The idea for today’s post came from the pivotal scene in the movie, Her Smell, in which the main character’s struggle with addiction and mental illness leads to the destruction of her successful band, and a rift in her relationship with her daughter. (mild spoiler alert to follow) In this important scene, the main character is out of rehab and is seeing her daughter for the first time. They connect over a song.
It made us think – how much of our friendships and relationships begin with a connection around music? Be it a couple who has a special song or two friends who connect over the love of a favorite band, music has the power to connect us. How can we harness this in our parent or guardian relationships with our kiddos? Here are some thoughts, but we’d love to hear yours:
- Make a playlist with your child. Take turns picking songs for the list. This teaches taking turns, and compromise. You could make a seasonal playlist for the car. You could make playlists for tasks – ultimate cleaning playlist, dance party playlist, roadtrip playlist, etc. Or you could make mood playlist – we’re tired playlist, heartbreak playlist, celebration playlist, and more!
- Sing a special song to your child that relates just to something great about their personality!
- Learn to play a song with your child. Maybe use two different instruments or if you have access to a piano, one person can play the left hand and the other person can play the right hand.
- Sing-a-long or dance party! It’s the quality time, not the perfection that is important!
- Play songs for your kids that were popular when you were younger. Tell them a song you danced to at your school dance, or a song from your favorite movie as a kid. Many children love to hear about their parent’s childhood. Even if they give us some mild teasing for the music we listened to, it’s still a chance to form connections and memories!
Wanna see the video that inspired today’s post?
OKPTA Cultivate 