, Gene, for
making a dream come true. We will let you know when it is ready!

ZENLALA.com...for anyone interested in more of my blathering!
An online journal...

BIG KID won another award...from PARENTS CHOICE! Also, the nomination
process for the Grammies are coming up. Wish BIG KID well...I can
honestly say: I want it to win! Because if it wins, yes, I will be
exhilarated, but Lily, iolana, my mother, Marty Lester, Brave Combo,
Ray Benson, Ruthie Foster, Danny Levin, Kristen Nichols, Terri Hendrix,
and all the great musicians on the cd will be Grammy winners, as well!
AND the message of BIG KID would be heard by more people because they
would hear about the cd! And the fact that iolana and Lily and my mom
would have Grammies...well, that would make my heart swell with
happiness!

AND NOW...another of the TOP TWENTY MUSICAL MOMENTS i just know you've
been waiting for (drumroll, puh-lease.....)

MOMENT NUMBER 3 in the musical moment countdown (if you missed the
first 17, i believe you can read them via my website somehow...sorry i
am a dork about knowing how to find my stuff! but i can TYPE super
fast...like, 90 words a minute! that's what we call my special gift.

AND NOW...A Musical Moment With Sara

I was working with a group called A.R.T.S for People, a therapeutic
arts/music/dance program working within hospitals, retirement homes,
pysch units, hospices, and city facilities (like MHMR). I became
involved in the program, in Dallas, right after graduating college.
I was living with my great aunt in Garland, had little money, few
friends, and working in a shoe store during the day. Life was very
quiet at the time.

During this quiet period of my life, I had some major personal chaos
and emotional traumas that were hurtful and confusing. I became more
and more depressed, finally admitting myself to a psych unit in
Lewisville for fear my depression would lead to suicide. I felt very,
very alone in the world.

The center was peaceful, and the therapists were consistent and
demanding. I kept a journal. I ate three meals a day. I had time to
think about the abusive relationship I was in, and the space I needed
to figure out why I was in it. I learned so much, yet it didn't all
come together for me in that one week. It took years to unravel my
feelings and behaviours...so this was really the beginning to
understanding who I was.

(By the way, if anyone out there is reading this and has a fear of
admitting yourself for help to a clinic, let me just say this: it is
NOTHING to be ashamed of. In fact, it was the greatest gift I could
ever give to myself, and to those who love me, then and now.)

So, as I left the unit, a friend said, "Maybe you would enjoy A.R.T.S."
I wrote to the founder, Margery Clive, and before I knew it, I was a
part of the program. I was creating music/art therapy programs that I
would specialize for children in burn units, folks with Alzheimers,
AIDS patients, you name it. It was a learning experience in how
music/art could expand an individual's healing. And, in the process,
it was helping me to heal, too, by concentrating on others and not
myself.

Many of these experiences have turned into songs... for example,
"Secret Family" is about a man I worked with who had thrown himself in
front of a train. His decision cost him both legs, an arm, and his head
was in traction, surrounded by a metal halo. The anger this man felt
radiated from his hospital room before I even entered it. I don't know
if I gave a single thing to that man that day, but his hatred toward
self was overwhelmingly upsetting to me. I have never forgotten the
look in his eyes when we met. It is a ghost I can't erase.

But, generally, my experiences with patients was life affirming, for
both of us. Here is where I want to share two stories with you about
those days.

The first is about a little boy, perhaps two years of age. He had been
a healthy child until he fell down some stairs and lost both his
hearing and his sight. Now he was shrouded in darkness and silence.
No one could reach him. His frustration was evident as he sat on a
playmat near a wall in a dayroom. He was slowly bouncing on his seat
out of boredom.

I approached him with my guitar, alone, the two of us. I sat down next
to him and reached my hand out to calmly stroke his right arm. To let
him know I was there. He angrily pulled his arm away. I was scared.
I wasn't sure how to approach this dilemma...how would I reach this
child? How could I let him know others cared for him, that he could
still have contact in this world? Immediately, I thought of Helen
Keller touching the water and understanding, "W-A-T-E-R" as it was
spelled in the palm of her hand. I had an idea.

