It was my late friend Les Bayer who first introduced me to the most common “organ recital” of our time. This happens when people of my age get together. Immediately the talk goes to hips, lungs, kidneys, liver and other organs. This happened again last night when the residents of my building at this Retirement Community had a shared dinner.
Then came the speeches. It was great. Each floor rep had to make a speech. This proved to be a challenge for those of us used to just doing organ recitals. Even with extensive notes and much coaching from spouses and friends it seems that names were forgotten, dates confused and joke punch lines suddenly forgotten. It was great fun. And lots of empathy.
And it also made me get reflective. I remember my father-in-law. He was in his 90”s and had always been extremely patient and even tempered. But now I suddenly found him angry and combative. It took me a while to catch on. He was struggling with Alzheimer’s. Facts, data, numbers and names which used to come to him immediately were now suddenly outside the realm of his recollection. This frustrated him. Made him angry. He exploded. I understood.
It, as always, gets personal. Within the last week I sent two emails which contained a wrong date, an incorrect starting time, the wrong day of the week and the misappropriation of the author of a prayer. I refuse to get on the organ recital bench. But I did have to have a couple expletives deleted. And then I smiled and was grateful that at least I could still play a full 18 holes of golf and count correctly the number of strokes.
Posts
2 comments:
Hi Mel, I really enjoy and can identify with all that you share. I recall meeting you at a Lutheran Teachers Conference in either the sixties or seventies. I taught in Lutheran Schools in the Washington and Baltimore suburbs for twenty three years. You were doing the TET at the time and I think that one of my schools used it for their school. Active listening is something that I never forgot. Anyhow, I now live in the state of Indiana and too far to be involved in Lutheran Schools. The nearest school in over twenty miles away which is long distance for traveling everyday. So, I went into teaching English conversation and thinking to international people connected to Indiana University. I have taught three classes, etc. each week as a volunteer at the International Center at Indiana University. It has been a great experience for me to teach with no grading, no lesson plans to turn in to the principal, and changing the topic according to the students' questions and my new idea of something to stimulate conversation. It works. Sure wish we had done more of that back in the sixties and seventies in our elementary schools. We did in some schools where the principal was either not around, teaching his own class, or busy with paperwork. Anyhow, keep up the writing the blogs as they really are good!
Mary..Good to hear from you. I have lots of good memories of being in the Southeast District..also fascinated by what you are doing with international students. good for you-and for them!
mel
Post a Comment