Lately I’ve had a number of people point out that this website is long over-due for an update. When I finally got around to checking it out I had to laugh – it had been three years. Not surprising – I’ve been a bit distracted!
In the fall of 2002 I was finally diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, after 6+ years of dealing with a body that just wasn’t behaving. The next year was spent learning to cope with that diagnosis and discovering things that work for me.
So what am I doing? Lots! I just have to be careful with how I spend my energy. I’m doing well and most days feel pretty good. However, one of the most important keys for maintaining the fullest function possible is to keep commitments to a minimum. Therefore I am no longer touring. I still do a few carefully chosen local performances – not full concerts – but a song here and there, mostly in benefits. I still teach at Meadowlark Camp (folk camp for adults) in Washington, Maine, which I will do as long as I can. We will also put on our annual Holiday concert each year, in Camden, Maine, the first Sunday of December.
I have private guitar and mountain dulcimer students and I lead a weekly adult education class called “folk chorus,” meaning we sing whatever we feel like singing. (You’re very welcome to join us if you live near Warren, Maine!). I’m still writing songs and tunes and increasingly enjoy writing choral arrangements. I continue to produce recordings for Gordon Bok.
I’m writing an instruction book for learning to play the mountain dulcimer. I’d estimate that it’s a little over half done and I have a number of “proofers” working out the kinks with the early chapters. I’ve been pleased with the response from complete beginners as well as from more experienced players and hope to market the book to publishers in 2006. But don’t hold your breath!
I’ve written some new songs and continue to discover songs that I love from other authors. I play with the idea of making another recording, but definitely don’t hold your breath on that one!
On the home front, my longtime partner, Matt Szostak, and I got married last November. Matt is still building hurdy-gurdys (visit his website), and he is also working for the Maine State Ferry Service. I have more time for my vegetable and flower gardens. Matt and I are still members of the Quasimodal Chorus and, with that group, did two Maine performances last spring with Malcolm Dalglish, of an amazing piece that Malcolm wrote called “Hymnody” – a ceremony of songs written and arranged around the poetry of Wendell Berry.
What’s in the future? Well – who knows? My current goal is to live my life in such a way that I forget that I have P.D. That’s not always an easy or even possible task, but worth the trying. This journey has made us even more aware of how lucky we are to have such an amazing and supportive community of family and friends.
What can you do if you’re so inclined? You can support organizations that are looking for a cure for Parkinson’s, especially the Michael J. Fox Foundation (www.michaeljfox.org), which is doing amazing work. You can write to legislators and to our illustrious federal administration to get them to stop blocking stem cell research (see itinerary).
On a personal and business end, you can still buy recordings through this website. We’re having a major sale on cassettes of three different titles. Sales slow dramatically when you’re not touring or making new recordings and we still have stock on most titles. You can help us turn our storage room into a guest room by buying lots of CDs and cassettes!
We appreciate all the good wishes that have come our way and hope that sometime in the future a cure is found for P.D. and for all the diseases that put restrictions on living life to the fullest.
Having said that, we’re grateful for some of the things we’ve learned – and continue to learn - from this experience as we discover, once again, that major passages can reprioritize what is important in our lives. However, having said that, as an old friend once said to me, “Haven’t I learned enough, at least for a little while?”
We hope this finds you well and happy. We’d be glad to hear from you.
Best,
Anne Dodson
Matt and Anne, Glen of Aherlow, Ireland, (not a long way from Tipperary) September 2005
Last updated on 11/9/05
Beech Hill Music, 7 Grove Street, Camden Maine 04843
or email at: beechhil@midcoast.com
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