Improve the Shining Moments

Today in church, we sang this hymn. It's kind of a cheesy old tune, the kind that reminds me of an old 19th century revival hymn, or something the women of the suffragettes might have sung. But today the lyrics rang true with me. The message is kind of like my personal motto in life: make each moment matter. Do something valuable in some way with each and every day.

Improve the Shining Moments
Robert B Baird, 1855-1916

Improve the shining moments;
Don't let them pass you by.
Work while the sun is radiant;
Work for the night draws nigh.
We cannot bid the sunbeams
To lengthen out their stay,
Nor can we ask the shadow
To ever stay away.

Time flies on wings of lightning;
We cannot call it back.
It comes, then passes forward
Along its onward track.
And if we are not mindful,
The chance will fade away,
For life is quick in passing.
'Tis as a single day.

As wintertime doth follow
The pleasant summer days.
So may our joys all vanish
And pass far from our gaze.
Then should we not endeavor
Each day some point to gain,
That we may here be useful
And every wrong disdain?

Improve each shining moment.
In this you are secure,
For promptness bringeth safety
And blessings rich and pure.
Let prudence guide your actions;
Be honest in your heart;
And God will love and bless you
And help to you impart.

Isn't that a positive message? That's a great message for me about how to get through this second year of graduate school. The school year officially starts tomorrow, but my class starts on Tuesday. I'm kind of excited, but kind of terrified.

I got a "high pass" on my last two sections of the history predictive exam, so now I'm a regular status graduate student, rather than a provisional one. :) I'm just worried that my physical stamina may not last a full year! I have to remember that graduation is only 9 months away, and really only 8 more months of work, because I get a month off at Christmas. Anyway, my goal is to improve each of the shining moment of the next 9 months. It's going to be a full, beautiful year and I'll have achieved a master's degree! Woot!

Kindred Spirits

Mrs. Larson first introduced me to Anne of Green Gables in my 7th grade honors English class. Watching that movie was like being introduced to myself. Anne is a precocious red headed, green eyed, freckle faced girl with a big imagination and a highly romanticized view of the world. She meets Diana Barry and they instantly become “bosom friends” (incidentally, my best friend growing up was named Dianne, and she was the only girl who lived within walking distance from me; also a red head). Anne tells Diana that they are “kindred spirits.” Isn’t that a great phrase? I have been thinking today about all the kindred spirits that I’ve been so fortunate to stumble across in my life. God has put various people in my path that fill all my different needs, and we have shared a connection which feels so strong that we might be related, only we’re not. Here are a few of the kindred spirits in my world, in no particular order!

Kimberlee is my music friend, but also my BEST friend. Kimberlee and I became acquainted the day she moved away to Minnesota, but that meeting sprang into a fast friendship. Luckily for me, we both have Verizon mobile phone service, so our minutes (rather, hours) are free. We play concerts together, but share much more than just a working relationship. She calls me on the phone when she hears a great pianist on the radio and tells me to run out and buy their recordings. We also share a love of sewing. Kim and I have a pact that we will encourage each other to be good and noble people. She inspires me musically and morally.

Charlene is my Arizona piano teaching friend. She and I became acquainted at my first (and last!) music teacher’s meeting in Arizona and became friends for life. We go to conferences together and have a ball, since we share much more than music in common. We are both movers and shakers in a profession usually filled with older, much more reserved personalities. It is pretty fun to see ideas I’ve shared with her show up in print in her publications. Even though I’m now in Idaho, we’re still great friends.

Gay is my piano teaching mom. The first month I moved to Idaho I met her at a music teaching conference, and she took me under her wing, promoting me to her students as she was retiring. She was instrumental in giving me my start in the Boise area. We also like to go to quilt shows and shops together, and of course, out for lunch.

Dan and Dani are my farmer’s market friends. Scott and I met Dan and Dani at the farmer’s market where Scott sells his granola bars. They sell the finest pork, beef, chicken, and eggs money can buy from their XXL Ranch. We stopped by to buy some meat one day, and the next thing you know we’re sharing a meal at their home and they have taken our daughters under their wing as if they were their own.

Donna is who I want to be when I grow up. She’s a glamorous older lady who is also married to a fly fisherman. I don’t get to see her very often, but we like to go out to lunch once a year or so. She has taught me so much about poise, style and manners. She exercises great taste in every possible way.

Amy is my Idaho girlfriend. I can’t count the times that she has told me about a problem she was facing in her family and I felt like she was describing my own current situation. Her husband and mine are good friends as well, so we periodically socialize together.

Gayle and Steve are my Idaho parents. Even though they’re old enough to be my parents, we enjoy socializing together, which is great especially because Steve is a fly fisherman. Gayle and Steve have enjoyed a meal or two at our house, and they always stay until every last dish is washed and dried. They seem to think that we are the bees knees, which is fun for us, but if I had to pick a different set of parents for Scott and myself, it would be Gayle and Steve all the way.

Christine is another indispensable Idaho girlfriend. Even though I’m a bit younger than her, we seem to share many commonalities in both our histories and our current situations. I can relate to her so much as a sister, a mom, a wife, and a daughter. She’s a girl with great common sense, and also knows how to throw a great party.

