GETTING KICKED OUT OF MUSIC CLASS
Pushing back the waves of time, I remember that this event happened way back during my tenure as a third-grade student. This would have been back in the early 60s, perhaps 1962 or 63. It was a time when life was a bit easier, with telephones connected to the wall via wires, like they still should be. You didn’t have to worry about carrying them around in your pocket and taking a chance that they might fall out and break, or even being “picked” out by a thief. (but cell phones do have their advantages today). It was a time when you could call and speak to real people and not mechanical robotic answering machines.
It was a time when we didn’t cuss and use foul language in school, at least that wasn’t the case in the school that I attended back then. Kids did not rebel against their teachers, and if they were sent to the principal’s office for some minor mishap, they went on their own accord and didn’t have to be escorted by a police officer or an AP (assistant principal).
It was a time when kids came to school neatly dressed, not in torn jeans and sandals, claiming them to be “in fashion,” looking more like ragamuffins and vagabonds than students. My, my, how times have changed. One thing that hasn’t changed is that teachers somehow have ‘hindsight’ with being able to see behind themselves, even when facing the blackboard (or whiteboard). They know what’s going on all around them. I guess that is part of being a teacher. I know, I was a teacher for 25 years.
Now it happened that we would have music about two or three times a week, and our teacher, Ms. Comboy, would march us to the music room, then return to her classroom for an “off” period. The door of the music room would usually be open, and we would walk inside and sit down in the chairs that were placed around the room, against the walls. There was a piano against the far wall opposite the door, and next to the piano, a table with stacked songbooks.
Now that day, when we walked in, Ms. Betts, our music teacher, was just finishing putting the songbooks on the chairs. She smiled at us and motioned for us to sit down. She went to the piano and sat down, and told us the songs we would sing that day. Some of the songs that Ms. Betts would play on the piano were: ‘Billy, Magee, and MaGaw (a song about three crows that sat on a fence). Then there was ‘Summer is passing by’ and, when the occasion was near, we always sang ‘On a Wild Halloween.’
When we were all seated, we turned our songbooks to the songs that she had written on the blackboard and began to sing as Ms. Betts played the piano. Now, on that day, I happened to be seated next to my friend, Jonathan Hyde. Well, something struck him as funny, so he started to laugh and giggle in a low voice. So, what do you think I did? Yes, I started to laugh and giggle too. Why? Just because he was laughing and giggling. You know how it goes. You don’t allow friends to laugh and giggle by themselves; you join them too.
Then Jonathan started to open and shut his songbook really fast as if it were an opening and closing mouth. So, what did I do? Yes, you guessed it, I started to do the same with my songbook. It wouldn’t be fair to let him do it by himself. Two are always better than one in certain activities.
Now the rest of the class was busy singing, and they weren’t paying us much attention while Ms. Betts continued playing the song on the piano. Now I ask you, do you think she saw us? After all, she was playing the piano and her eyes were on the piano keys. Well, of course, she saw us. She saw us with her third eye. Teachers see everything and then more.
As Ms. Betts finished playing the song, she hit the last two notes with a bit more emotion than usual. Then she got up quickly from the piano bench, walked straight to where Jonathan and I were sitting, and glared down at us like a hawk eyeing its prey.
“Give me your books!” she ordered as she snatched the songbooks from our hands, “Now get out!”
She just stood there with that ‘angry teacher look’ and had her left hand pointing to the door. Well, there we were, just looking up at her, feeling a little embarrassed. She didn’t have to repeat herself, as once was enough. Sheepishly, we got up and left the class. Once outside, we found ourselves in the deserted hallway since all the students were in class, busy with their studies. Only Jonathan Hyde and I, the goof-offs, we in the hallway alone.
Now the big question was: ‘Where do we go?’ I mean, Ms. Betts didn’t say, “Get out and go to the office,” she just said, “Get out!” Now, just about then, Ms. Comboy came around the corner and saw us both just standing here outside the music room.
