By Lorry Myers
The high school event called “The Jamboree” is a night to kick off the fall sport season and recognize team players. It is a night of bounce houses and slushie machines meant entice the next generation of student athletes.
The Jamboree is the place to be.
My four-year-old granddaughter, Via, was happy to go along, anxious to see what this Jamboree was all about. I thought she would be enthralled by the cheerleaders so we strolled over and joined a group of little groupies watching the cheerleaders practice. Via’s face was expressionless when they threw each other in the air, and calmly waited until their “jamboree” was over before she turned and ask if their mothers knew they were showing their underwear.
You can count on Via to ask the hard questions.
We walked the stadium ramp to take our seats, and that took us through the “band section” of the stadium. Seated on the bleachers were band instruments shining in the sunlight, waiting to be played.
Via stopped in her tracks.
“What are these?” Via asked reaching out a finger to touch a silver flute. Beside the flute was a clarinet, a trumpet, and a single, simple triangle, with a solid black cord.
My granddaughter stood in front of those band instruments, oblivious to the world around her. Her curiosity finally took over and she slowly reached out to touch the pretty pipe with all the buttons. I was about to catch her hand when the flute owner suddenly appeared with a scowl, and snatched the flute away, leaving Via with her head bowed as if she had done something wrong.
Then, this happened.
“Would you like to see this triangle?” a young girl asked, appearing out of nowhere. “Want me to show you how it works?” Without waiting for an answer, Via’s new friend picked up the triangle and the metal beater beside it and lightly touched the two together.
You could see in that moment, in those bleachers, in that crowd, Via’s world changed.
“Do it again!” Via exclaimed, her face full of wonder. Once more, the triangle and beater came together and then, that sweet brown-haired girl ask Via a life changing question.
“Would you like to try?”
Oh boy would she.
Via held that triangle like it was a gift, and lightly tapped it like she had been shown. Then, she beamed as the sound float through the air. “Is this a jamboree?” Via asked, when the triangle had stopped trembling.
For the complete column, see this week’s edition of the Centralia Fireside Guard