Coreen was my best girlfriend in Arizona. When we met it seemed like we had more differences than similarities; I never expected to become as close to her as I did. But we became best friends through our church service, and had quilt night once a week and both made beautiful quilts for our daughters. I miss her terribly.

Reed is like my piano teaching brother. He’s a composer, and he frequently brings me his compositions to try. What a privilege that is, to be a sounding board for his creativity! I love talking shop with Reed. He has an excitement for learning and perfecting his craft of playing, teaching, and composing. I have a great respect for his lifetime of progress, where many others fall off of the learning wagon when they complete college.

Juli is a piano girlfriend who is destined to remain in my life. We met for the first time at music camp at age 14. We ran into each other again in our undergrad at the University of Utah. We lost track after graduation, and then when I moved to Idaho, here she was again! Fate has thrust us together three times, never again to go our separate ways.

I’m one lucky girl with all these good people in my life, and many more who inspire and encourage me. This list could go on and on. Sometimes I think I am so different that no one could possibly understand me or what I’m going through, and then God sends me a new friend in the most unexpected of places. Hopefully I can offer my friendship to someone else and fill a need for them, the way these people do for me, because my cup runneth over.

Elvis Lives!

I'm just wrapping up what is probably the happiest day of the year for me. My best friend came to town and we squished enough fun for an entire week into one day. The crowning event was attending "Elvis On Tour" on the Imax, two hours and five minutes of footage of The King. We took our beautiful daughters (Alexis is also a huge Elvis fan; she was Priscilla Presley for Halloween a couple of years ago) with us. It was exhilarating to see him in action at the prime of his career. He was a tremendous band leader, and a fantastic entertainer, but it was great to see his interaction with his band. There is a reason he is called "The King of Rock 'n' Roll," and it's not necessarily because of his rock 'n' roll. In fact, most of what we heard tonight was blues and gospel. He's The King because he was so skilled as a musician and a performer. He knew that for most of his audience members, it would be the first and only time they would ever see him perform, and he wanted to give them a great show, as if it were the first time his band had played those tunes together. He had a huge band! A dozen or so horns, a set of timpani, flute, bass, drums (oh my! an AWESOME drummer!), piano (YES, a REAL piano; one pianist played boogie-woogie pretty impressively), and about 8 back-up singers. At the end of his career, he was singing mostly gospel music, and he sang with great sincerity. After seeing that show, I'm as big of a fan as ever. Now if only I could get me a bedazzled-grommet-studded cape, maybe I would have what it takes to really entertain my audience for my graduate recital. And go-go boots. But I digress.

So anyway, Kim came into town for just the one day, and we had so much to do! We went to the library and checked out new CD's (I'm stocking up on my Chopin Ballade recordings) followed by lunch on the patio at the Cottonwood Grille, which is in my opinion, the best table in the Treasure Valley, with the breeze coming through the Cottonwoods off of the Boise River, butterflies, dragonflies, flowers, birdies, and a view of their waterfall. What could be better? I'll tell you: Gaspacho and the Cottonwood Platter (their cheese plate with smoked trout, pork, salami, 4 kinds of cheese, apples, grapes and strawberries). Talk about heaven in my mouth.

After lunch we went back to the Morrison Center where we chatted with my teacher and then Kim and I got to play together for a few short minutes. She recently acquired a phenomenal new violin which I hadn't heard before today. I've always loved her playing, but now she is a force to be reckoned with. We got to sight-read through some Albert Spalding compositions together for the first time (we're both huge fans) and she played a composition of hers for me that she's had in progress for some months now. What a treat. Also, I ran into my best BSU girlfriend, Maggie. Haven't seen her all summer. Yay, Maggie! Go Broncos!

Then of course we had to go to the music store so I could drop my name in the drawing for the digital piano they are giving away this week. You can enter once a day all week, so you can bet I will. Can you imagine how my family life would improve if I could practice with headphones in the middle of the night? So we stopped by to pick up some sheet music, and what do you know, but I won a prize! I'm the proud new owner of a black coffee mug with golden piano keys on it. Woot! But don't worry, I'm still in the running for the digital piano. We met a great guy at the music store (Weinberg? I forget his name). He was playing Le Tambeau de Couperin by Ravel. Nice. Didn't realize there were still pianists - good ones - in Boise that I haven't met yet! Whadayaknow?

After the music store we were off to get fresh eggs from my girlfriend Dani at the Farmer's Market, and then to Lee's Candies (incidentally, Kimberlee's namesake), home to pick up the girls, and then off to see Elvis on Tour.

Since we hadn't had quite enough fun yet, we had to go to Pengilly's to see if we could soak in just a couple of more tunes before the night was over. We were expecting to hear our favorite band, the Frim Fram 4, but they weren't playing. Instead, we got to hear Rob Walker, trumpet; Camden Hughes, piano; and Tom Jensen, bass with a female singer whose name I don't know. I love hearing Rob! He really can swing. I'd never heard Camden or Tom play before, but they were great. I'd been wanting to hear them play for some time, so it was really a great surprise to hear them play.

