Give Thanks...For Choral Music

I got into the choral singing late in the game. Most of my friends took choir in jr. high school. Not me--I took band. I actually liked band, even though I didn't practice as much as I should have (or admitted to doing...). When I moved to high school, we had a choice to take music classes or not. I quit band. I also didn't have to take choir, so I didn't.

My loss.

In my sophomore year, my brother was a senior, He was in choir and madrigals and did quite well. When I became a senior, I decided to get involved. I joined the choir, went to state and lettered with our double quartet and had a blast. After returning from my mission, I joined the Mormon Youth Chorus and sang with them for three years. In my second year at college a friend of mine told me the University of Utah's A'capella Choir was looking for singers. I auditioned, made the cut, and it changed my life forever.

For the next six or seven years, I was involved in a choir. After I got married, my wife and I sang with the Utah Symphony Chorus, but after a few years, we stopped. I joined a regional choir for a season or two years later and that's where I've stopped singing in large choirs.

It's too bad. I really miss it.

Sometimes I'm reminded of those days. Last week I read about a combined high school choral concert happening just down the street. And to make it even better, Dr. Peter Steenblik, a theater friend who has moved on from little Rodger's Memorial Theatre gigs to get his Phd and now teaches in Florida, was directing. I went hoping to say "hello" to my friend, which I did, but it also brought back wonderful memories from my days singing beautiful music under the direction of incredible directors like Becky Jarman, Robert Bowden, Ed Thompson, Michael Huff, and others. They are amazing talents and even better people.

I'm thankful for those who create the music, for those like Dr. Steenblik, who have dedicated their lives to bringing that music to the masses, and I'm thankful for the opportunities I had with the music. 

The high school choirs were great and the place was packed. You can't ask for more than that.

    

I Wish I Understood English Rules Better...

 Sometimes, I feel like Yoda. I hardly ever feel like the teacher. English--the rules part--has never been my strong suit. I think I actually got out of a year (or half a year...) of high school English. The rules always tripped me up. If it wasn't for Schoolhouse Rock videos on Saturday mornings, I'd have been completely lost.

I thought I wouldn't do well in English classes because of this, but when I started up at the U of U as a freshman, I was placed in an advanced English class...shocking, I guess I did okay on the written evaluation all freshman had to take. That gave me the idea that I might not be terrible with the subject.

I loved that freshman English class. It was the only one I needed to take for my degree. After I graduated, I tinkered around with writing. Things really sped up when I returned to school and graduated with a Masters of English from Weber State University. I loved those classes as well.

But, the rules...they still trip me up. In all my classes I don't ever remember diagramming a sentence. I don't even think they teach that anymore--I could be wrong on that count since my kids are homeschooled. I don't know how much they actually teach about the rules of English, what with autocorrect and other "helps" students have nowadays. 

For me, I go by how the words feel as they're written or how they sound when spoken. I know there are hard and fast rules when it comes to grammar and sentence structure. I also know that rules can be broken--mostly for effect. But, you've got to know the rules in you want to break them.

English is tricky. It's an amazing language that you can study for decades and never really master it. I suppose the point is to keep trudging and get through it, learn from your mistakes, and do your best. And don't get upset if a teacher looks at your work and says, "not even close."

Is It Doodling At Church...Or Graffiti?

Last Sunday, while at church, I looked over and noticed a kid start to draw on a chalkboard next to where he sat. I didn't know what he was drawing, but I soon found out. When he took his hand away from his little doodle, I saw it was the logo for my alma mater. 

Bright kid.

For those of you who aren't familiar with the culture, to some this kid's drawing represents pure evil. Okay, maybe that's a little harsh. Then again, the way some people look at things, yes...to them, it's pure evil. You see, our religion has a church-owned university, several, in fact, but the biggest is Brigham Young University. 

This boy drew the drum and feather logo for the University of Utah.

Both school were founded by Brigham Young. Both schools have a majority of Mormon students. Both schools have good reputations as quality schools for higher education. There are other similarities, I'm sure, but for many, the two schools are very very different. They (sometimes...) compete for sport supremacy and bragging rights. And the fact that this kid drew the logo for the school not owned by the church during a church meeting makes someone watching either smile, or want to go over and erase the doodle forever. 

I'm probably oversimplifying things. It's likely most people were in neither camps and didn't even see the drawing. But to those of us who did notice and who have clearly chosen a side in this holy war, it was like seeing a gang sign, or a graffiti tag in your part of town.

Returning To Where You Once Were...

Tonight, I drove up to my alma mater, one of my alma maters, that is. It's weird coming back to a place where you went to school. The first school I attended was torn down, at least part of it. The second and third schools (elementary and jr. high school...) are still there, but my high school is no more. They flattened it and built a huge temple to education, otherwise known as Davis High School.

I first attended Utah State University in Logan, Utah. Home of the Aggies. I love USU--it's a great place. My dad, brother, sis-in-law all graduated from there. After the mission, I went to the University of Utah, and I really loved my time as a Ute. It's a great institution.

After a fifteen-year break, I went back to school, this time at Weber State University. I enjoyed the school, the faculty, and the students very much. Thing is, I didn't spend a lot of time on the main campus, so the Union Building, where I am not, does not feel like home. Then again, a few years I went back to the U of U and it had changed so much, I hardly recognized the place.

The picture you see above is a relatively new building. I can't remember who it's named after, but it's mostly used by the English Department. They finished building it while I attended and I had a few classes there. It's also where my family and I had a meeting before I got my masters degree. I suppose if I return to WSU in about ten or twenty years, I probably won't recognize it, either. Such is life. Then again, I'm sure no one there would recognize me either.

The Color Red...

I love the color red. When my youngest asks me what my favorite color is, I always say, "Red." He doesn't really ask any more--he knows the answer. Red--it's one of the three primary colors. It's one of the three colors of the American flag. Red is awesome!

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I don't know if I had a favorite color before I moved to Denmark at age 19. The Danish flag has two colors, red and white, a red field with a white cross on it. If you've ever traveled to Denmark you know they're proud of their flag--red and white are everywhere! There's a legend that God sent a white cross down from Heaven and it fell on a blood-stained sheet when the Danes were fighting somebody (being Vikings, they were always fighting somebody...). I know my history is very lacking as far as facts are concerned, and I apologize to any Danes, or anyone else familiar with Danish history... I remember seeing a painting in Denmark once where the flag is descending from Heaven and it looked like that.

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So when I returned from Europe, I decided to attend college at the University of Utah. The U of U colors are crimson and white, but for me, it's red and white...colors I like together. Many of my friends and neighbors (and, yes, even family members...) like other colors, like green and yellow and blue. To quote Ralphie Parker (taking some liberties, of course...), "I don't think blue is a very good color."

Red, the color of passion, the color of life. Red emotes power and justice (to me, at least...). You can gather together all the colors of the spectrum you want and I'll take Red every time...

* Photo used without permission from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Denmark

◊ Photo used without permission from: http://www.picturesdepot.com/football/9707/university+of+utah+logo.html