Let’s just proceed as if you know the back story – the back story is another story that would take a while and this is the story that needs telling at the moment.
The following is a conversation that I had with my violin student, Kasey, this day – September 17th, 2014.
The story begins….
We’ve been learning Pompeii – one of the pop songs of the moment that I don’t mind teaching my violin students – it’s rhythmically challenging and it has a G# which helps me teach my students “neighbor notes”. This one in particular requires the left ring finger to reach up toward the bridge of the instrument a half step higher than the student is used to playing and it develops finger strength. An exercise best done on a familiar song that the student likes at that time. I do admit to taking the path of least resistance and have no shame in using pop songs as etudes. I’m a deconstructionist by nature – so it suits me to strip a song to the melody and let my little fiddlers play to their heart’s content – all while learning how to play G#. Biggest joke in the world. Anywho.
I will say this – the conversation took about three minutes and if you know the darling girl or another darling human like her, you’d know that it’s just easier to have the conversation than not answer the question.
Thus begins the conversation about the following lyrics:
“Where do we begin, the rubble or our sins?”
Mrs M?
Yes, Kasey?
What is a sin?
A sin is a – well let’s just say a spiritual or religious wrongdoing.
A huh?
A mistake, Kasey. A sin is what many people would consider a mistake. You’re Jewish, right? (she nods yes) Well, you know in the Torah where God gave Moses the 10 commandments? (She proceeds to sing a song about that and then Moses parting the red sea for good measure. I continue after the grand finale.) Well, those were the big mistakes that God was telling humanity they shouldn’t make.
Ok, – So why does it say, “Where do we begin, the rubble or our mistakes?”
Well – it kind of has to do with the Choices that people make. The rubble could be seen as the mistakes of others and the sin that they’re talking about could be seen as our own mistakes. And really, it seems to make sense to me that people should worry about their own mistakes before they should be worrying about other people’s mistakes.
Yeah. And Mrs. M, you know what it’s called when you take care of your own mistakes and then help other people with theirs?
What do you think it’s called, Kasey?
Then the darling girl says with the widest eyes and most earnest and factual tone, “It’s called responsibility. Mrs. M.”
And that, folks, is that.
peace and smiles,
M
a time to laugh 