I'm Grateful For Stuff Again This Year

It's become a bit of a tradition for me to write an obligatory gratitude post around this time of the year. I thought I might have a little trouble finding things to be grateful for due to a certain, recent national event which shall not be named.

But once I sat down and thought about it, I realized I'm still grateful for stuff.

This year, I'm going to show what I'm thankful for in photographs, partly because this time of year is extremely busy for a music teacher and partly because it's a different angle than years past.

Kind of.

I just looked at last year's blog post, and I have a lot of pictures in that one too. I guess the reality is I'm doing this because I'm a busy music teacher, and I'm cheating.

I'm thankful for my husband, Dan. I don't want to brag, but we are a cool couple. Here we are in October getting ready to watch Hedwig and the Angry Inch. This is what I call "Dan's Scary Rock Star Face." Yeah, my husband's so cool, he takes me to musicals.

Okay, it's kind of weird to talk about your awesome husband and then post of picture of yourself with another guy, but this doesn't really have to do with another guy, friends. I'm thankful that I was able to play such a fun role like Laurey Williams in Oklahoma this past summer. I mean, I'm approaching forty, and I know I won't be an ingenue forever. Maybe I should say, I'm thankful for the genetic makeup I inherited from my grandmother whose claim to fame was, "Everyone says I don't look a day over seventy," when she was in her nineties.

I'm thankful for my job. The pictures above are from this year's Veterans' Day program. Boy, we needed to come together through music this year. It was a cathartic, beautiful experience.

I'm thankful I'm not this guy! (I'm also thankful this guy didn't shoot me when I pulled out my phone and took pictures of his bumper at every stoplight. I noticed he drove away pretty quickly when the lane beside me cleared.) You probably can't read these stickers very well, and that's alright. But this is all I'm going to say about politics today.

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The Year the Veterans' Day Program Turned My Week Around

On Thursday, I posted this to Facebook:

Yesterday, during our final Veterans' Program rehearsal, I had a tough time getting through my beautiful, diverse group of students singing, "Open our ears that we may hear, where there is hate, there will be fear . . ." and "God bless America, land that I love . . . "

I've decided to look at it this way. Today, we're singing for those people throughout the centuries who have kept our country safe and free.

My students, many of them refugees and immigrants, will also sing during this program, "Where there is love, there will peace." That's what we'll focus on . . .

I'm not going to lie. I kept thinking about that scene in The Sound of Music where Captain von Trapp begins to sing "Edelweiss" at the music festival, and he breaks down mid-song, and the music has to be rescued by Maria and his children. Yes, he was fleeing Nazi-occupied Austria that night, but he was also mourning the fragility and breakdown of the country he loved.

This year, I, too, felt conflicted about celebrating my homeland.

As is always the case, music saved me. It felt good to come together with my students, school, and community through this universal language and give a little something back to those who have served and protected us.

If you need some joy in your life this week, here you go . . .

One little girl decided to belt out all of the songs at least a fifth above (translation: much higher than) all of the other kids during the afternoon program.

One third grade boy, who arrived in this country last year, knew every word to every patriotic song and sang so enthusiastically that he conducted most of the music with me.

I heard several stories, after the fact, of certain fifth and sixth graders (a.k.a. cool boys!) in the morning audience mouthing the words of the songs with us.

The day after the program, I asked the classes to reflect on and write down one thing they liked, one thing they learned, and to compliment at least one other person. Several students said they learned, "veterans are very important to our country, and they keep us safe."

I also asked them to assess their individual performances, and they gave themselves the best score possible. Trust me, my kiddos don't have over-inflated egos. What this did tell me is that they felt proud of their performance and of their contribution to the community.

In the end, I guess I loved watching the kids sing from their hearts and share their love of music with their families and the veterans in our audience.

I don't care what side of the spectrum you fall on. You can't argue with the beauty in that.

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Top Five Fall Faves (RE-POST from 11/9/14)

 At least I am consistent. My "Top Five Fall Faves" are the same as they were two years ago, although maybe I should add Asian pears to the list. They rank up there with Honeycrisp apples and pomegranates. It's the simple pleasures in life. Enjoy this reread from 2014! 

I am one of those fortunate people who lives in an area with four distinct seasons.

And fall is here.

It's okay if you're jealous. I would be jealous too. Except, I live here . . . in a city . . . with fall.

Fall comes at the perfect time, right around the time I am getting tired of braving sultry afternoons and looking at people wearing not-so-sultry tank tops.

Here are some things that make the beginning of fall awesome:

1. Honeycrisp Apples
The first time I bit into one of these, I exclaimed out loud, "These really taste like honey! Apples and honey mixed together!"

"You sound like a commercial for honey crisp apples," said the person sitting next to me.

2. Pomegranates
It may be slightly messy to prep a pomegranate, but it is totally worth it in the end.

3. Pumpkin Spice Everything (e.g. lattes, breads, butters)
I occasionally indulge in pumpkin spice stuff regardless of the added sugars and syrups. I mean, there just comes a time when you've got to have a pumpkin spice latte.

4. Running
Running in fall weather is amazing. The air is crisp, not too hot, but still sunny. And the colors of the leaves are beautiful on the trails at this time of the year.

 

Minor confession: I seek out piles of fallen leaves on my path so that I can hear that crunchy sound under my feet. It probably arises from some subconscious, unmet need in my childhood.

5. Not having to mow the lawn anymore (says my husband)
This was Dan's contribution. I'm sure I'll hear complaints about raking up leaves in the next couple of weeks though.

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