The following was shared during a chapel service on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2015, by Director of Fine Arts Kim Tunnell.
Singer-songwriter Tom Lehrer once said, “Life is like a piano. What you get out of it depends on how you play it.”
When I think of this quote, it sums up how I feel about life in general based on many of the experiences I have had.
I connect with the piano and it ties me to the other experiences and opportunities that I have had in the arts. Today I’d like to share a few thoughts with you that hopefully prepare you for experiencing and celebrating the arts at Darlington.
So the piano for me has been a vehicle that I have used to travel through life. At age 5, I officially began playing the piano. I don’t remember my first song but I remember getting a lot of attention when I would perform in a recital or at church and that seemed to motivate me to want to do more.
By the time I was in middle school, I still played but I hated practicing—I mean hated it, and it didn’t help that my mom was my teacher, so the best way I knew to appease her was to learn a recital piece each and every year to play on that event. Otherwise I would just find things to sight read or have fun with, never really taking it seriously. In playing the fun things I found that it wasn’t that I was that great but if I could read it, I could play it, and that gave me a sense of accomplishment and gave me some confidence.
Many of you can relate, especially if you play multiple instruments, or even in sports. Many of you might relate and say—"If it involves running, I can do it. If it uses a ball, I can play it..."
So the story goes, I hated to practice but my mother pushed me and made me continue even up to my senior year in high school when she sent me to another town to take lessons every week. Long story short, I played my senior recital in high school and made up half the piece. I would not recommend this as it was a little embarrassing when a music professor from a college was there to observe in hopes that I would become a music major. I was not pursuing that at the time—that was obvious.
Just know that I did eventually get to college and major in music, and looking back I know that this instrument gave me structure when I needed it. The discipline that was required at this point in my life allowed me to see what hard work can really lead to. Now as I look back, I know that that same structure has brought just as much joy whether it was a special teacher that I connected with and learned so much from, or an incredibly talented singer or instrumentalist that I had the chance to accompany.
An instrument has provided many opportunities for me. For all of you, there is something that will be a thread, a constant, a theme or melody and a connection throughout your life. So, at this time here at Darlington, whether you are a senior or a freshman, challenge yourself and find something that you connect with.
The arts offer many opportunities...whether in Media Arts with photography, writing and telling stories, or in designing; you might try the Visual Arts and work to find your own style, creating your original work and improving upon any of the skills you have, taking those to the next level; with Performing Arts, you can learn or improve your ability on an instrument, take voice lessons, sing in a choir or learn to act or be a part of building an incredible set and supporting a production in your own special artistic way.
There are many options and exciting opportunities that will only connect you with more and more experiences and chances down the road.
So...fill in the blank for yourself.
I say "Life is like a piano," but you choose your constant, your theme, your melody and interest, and learn to play it and do it the best you can to get the most out of it and of life in general.