Pushing back the waves of time, I remember that this event happened way back during my tenure as a third-grade student. This would have been back in the early 60s, perhaps 1962 or 63. It was a time when life was a bit easier, with telephones connected to the wall via wires, like they still should be. You didn’t have to worry about carrying them around in your pocket and taking a chance that they might fall out and break, or even being “picked” out by a thief. (but cell phones do have their advantages today). It was a time when you could call and speak to real people and not mechanical robotic answering machines.
It was a time when we didn’t cuss and use foul language in school, at least that wasn’t the case in the school that I attended back then. Kids did not rebel against their teachers, and if they were sent to the principal’s office for some minor mishap, they went on their own accord and didn’t have to be escorted by a police officer or an AP (assistant principal).
It was a time when kids came to school neatly dressed, not in torn jeans and sandals, claiming them to be “in fashion,” looking more like ragamuffins and vagabonds than students. My, my, how times have changed. One thing that hasn’t changed is that teachers somehow have ‘hindsight’ with being able to see behind themselves, even when facing the blackboard (or whiteboard). They know what’s going on all around them. I guess that is part of being a teacher. I know, I was a teacher for 25 years.
Now it happened that we would have music about two or three times a week, and our teacher, Ms. Comboy, would march us to the music room, then return to her classroom for an “off” period. The door of the music room would usually be open, and we would walk inside and sit down in the chairs that were placed around the room, against the walls. There was a piano against the far wall opposite the door, and next to the piano, a table with stacked songbooks.
Now that day, when we walked in, Ms. Betts, our music teacher, was just finishing putting the songbooks on the chairs. She smiled at us and motioned for us to sit down. She went to the piano and sat down, and told us the songs we would sing that day. Some of the songs that Ms. Betts would play on the piano were: ‘Billy, Magee, and MaGaw (a song about three crows that sat on a fence). Then there was ‘Summer is passing by’ and, when the occasion was near, we always sang ‘On a Wild Halloween.’
When we were all seated, we turned our songbooks to the songs that she had written on the blackboard and began to sing as Ms. Betts played the piano. Now, on that day, I happened to be seated next to my friend, Jonathan Hyde. Well, something struck him as funny, so he started to laugh and giggle in a low voice. So, what do you think I did? Yes, I started to laugh and giggle too. Why? Just because he was laughing and giggling. You know how it goes. You don’t allow friends to laugh and giggle by themselves; you join them too.
Then Jonathan started to open and shut his songbook really fast as if it were an opening and closing mouth. So, what did I do? Yes, you guessed it, I started to do the same with my songbook. It wouldn’t be fair to let him do it by himself. Two are always better than one in certain activities.
Now the rest of the class was busy singing, and they weren’t paying us much attention while Ms. Betts continued playing the song on the piano. Now I ask you, do you think she saw us? After all, she was playing the piano and her eyes were on the piano keys. Well, of course, she saw us. She saw us with her third eye. Teachers see everything and then more.
As Ms. Betts finished playing the song, she hit the last two notes with a bit more emotion than usual. Then she got up quickly from the piano bench, walked straight to where Jonathan and I were sitting, and glared down at us like a hawk eyeing its prey.
“Give me your books!” she ordered as she snatched the songbooks from our hands, “Now get out!”
She just stood there with that ‘angry teacher look’ and had her left hand pointing to the door. Well, there we were, just looking up at her, feeling a little embarrassed. She didn’t have to repeat herself, as once was enough. Sheepishly, we got up and left the class. Once outside, we found ourselves in the deserted hallway since all the students were in class, busy with their studies. Only Jonathan Hyde and I, the goof-offs, we in the hallway alone.
Now the big question was: ‘Where do we go?’ I mean, Ms. Betts didn’t say, “Get out and go to the office,” she just said, “Get out!” Now, just about then, Ms. Comboy came around the corner and saw us both just standing here outside the music room.