The whole day was too much fun, but the best part was sharing it all with my best music friend, Kim. I only get to see her once a year, so we try to make the most of it when I see her. It really was my lucky day. I can't believe that my life is so full of beautiful people and the gorgeous music that they make. And at the end of it all, I get to come home to a house full of people who I love just as dearly for different reasons altogether. Today I'm chalk full of love.

Haydn

It's done! I got through my entire Haydn "Great" E Flat Sonata today, quite well, actually. All three movements with repeats. We're having a little dinner party tomorrow night and I'm going to give it a complete run-through in front of people. I'm bracing myself! I think it'll go well, though.

Next up: The Granados Nightingale piece, my Chopin Butterfly Etude (both about half finished currently), and my encore, Autumn Moon Over a Calm Lake. I have been wanting to do one more Granados piece, but have still not come to an agreement with my teacher over which one. If I can get these things learned before school starts, I'll be on track for a great recital in March.

A Terrific Story for you

While I was in Utah last week, I had the NEATO experience of visiting with my piano teacher. I studied with her from 5th through 11th grade. She was the best thing that ever happened to me during my adolescent years. With all the junk that happens during those years, both at home and abroad, she was the miracle that made me feel loved. So anyway, we went to visit her, I played for her (badly), and she told us this true story about HER very first piano teacher.

This story took place on Easter Sunday, 1939. This woman was in Washington, D.C. with her husband who was going to dental school. One day, they were walking down the street and they came across a bunch of people who were all walking in the same direction. She had a sense that they were headed somewhere important, and told her husband that they should go with those people. Soon, there were more and more people, and pretty soon they got looking around and realized that they were the only white people in a sea of black people. Her husband was nervous and told her he wanted to go home. She said she thought something important was going to happen and she didn't want to miss it. They ended up on the mall at the Lincoln Memorial, and it was Marian Anderson who they were there to see! The Daughters of the American Revolution had refused to allow her to sing for an integrated audience in Constitution Hall, so Eleanor Roosevelt resigned from the organization and arranged for her to sing at the Lincoln Memorial. Seventy-five thousand people showed up to hear her.

You can hear the clip and see some photos of that historic moment here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkPI0VKM4Fk

A Topic-less Update

Last week my cousin died, so I decided to go to Utah for the funeral, which was last Wednesday. I have a very colorful family, so it's always pretty fun to see them all, which was really why I went. I wasn't particularly close to my cousin who passed away, but I used to be great friends with her sister, and now with Facebook and all, I've been corresponding with her other sister and her mom a bit. My mom and I did some of the music for the funeral. It was actually pretty fun, as far as funerals go. I guess the best way to describe this particular funeral would be to say that it was an "interactive" funeral. They had people write down their memories of my cousin and they read some of them at the graveside and some at the funeral service. They had some guys there with guitars who sang some of her favorite songs, both at the graveside and at the funeral service, and had people sing along. They had a DVD of her photos playing at the viewing. They took the casket to the cemetery in a hearse that was pulled by Harley Davidson motorcycles with many of the procession also on their Harleys, and at the graveside they did what could only be described as a camp cheer, and they let off helium balloons into the sky at the end. It was actually a very enjoyable day. It made me wonder what I would want for my own funeral, not that I have any immediate plans.

Today I took Kevin to the thrift store and bought him a new shirt and a couple of piano books - Johnny Mathis and a Christmas album. Then I made him sing the songs all the way home. It was pretty funny. I remember my mom's piano students playing those old sappy songs (Misty, Feelings, The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face), and I remember them being played on FM100. We laughed and laughed. I probably shouldn't participate in that kind of activity while operating a vehicle.

A Memory for Memorial Day

About 8 years ago we were moving to Phoenix. Scott worked for Dreyer's Ice Cream at the time, and they had given us a very generous moving package. We had flown into Phoenix and arrived late, and took our tired children to the hotel restaurant. It was a Marriott, if I remember correctly, and the restaurant was pretty formal. We had taken our kids to restaurants pretty regularly, but I remember being particularly anxious for them to behave appropriately, with the formal setting, the lateness of the hour, and the conspicuous absence of other children. We had a big meal, knowing we wouldn't be picking up the tab.

We finished our dinner, and when it came time for the check, the waiter came and said that there was a Marine who was shipping out to Afghanistan the next day who was missing his family and wanted to pick up the tab for our family. My heart sank and was full of gratitude all at once. I was so grateful to that Marine for his act of generosity, and sorry that he didn't know that it would have been paid for by the company. I was humbled that my kids were well behaved enough (and that our patience was adequate!) to stir that kind of nostalgia in a soldier.

The next morning the breakfast area was full of Marines. I remember walking around looking at each one and wondering which of them had paid for our family's meal. Over the next several years as I watched the news and saw the announcements when a soldier was killed or wounded, I always wondered if it was "our" Marine who's photo was flashing across the screen. I've always had a reverence for the flag and our military, but now I have a very personal appreciation for the military and the sacrifice they and their families make in order to serve our country. Today, I have a special prayer in my heart for him and his family.