The Joys of Summer
As a teacher for over twenty years, summers have always been magical. I could devour a fiction novel—I read all the Twilight books after my students recommended them in one week. I could make dates for lunch and coffee with friends I hadn’t seen in a while. I could refocus on my fitness goals and spend precious time with my retired father. Summer has always been a respite from teaching life.
But it was also a time when I could invest in myself. Very early in my career, I did the summer masters program at FSU, and for six weeks and three years, I was surrounded by other music educators who felt as strongly about what we did as I did. We struggled, laughed, made music, and grew in that time. This program also sent me to London for the last semester. And it was AMAZING! After my master’s, I always found some way to grow during the summer—a workshop, a new book, and the Florida Vocal Association summer conference.
As an older educator, I remember when we didn’t have audio recordings of almost every song at our fingertips. The Summer conference offered us an opportunity to learn and sing through music with our friends. I remember sitting next to my soprano friends and alternating between alto and soprano lines to get a better picture of the music. My favorite moments were when we also sat with Tenors and Bass friends. And in those early years, we would trade off songs. If one friend taught elementary, we’d give them the unison piece they loved. If one friend taught TTB, we’d give them that piece. It built a community of sharing resources, knowledge, and musical recommendations. It also taught us how we were similar in musical tastes and how we were different. (I love music with a percussion instrument)
Nowadays, we have so many resources at our fingertips that perhaps the summer conference may feel superfluous for choosing music. But the camaraderie and friendships built at the conference just don’t grow the same way through digital search.
If you know me in real life, you know my best friend is Jeannine Stemmer. But we weren’t always best friends. We were friends in college. We sang together, and we had mutual respect and love for each other’s gifts. Jeannine is a fantastic musician with a vocal prowess and fearless spirit. I am intelligent and hard-working. I won’t let you down and will ensure we know everything we need to know to get there. We drifted apart upon graduation; Jeannine worked at a private school, and I worked at a public high school 25 miles south of my home. Our interactions were limited to FVA meetings. After I finished my master's and I was able to attend the summer conference, Jeannine and I began to reconnect a little. Slowly but surely, these events, singing together, and all the other events we did in our county built up our friendship. We still have mutual respect and love for our gifts, but now we are sisters, each others’ loudest advocates and promoters. We have been through work and life events, which wouldn’t have been possible online. We have grown as educators because we continue to learn from one another and are honest about our strengths and weaknesses with each other.
This is to say, enjoy the summer. Invest in your family and friends, and invest in yourself- go to workshops and conferences, and find your people. Music brings us together; let it!
