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Trees Are Poems     Written by Mare Johnston   © October, 2008  (inspired by a poem by Khalil Gibran)

Braided rope hanging from a tree
Knotted strong around a tire
The tire encircled little me
Acorns rained as I swung higher

Old bay laurel bears a chain
Beneath the bark around her breadth;
I work to loose the metal’s bite
Hear the old tree’s grateful breath

Chorus:
Trees are poems Earth writes on the sky;
You cut them down to make your paper,
It’s there that you record your emptiness
Conserved to visit after
Conserved to visit after

Willow, planted as a twig,
Your nurturing we share in
Shade and shield our little roof
And the two hearts twining therein

Walk among your books and listen
For the voices sleeping there
Between the lines, our sylvan sisters
‘Tis their whispers these pages bear

Chorus:
Trees are poems Earth writes on the sky;
You cut us down to make your paper,
It’s there that you record your emptiness
Conserved to visit after
Conserved to visit after


Send Therapeutic Music just as you send flowers.

I am trained as a Certified Music Practitioner (CMP) to assess and provide live music and compassionate presence at bedside to the critical, chronic, and terminally ill. I am certified through the New York-based Music for Healing & Transition Program (MHTP).

A therapeutic music session is approximately 30 minutes. I assess the patient’s physical and emotional state, and choose and provide therapeutic music appropriate to the assessment. I visit patients in Humboldt County, California. If you or your loved one do not live in this area, please contact me for referral of a therapeutic musician in your area. There are hundreds of us practicing in the US and Canada. To inquire about a gift of  therapeutic music in the Humboldt County area, please contact me.
Mare Johnston, CMP 408.483.2782 

Therapeutic music can:

  • equalize & slow brain wave activity

  • affect respiration, heartbeat and pulse

  • improve body movement & muscle tension

  • affect body temperature

  • increase endorphin levels

  • regulate stress-related hormones

  • stimulate digestion

  • stimulate a feeling of well-being

  • soothe and comfort the patient’s family, and clinical staff as well

I have provided Therapeutic Music as a CMP since 2010. I am experienced with chronically ill, critically ill, cognitively impaired (such as Alzheimer’s/Dementia), and the actively dying. I can visit one time, or on a regular schedule: weekly, sometimes daily for transitioning patients.

Therapeutic Music vs. Music Therapy: is there a difference?

The therapeutic musician is professionally trained and certified to assess the patient’s emotional and physical state, and to choose and provide the appropriate live therapeutic music at the bedside to create a healing environment, based on the assessment. Therapeutic musicians also collaborate with healthcare facilities and community organizations to educate and promote research regarding the effectiveness of therapeutic music in the healing process and the life/death transition. In contrast, the practice of the music therapist uses music interventions to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship.