Music therapy program produces special tribute

It took over two months but I finally sat down and listened to the CD my sister Paula made for me. I laughed and I cried as my sister talked to me about the good and not so good times in our lives and her hopes for my future. My sister’s funny personality and her wisdom shone through with her inspirational message to me.

On New Year’s Eve, my sister was finally at peace after a fiveyear struggle with ovarian cancer. She was 48 years old. I will always treasure the opportunity to hear her voice even though she is no longer with us.

The CD was one of a number of projects my sister worked on in the last few months of her life. In April of 2017, Paula was told her cancer was back and she had three to nine months to live. During one of her stays at An Calla, the palliative care unit at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital, Paula had the good fortune to meet music therapist Jill Murphy who works for Hospice.

Paula was a little skeptical at first when Jill talked to her about participating in the music therapy program but it didn’t take long for Jill to convince her to give it a try.

The year before, Paula had participated in the Art of Living and the Art of Medicine Programs at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital. She worked with wildlife photographer Kris Tynski to develop a photography project to talk about living with cancer. This project turned into a life changing interest in photography for Paula.

Paula began to look forward to working with Jill on her projects. Initially, we weren’t exactly sure what those projects were, but it gave Paula a new sense of purpose. Jill actually wrote a song for Paula based on one of Paula’s photographs. Paula loved it. Jill became a friend that Paula wished she had more time to spend with. Jill graciously played that song at Paula’s Celebration of Life.

Through the music therapy program, Paula made a number of CDs for family and friends which highlighted her humor, wisdom, photography and favourite music. The opportunity to create these legacy pieces for her loved ones brought peace to Paula. It was her chance to tell people what they meant to her. The CDs were sent out after Paula’s passing. While some people played their CDs right away, some of us waited until we felt the time was right. We want to thank Jill Murphy and the Music Therapy Program for giving us such a special tribute from Paula.

March is Music Therapy Month across Canada. This is an amazing program that can help so many people. I am so grateful my sister had the opportunity to participate in it. Helen Graham Sydney

(sister of Paula Graham)