Hola Julie! So it seems that this semester has been harder than ever to stay in touch. Which is fine, except that I can't not talk to you on your 20th birthday!!! Happy birthday, first off! You as old as me! I know your friends at UCLA are taking good care of you, so you can tell me what you did on your birthday when we see each other next.
Anyways, so I thought I would blog about the biggest thing that has happened to me this semester so that we stay connected about the important stuff. As you probably know, Mr. L passed away about two weeks ago. These past two weeks have been filled with thorough contemplation of what he meant to me so that I live assured that I did not waste my opportunity to learn from him. I want to share these thoughts with you.
In his efforts to get us to reach excellence, Mr. L really taught me how to recognize and appreciate beauty. Over these past years, I have been able to not only appreciate the beauty of quality musical expression (probably because I have learned how hard it truly is to get to that level of musical expression and the emotional investments that go into it), but I see beauty in everyday actions as well. The beauty that lies in watching fellow human beings treat each other with respect, be responsible to each other, and go out of their way to help each other out.
All this time, I thought conditioning students to pick up trash in the band room, stay after rehearsal to put everyone else's uniforms away, or be able to perform all your parts with proficiency was simply a ploy to get a mediocre 6A band to become champions. But I would like to think that all these manipulations to student behavior were, instead, a plan to get mediocre students to become outstanding human beings. Now I realize how beautiful a culture he created among his students to be responsible to each other. To raise students who understand the importance of taking care of their fellow human beings is a tremendous feat in today's world. It's a lesson that not many have the honor of learning.
To me, Mr. L was a man that wasn't afraid of working hard, a man that lived with pride and dignity every second of his life, and a man that never thought, even for a moment, that perfection was an unattainable goal. Thank you, Mr. L, I have learned a lot.
Anyways, I hope to talk to you soon, Julie Chen! Happy Birthday! We'll celebrate when I get back! Miss you!
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