Olympic Reflections, Part 1 - Dreams of the Father, Dreams of the Son

Today MP was officially made an Eagle Scout ... a lifetime achievement, and I am confident many more will follow. Now that he is an Eagle, this Dad (like many others) start to push the little bird out of the nest to fly. (Mom's of course, make sure there is a nest!)

This of course, may seem like a bit of a turn from my usual post. In reality, band isn't the ONLY place to learn leadership skills, or to apply them. I learned a lot from my experiences in band, of course, but also in Key Club and many other activities (although I was not in Scouting).

That being said, this summer MP will be on the road toward another achievement - a field position with a world class drum and bugle corps. There were three auditions total (more on that later), and he still has work to do. And that is what I told him today in front of friends and family.

Once asked my dreams, I told a friend that at some point, the dreams of the father become the dreams of the sons. She took that to mean that I "imposed" my (un-achieved?) dreams on my boys, so I had to explain that it is really the opposite - the father's dreams are set aside, the son's (sons!) dreams become their own.

A few dozen degrees ago (but "merely" 2 months) winter I watched a segment on speedskater Anton Apolo Ohno and his father, Yuki. You see, at one point, there was a lot of conflict on whether or not Anton wanted to continue his pursuit of Olympic level skating.

Chris Collinsworth said, "The friction between Apolo and Yuki Ohno resided the in the space between a father's expectations and a son's willingness to meet them."

MP and I are connected in a lot of ways, but music is the main area, and maybe the main area of conflict. I have to take deep breaths, and make sure the dreams are his.

After a time of deep reflection, Apolo came to say, "Dad, I'm ready. I made my decision. I want to skate. This is what I want to do."

MP, whatever your decision, however it relates or doesn't relate to what I see as a shared passion for music and marching music, I am here to support it.

You are an Eagle. Time to fly.