It's Just the Beginning...

As school ends for Mark, he's starting to realize that he's actually beginning a new chapter in his life.  He's been talking to me non-stop about "what I'm going to do in college", and I think he has very little sadness over leaving his life here.  With one exception.

Two years ago, I knew Mark was at a turning point for horn.  He had lost interest in playing, and his teacher at the time didn't know how to motivate him.  He was full of potential and still loved to play, but he wasn't taking any of it seriously.

I did the craziest thing.  I thought of all the big cities within a 3 hour drive from State College:  Pittsburgh, Washington DC, Baltimore and Philadelphia.  Totally trusting my instincts, I looked up the name of the first chair horn for the Philadelphia Orchestra, found her on Facebook and sent her a message, telling her that I was looking for a new horn teacher.  Thankfully, I was blissfully ignorant about the idiocy of doing this.  The Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the "big five", meaning one of the five most prestigious orchestras in the nation.  Contacting the first chair horn meant that I was contacting one of the best hornists in the nation.  I was desperate to help Mark, and desperate times call for desperate measures, I guess.

She very kindly turned down my request.  Although I didn't know it at the time, it would end up being the most fortuitous rejection.  She recommended a "good friend" who was sitting fourth chair horn for the orchestra.    Her name?  Angela Cordell.

Thankfully, Angela didn't think I was too crazy when I emailed her and explained the situation with Mark. She agreed to meet with him in Philly and listen to him.  I'll never forget that night, trying to navigate downtown Philly with a GPS that doesn't always get a signal with the surrounding buildings and paying $20 to park in a garage for 30 minutes.  I was immediately struck by how low-key Angela was.  She's very, very small in stature, very unassuming and always smiling.  Mark likes to talk about her zen :-)  I wondered how she would be able to motivate Mark any better than his previous teacher.

Within a lesson or two, she emailed me and told me that Mark needed to get his rear-end in gear.  Okay, she probably said it a lot nicer than that, but that was the gist, and more importantly, it was exactly what Mark needed to hear.  She told him that she expected more than an hour a day of practicing, and during audition season, at least two.  I think she too could see the potential in Mark, but recognized that he wasn't doing what he needed to do to be successful.

The rest is history.

I imagine that Mark will look back over his life and always see Angela as....

As I sit here at the computer, there just aren't words to describe what she has done for Mark.  She has changed his life.  She has given him a gift that he will never be able to repay.  And all the while, she has done it with patience, with kindness and with love.  What a treasure.

Even as he leaves for school and as she was made aware that he will be serving a mission, she wrote him a lengthy email with all kinds of thoughts about what he will need to do over the next year to prepare himself for not playing for two.  He's keeping the email for reference. This was completely unnecessary, but that's what special about Angela--she sees her students as more than students.  She sees them as friends.

We honestly couldn't think of an appropriate gift to give Angela.  I mean really.  How can you buy something that expresses thanks for changing a life?  We were looking for a t-shirt that said, "I am an amazing horn teacher.  I change lives and prepare kids for greater opportunities than they would have had otherwise.  GO BLUE!".  Unfortunately, they were sold out of those :-)

As we wrap up our time with her, I keep reminding myself that it's not a good-bye.  She will still be close, and I know that Mark will continue to turn to her for suggestions and help and an occasional lesson when he's back in town.  How thankful I am for her and her willingness to help Mark see what he could become.  Instead of an "end", I see this as just the beginning of a great relationship.