I sat as close to the little boy as I could. I continued to softly
touch his arm until he calmed down. Finally, I guided his hand to my
guitar; I laid it upon the wood. I quickly struck up the song
"TEQUILA", only because I knew it had a strong rhythm, and magic struck.

The little boy stopped his wiggling. He felt the music traveling up
his arm, into his mind and heart. His eyes grew wide, and he started
to laugh. His body began to sway in time to the guitar, and I was
yelling out to the nurses and doctors, "Come quickly! Hurry!" and soon
the room was clapping and smiling with onlookers who understood the
breakthrough. I tell you: it was the face of God that day, to see how
that little boy understood he was not alone. How much I loved my
guitar and the heartbeat of song!

Another day...and many of you have heard this story, but I would like
to tell it again. Please bear with me if you have heard it from stage...

I was asked to visit with a woman who was bedridden. She had endured a
stroke, and was paralyzed down the right side of her body, face to feet.
She also had aphasia, which paralyzes speaking to murmurs, grunts and
growls, although, generally, the person attempting to speak is still
mentally capable of thought. Can you imagine the frustration?

The room was soft with late afternoon sun. I sat upon the side of the
woman's bed and quietly sang a few songs. I talked in between songs,
just calming conversation about my name, the day, the like. Before long,
the woman was attempting to speak back. She was becoming frustrating,
and I put my guitar up on the other bed, leaning over to hold her hand
and place my ear to her lips.

"Try again," I said. I could not understand her!

She grunted something else, and I didn't want to let her down. I kept
repeating, gently, to try again, that I wanted to understand.

Finally, as I thought she would burst from the word within her mind,
I captured a fuzzy comprehension...she had said,

"I love you."

"I love you, too," I said. I held her hand and stroked her long, wise
fingers, and there we were, two women, complete strangers, connected
by love.

That memory became the song "Aurora", which took me the longest to
write of any song I have ever written. I worked on that song for six
months, struggling, myself, trying to find the words to capture our
moment together. Thank you, Aurora, for your kindness.

Until next time, my friends, I wish you well and I wish you love.
And never forget: every moment is a new extension of hope!

Sara

--------------------This & That-------------------
-
What's your excuse?
Just got yourself a shiny new DVD player? Haven't had a chance to
pick one up? Been waiting for the summer solstice? Wait no longer!
Pick up your copy of Sara's DVD, "I Am Going On a Journey!" Proceeds
from the sale of this 6-hour DVD benefit the Gerda and Kurt Klein
Foundation, which promotes tolerance and works to end hunger.
How about Big Kid, featuring the record-breaking hit "Radiation Man?"
Pick up these and other Sara stuff online at The Connextion:
http://www.theconnextion.com/index.cfm?ArtistID=20&NoFrame=Yes

Where and when
You'll find all of Sara's upcoming shows on her website at
http://www.sarahickman.com/dates/.

Hearing is believing
It's not all that hard to convert your friends to Sarafied fans:
just let them listen! Did you know that they can listen to some of
Sara's songs right on her website? Yup! Just click "Listen"
at the top of any page.

----------------------eNoted----------------------
Sara can be e-mailed at :
sara@...

Her website is:
http://www.sarahickman.com/

Sara's weblog can be read at:
http://www.zenlala.com

You can view the formatted version of this eNewsletter at
http://www.sarahickman.com/newsletter/07082004/
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Hey, check out GregD's fabulous websites for Sara Hickman:
Past Sara's eNewsLetters---> http://www.habu2.net/saramail.html
and
SaraMoments by GregD---> http://www.habu2.net/saramoments.html
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Mail cards and letters to Sara
(and money orders and checks, as well) to:
Sara Hickman
PMB# 412
3005 S. Lamar Blvd.
Ste D-109
Austin, TX 78704
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