A Second Chance to Make the Same Impression

Do you remember the silly politics from high school? Do you remember that there were kids who got stuff and kids who didn’t get stuff? And there were teachers who had their favorites? And parents who weren’t afraid to jump into the mix when things didn’t go their child’s way? I hate to tell you this, but it’s still the same. :(

And, how did a young, single 24-year-old like myself stumble upon such a depressing piece of information? I’m glad you asked. Since moving back to my childhood home (and, for those of you who don’t know, it was a God thing—I was set on the idea of not returning here except for holidays and, maybe, retirement—of course, God’s working it out, like He always does), I had stayed away from things of a civic nature...until last week, when I agreed to be the pianist for the high school musical, Annie Get Your Gun. (Great choice, ay? In rural Mississippi, the standing rule is apparently to avoid all musicals that post-date, say, 1964...though this is the remake. I bet they don’t know that. Anyway, probably has something to do with defending the ears of innocents against that pollutin’ liberal thought. There will probably be gasps from the audience when they hear one of the characters is half-Indian, half-Irish. “Can you believe that? Irish!”)

Anyway, I’m getting sidetracked. I agreed to be the pianist which entails all the rehearsals and the performances—it will consume some time. At the last minute, I got pulled in to the auditions, and believe me, I would’ve stayed home if I had known what that would get me involved in. So, to shorten the already lengthy story, a girl who was trying out for Annie didn’t get Annie. The way things played out, it definitely gave the impression that the teacher/director was being partial to other students, so the girl’s parents wrote a letter to our version of a PTA, as well as the school board, expressing their disgruntlement.

Because I was at the final audition, I was listed in the letter as a knowledgeable individual who could potentially object to the director’s casting decisions...at least that was what was implied. I, of course, did not give me permission to be listed in said letter, nor did I allow them to INCLUDE MY WORK TELEPHONE NUMBER for people to call me!!!

So, between actual work tasks, I spent a large portion of my day proclaiming my neutrality on the issue. I told the parents I sympathize with their situation, but it wasn’t respectful to rope me in like that. And, I told the director I’m not on the side of the parents and I’m still committed to the musical; however, the tryout process was performed in such a way that they can’t prove what they did was legitimate. I mean, goodness gracious, Switzerland doesn’t have to proclaim its neutrality! Why can’t they just assume I’m neutral until proven biased!

The end result, of course, is that there aren’t very many winners...really, no winners. That’s the sad part of it all. Nothing was accomplished by all these inconsiderate actions by so many people. It just showed people will get worked up about anything if they want to.

It also brought to light a little bit of irony. When I was in high school, all I wanted to do was to be seen in a positive light by my fellow students. It didn’t matter to me a whole lot that all the adults had great things to say about me, I just wanted that affirmation from my peers. Now that I’m thrust back into this setting, I’m on the other side of the fence. I’m an adult now, and I’m also well respected upon my “peers,” the other adults. But, you know, I still don’t care about the adults, even if they are my peers now. I’d rather have the appreciation of the students.

Why is that? The psychologist in me says it’s because I’m trying to fill a void that has been empty ever since I was in high school. The spiritual person in me wants to disagree. If you look into the eyes of an adult, you don’t see the same thing that you see in the eyes of a kid, even if the kid’s a teenager. Adults are so much more tainted...they have so many more agendas, and their eyes tell that tale. So, if you want to get an earthly glimpse at the eyes of God, you’re less likely to find them in an adult’s eyes.

I love it when God throws human logic on its ear. In this case, human logic dictates that an older, wiser people have more knowledge and wisdom to share than younger people. And, though that is sometimes the case, at other times, God’s most powerful teachers are children. (Not at all times, mind you, sometimes kids truly are mean!)

Switching gears, am I the only one who feels like Doogie Howser when I post a blog? I’m guessing he was the first blogger (i.e. the first person to type his thoughts on a computer screen for everyone in the world to read), right? Go figure.