Tuesday, November 11th was Veterans Day and I
could not help but think about my high school choir teacher. The Taylorsville
High School Concert Choir was under the direction of Mr. Norm Wendell for I’m
sure close to twenty years. I have clear and distinct memories sitting in his
class singing warm ups….me may ma may…me may ma may...while he took role moving
his glass up and down so he could read the white painted numbers on the back of
our hard plastic chairs. Our choir was well over one hundred people and this
man should win a medal for putting up with us….our graduating class was no
picnic and for the most part he remained professional, encouraging and
principled while he successfully taught us how to sing. Our performance dresses
were bright shiny purple with a huge lace collar that only rivaled our huge
bangs and over stylized and teased premed hair. Looking back, I’m not exactly sure
if this dress concepts and fabric choice was ever really in style for the time
or if we just got a really good deal on a giant bolt of fabric. I think the
guys wore navy blue suits and a quasi-matching tie and I think suspenders…but
that detail is a bit hazy. We sang show tunes, spirituals, a handful of few
classic madrigals, endless of Christmas songs, Mozart’s Requiem, Handel’s Hallelujah
Chorus and what seemed like the entire cannon of American patriotic music. We
sang all over the valley and throughout the school year but the concert that
stands out in my mind the most was the Veterans Day concert held at the
University of Utah. I remember the basketball arena was full of high school
choirs from around the state who had all learned the same patriotic songs.
There was a professional marching band, lots of American Flags and I’m sure
some dramatic reading and remembrances celebrating those men and women who have
served our country. Here is the thing…as a high school senior, I’m not sure I
really understood or appreciated the opportunity to help celebrate the veterans
of our community…but I will never forget how Mr. Wendell reverenced both the
music we were singing and our intended audience. I’ll never consider myself a
great or even good vocalist. I can’t sight read to save my life and I really
should only sing while surrounded by a LARGE group of people. But every
November, I think about Mr. Wendell and his determination to create an
experience for a bunch of self-centered teenagers. I may not be able to
successfully read and understand music but his leadership and example clearly
made a difference in my life. Now, as an adult, I’ve become a bit of a news and
political junky and I’ve come to understand and better appreciate the
contribution of those serving in the armed forces. I’m grateful for their
service and I’m grateful that they get a national day of recognition. Individually
and collectively they have far more guts and courage than I could muster and I
could not be more grateful for their sacrifice. God bless American! God bless
our troops! And God bless all of those courageous music teachers who help plant
seeds of patriotism that fully bloom later in life.
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