Gift Crosses The Generations
I watch her sit there small, blond, pony-tailed, freckle-nosed and holding a garage-sale trumpet. I smile, fighting tears, as nostalgia sweeps over me. They sit together, her father and she. One-two-three, trumpets up! Deep breath unison. Then the notes begin, simple in the beauty of bright clear tones, blending into intricate harmonies.
Her father, once a bespectacled small boy, whose cheeks puffed and turned red as hers are now, takes the lead and effortlessly fills the sanctuary with the melody of the familiar hymn. She plays a counter-melody, cheeks slightly crimson from a combination of stage fright and exertion. Strings, woodwinds and violins join the praise and worship. The congregation sits transfixed for a brief interlude, then breaks into subdued applause.
It’s often like that when one experiences the momentous, yet unheralded events in our lives. No one else realized this was a special event, another life passage. It was her first performance at church, and with her father, my oldest son. Only I truly appreciate the fact that the circle has come full swing. The hours of practice three decades ago, the sacrifices of time and personal pursuits, traveling to concerts, dances, and marching band performances have been worth it all. My grandchildren now have the gift of music.
A slightly melancholy satisfaction fills me with a humble pride that I have had a part in promoting something that is intangible.
As a classroom teacher, it is the same. To most, we impart knowledge and practical application of skills students will need, not just to pass math and reading, but to live and to be successful in a competitive world. In the urgency of getting all that knowledge into those precious minds, we lose sight of the fact that someday, in the future, they will automatically use those skills they struggled so to master. There will be no trumpet fanfare, but perhaps they will receive words of recognition for a job well done.
Therefore, to Mr. Leo Dodd, band director from Interlake High School in Bellevue, and to music teachers in Montana and Oregon whose names I no longer remember, thank you. Your gift of learning truly has touched eternity today. And to all my fellow teachers, keep up the good work. Each student’s achievement really is worth the effort, whether we ever witness that achievement or not.