Elevator Music

Elevator music. This is perhaps perceived as the most boring genre of music. Typically, it is music that is designed to blend into the background of a situation. Enter: Teresa Followell. The scene is McDonald's and we are enjoying a fast food treat. Fast food was rare in our household due to both financial and health reasons, but Jay and I were occasionally treated with fast food. Drab elevator music is being piped through the system, slipping into the background ambiance for the majority of the customers. But not for Mom, and consequently, not for me and Jay.

"Listen to the music. What instruments do you hear?"

"I hear the piano," I replied. "And I think that's a flute."

Jay said, "I can hear the drums."

Of course Jay could hear the drums. He went on to become a drummer when he was in high school. I'm not really sure how he did it, but he learned to play the drums on his own. Jay has the uncanny ability to pick out a drum part by ear, and the memory to play it with exquisite precision later. Surely he inherited his musical abilities from Mom. When asked about his musical interests and abilities, all Dad typically has to say is, "I can barely play the radio."

Moments later, I pipe in again, "That's a trumpet." I went on to play the trumpet in middle school and high school. I still have the trumpet in my basement next to all the other musical instrument cases. In fact I have a couple of acoustic guitars, an electric guitar, a mandolin, a bass guitar, and a dulcimer. I can't really play any of these at a high level, but I know how to play them, and I really enjoy the time I spend making music. In fact, I regularly play in the worship team in the church service on Sunday mornings.

Mom has a working knowledge of the violin, clarinet, and keyboard/piano. Throughout our childhood, she strove to instill her love of music into me and Jay, and I strongly believe that it worked. When I am in the office there are dental drills whistling and buzzing, there are children laughing and crying, and there are anxious parents asking questions about their children's oral health. Yet in the midst of all the energy and noise, I can still hear the music that is playing. It weaves itself into the landscape of my my work, my play, and my relationships.

Because I have a mother with an appreciation and a heart for music, my love affair with music began when I as very young. Despite limited time and resources, Mom always did what she could to empower me and Jay to experience and create music. When I step onto an elevator, I do not find myself simply staring awkwardly ahead while a stranger attempts not to make eye contact with me (although that certainly happens). My ears and my brain tune into the music that is playing. The music is not bland. It is alive. It is the soundtrack to my life. And, yes, I think I hear an oboe in the background.

`