On Saturday, December 28th, HeartBEATS got to share music kits with all three families on the Welcome to America Project deliveries! The first family was from Afghanistan, and they had two young children around the ages of nine and five. Many of the volunteers got to sit in the living room with the children and explore the instruments that were in the bag, forming a connection through the shared curiosity and delight at each individual sound. The next two families were from Burma and Ethiopia with children ages five to twelve, and the deliveries were more busy than usual, so we were not able to spend as much time sharing music as we would've liked. Even so, the moment in which the volunteers were able to share the instruments with a smile gave all involved a shared instant of friendship and welcome.
I wanted to mention something that happened before the deliveries, when I was waiting in the WTAP warehouse for the leaders to give instructions. One of the truck drivers from the WTAP is the father of the Afghani family we visited on Saturday, 12/14, so he was there with me at the warehouse. He approached as I was leaving to visit the first family and told me that his family was so grateful for the instruments. He said his children play them every opportunity they get, and the youngest son always brings the handheld jingle bells with him when the family goes out. It made me smile to hear that because it shows that the impact of HeartBEATS is not only in the delivery, but also in the days or weeks after. It is a reminder that HeartBEATS is about the sharing the joy of music with our new neighbors, and a reminder of how much significance music can have.
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