Not long before her famous father Johnny Cash died, singer Rosanne Cash went through a 26-month period where she could not sing; she had lost her voice. In fact, she could barely talk above a whisper. The cause was a large polyp that had developed in her throat. Her doctor concluded that the polyp was related to hormonal changes Rosanne had experienced in going through a pregnancy and then nursing her new son. Advising against surgery, the doctor said the polyp would eventually go away on its own once Rosanne stopped nursing. Not wanting to cut short the nursing, Rosanne accepted the prognosis and continued nursing her son for several months, though she said that it was hard not being able to sing him lullabies. Here’s how she described her reaction to losing her voice:

Suddenly here was this huge hole in me. Who was I without my voice, what was I going to do with the rest of my life? ... I was propelled into a pretty classic identity crisis. I felt the profound sense of loss and sadness that permeated everything. I had truly grown into being a singer -- but I had no realization of that until I lost it. ... I made up my mind that if I ever got my voice back, I was going to find out what it is to be joyful when I am singing.1

            And that’s what happened. Six months after she stopped nursing, her voice returned. Then she not only put out a new album, but also persuaded her father, who was then into his final illness, to record a duet with her -- a song she wrote about mortality. The song they did together is called “September When It Comes.”

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