Accela Rehab and Care Center at Manalapan

Accela Rehab and Care Center at Manalapan was my 15th performance to date and also the first time I would play twice at a single location. When my dad and I arrived there, we were once again greeted by their enthusiastic director, who immediately recognized us from our last performance. This time, however, I was performing at a different section of the care center, meaning a brand new audience. When the audience saw us coming in, they seemed surprised that we showed up, most likely because the audience wasn't informed about us. I started to set my equipment, and I could tell the audience was interested, as each wore a bright smile on their face. At this time, I was still trying to get people to sign up for the Om Foundation annual run/walk, but it didn't seem right to ask the elderly to sign up, so I went for a different approach: this time I would talk about how its my dream to perform in front of crowds on the street (I wasn't lying about this, it was true!).

What made this performance stand out from the rest of them was how active and optimistic the audience was. After almost every song, this elderly man would praise me over and over for my performance, and an elderly woman would ask me questions about my journey. Something I did differently during this performance was rather than focusing on playing each note correctly, I was more concentrated on the audio/rhythm ("in the flow"). Over time, more of the staff started to join the elderly, and for the first time, my audience was increasing during a performance! After I was done, I got more questions about my future, such as whether I was going to pursue this in college. My initial answer was most likely, but the woman said, "No, you are going to". This once again solidified my belief that even people whom I have never met before will believe in me.