Yoik of the Wind by Sofia Jannok, Sung by Leah Irby

A bird knocking on my door

I was sitting in my favorite recliner chair in the living room, gathering my thoughts for the day, when I heard what sounded like a knock on the front door. We have a blurred glass on half of the door and I looked to see that it was actually a Eurasian Blue Tit – that was “knocking” on my door with its beak. And just in case there was any mistake about it, the bird did it three times in a row.

I remembered that on another occasion as I was working on a writing project in my office, the same type of bird (or maybe the same one) was also pecking at the window to my office. It’s like they know where I am in the house and just want to check in on me.

I have a favorite book about bird Augury- and this bird’s message is to look at things from a new perspective and don’t take life too seriously. It’s also a message to say you are on the right path.

The jacket I couldn’t give away

And interestingly enough it is also associated with the color yellow, representing joy. When I took this video (before reading the entry in the book) I chose to wear my puffy yellow winter jacket. It’s this jacket that always makes me smile when I see it. And I have tried to give away a few times because it was just slightly too small for me. But each person I tried to give it to said it just didn’t fit right. And so I realized it just is MY jacket – for a little bit of joy. 🙂

Finding My Way with my business

This June marked three years since I left my teaching job and started my own business. One thing I have learned in the process is that it takes a long time to get things off the ground and you can triple that amount of time if you have a child or children at home of a young age. I’ve been on a journey of self-discovery and trying different things, looking for the intersection of my interests/talents and what people will pay me for. If you only find something you love to do, but you have no income from it – you need to add something or somehow change. I realized that I am good at many things and it was a great struggle working with coaches who constantly told me – you have to find your niche. Focus on only one thing.

Making Music, Expanding Creativity

But I found many things and maybe through them all there are common threads – intuition, writing, music, healing. I took a training course to become a Fertility Coach, but I found the set of materials I was given in that course was not what people were actually seeking from me. What came forth instead were sessions in expanding creativity and making music. What I found was that the music-making process could apply to anyone. I learned about mantras and affirmations to guide you and help you. And I took that and wove it with music to help people find their sacred voice. And then I took the Brains=Behaviors Course from the fabulous Allison Davies and she used the term melodic mantra. It simply put words to something I was already doing and creating with people.

She speaks brilliantly about how powerful the combination of your words with the singing truly is.

Melodic Mantras

I have also been writing children’s stories in prose and rhyme, using the stories to teach life lessons. I started to realize that some parts of the story had a song to sing and this could help kids learn the life lessons.

So I was creating melodic mantras for kids. And then I said – but these musical mantras – they aren’t just good for kids. They are a workout for your brain. They are a way to remember. To connect our learning. To build our energy. They are a path to peace.

Leah in a yellow jacket singing with her eyes closed, outside in the sunshine

I realized these music mantras are my niche. And I am excited to be bringing a new offering that is for parents of autistic kids. We will be learning to use our voices in a natural way to communicate and connect with our kids. The Song Language will truly change how to relate to each other and weave that bond together that every parent needs to weather the storms with their child.

If you want to tune into your inner little bird that is asking to tap into your creativity. The bird is knocking on your window. Will you listen?

If you are interested I will be creating a sales page soon. Stay tuned!

(In the video I am humming the Yoik of the Wind by Sofia Jannok – this is a personal song that embodies the spirit of the wind. I felt a real power in singing it by the water as I felt the wind humming along.)