Six Words: reluctance, on, responsibility, harmony, drown, leave
Carl, James and I were the shortest students in our 7th and 8th grade class at Richard Yates Elementary School. When it was time for music, Carl was known as the best soprano singer in the class, probably in the school. I was not.
At least twice a year, each class in the school participated in an assembly in the school auditorium in front of all the other classes. Parents were also welcome to attend. Because of our heights, the three of us, Carl, James and I were always placed in the front row when our class went on stage. The music teacher was very reluctant to have me singing next to Carl, afraid that I would destroy the harmony – or even worse – drown him out. Never-the-less, she had a responsibility to have everyone participate and couldn’t simply leave me out. The solution was to have me mouth the words while Carl and the rest of the class sang. On reflection, I think that was a wise decision. It didn’t kill my enthusiasm for singing, just a recognition that I should never be a soloist. Andrea Bocelli’s career is still safe.