Inspirtation and Meaning in Celebrating a LIfe After Passing

Last night I attended a wake service for Mark Pacione.  St Pius X church on York Road just north of the city/county border just outside Baltimore City was packed to standing room only.  The line of people waiting to say something to Carol Pacione and her family was amazingly long before the service and went for an amazingly long time after the service.  The church was supposed to close at nine.  There were still dozens of cars in the parking lot well after nine when Sherry and I left the building.

I have not been to many Catholic wake services.  But this was amazing.  I won’t claim this is a play-by-play recounting.  By to help me continue to process the passing of someone who was only 60, I am going to reflect on the elements on the evening I found most moving.

First, the church’s worship band played some prelude music and throughout the program.  Their prelude music—when I believe it is appropriate to have as many solos as they might like and the music is intended for contemplation—was lovely.  I quickly noticed that the piano was being played by someone other than the typical piano player these days.  The typical piano player is a wonderful person whose piano playing is usually a nice accompaniment to what the guitars are doing.  The piano player last night is just at a different level and added some improvisations that brought the music to life in a different way.  There may be some who would debate just how much improvisation there should be and how much the piano or the guitar should lead, but my personal preference is for the type of piano/guitar mix I heard last night. 

Second, the fact that the church was full was amazing—because nearly everyone sang.  It sounded like everyone sang even if there may have been a few listeners in the crowd.  That, more than anything else, made the evening an incredible one.  The opening song was Come Holy Spirit.  For those who believe there is such a thing as the Holy Spirit, there was no question of the presence of the Spirit last night.  Before the song, during the song, after the song, the entire time.  This part of the experience reminded me of Matthew 18:20  “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” The gathering last night was much more than two.  And God was certainly in our midst last night.

Third, the singing.  There was a version of Amazing Grace in the program that the worship band has played dozens of times.  And it usually played in a way with at least some of the verses of the original Amazing Grace being sung by a soloist with the congregation then singing the modern added refrain.  While the song started with only one singer from the band, the congregation quickly joined in.  (Not everyone was from St. Pius X and used to the way it is usually done.)  To hear the entire congregation sing out the verses of Amazing Grace with strong voices almost brought me to tears.  I had a hard time holding it together to sing.  But that is what worship and praise music means to me.  Worshipping as a congregation.  Praising God as a congregation.  In this case, celebrating the life of a great man as a congregation. 

Fourth, Father Sam Lupico was on fire.  His homily was amazing.  So much near shouting—for joy!  So much emotion.  So strong a representation of what everyone hopes will carry on long after Mark’s life. Even before the homily, when he read the Gospel he talked about switching from what was listed in the program to a reading from Matthew.  When he began the reading with “When he saw the crowds he, he went up on a mountain…” I knew where this was going.  He had preceded the reading with a comment on how discussion with the family had led to this reading.  I knew what the reading would be.  The Sermon on the Mount with the Beatitudes.  The Beatitudes that are written on the eight stained glass windows around the church.  The Beatitudes that Fr. Sam focuses on in his homilies even in weeks when we are not reading from Matthew 5.  The Beatitudes that, to paraphrase Fr. Sam, if anyone believed and lived them it was Mark.  Fr. Sam’s homily last night was the closest I have ever experienced to a Catholic revival.  Everyone cried and laughed and shouted Amen and understood just what Mark believed and lived.  It reminded me of a meeting for this year’s youth who will be confirmed at St. Pius X.  Mark had shown a video that led in with “don’t get confirmed, BE confirmed.”  In other words, live your faith.  And Mark certainly did that.

Fifth, there were several speakers who had the opportunity to make comments about Mark after the singing of Amazing Grace.  One focused on how mark was present for everyone.  I try to be present for everyone.  I know I fail sometimes.  But it was clear that Mark was able to capture that feeling of just being there for you.  I have already commented on the presence of the gathering last night.  It was wonderful.  I try to live my life with presence for others.  Being present has a lot to do with being a symbol of God for others—going back to being confirmed rather than just getting confirmed.  That goes along with recognizing God in others and living a life of gratitude when you tell others what you appreciate.  That symbol is a part of my goal (3) for the coming year (I talked about this on December 31, 2014)—to say thank you even for little things.  I was able to put that to work immediately after we left the church last night.  We stopped at the grocery store and I chose to go to a cashier rather than going through the self-check line.  The young man took the time to carefully and thoughtfully bag everything to use the smallest number of plastic bags and not risk crushing anything.  The care that he took was notable and I made sure to say “Thanks.  Not everyone does that.”  And he seemed to appreciate that.  A reminder that there is the opportunity to be grateful to and present for everyone in our lives. 

Sixth, one gentleman who had worked with Mark for more than 30 years including when Mark helped to organize World Youth Day in Denver and then the Pope’s visit to Baltimore in the 1990’s.  This gentleman commented that Mark is probably already on the planning committee for the Jesus’s second coming.  That got a laugh from the entire congregation.  Mark was an organizer. And could inspire others to work with him for the faith.

Seventh, the other thing that many mentioned was Mark’s focus on family, friends, and faith.  I have already discussed faith, the Holy Spirit, the gathering, and the presence that was felt at the church.  But it was clear that Mark also loved his family and was appreciated by many friends.  And the line between who was just a friend and who was part of Mark’s family was a very blurry one.  Everyone there last night was clearly family in some sense of the word.

Eighth, while at the service and waiting in line after the service to give my condolences to his family, I saw so many families and so many youth and young adults whom I had known for the 18+ years we have been at St Pius X—or at least as long as they had been alive.  Some of them I had taught when they were 9 or 10 or 12.  Others I had simply watched.  The passing brought together families in some amazing ways.  And seeing kids whom I have known for so long is always a heart warming experience. 

Ninth, it allowed me to connect with some friends in faith I have not seen for quite some time.  So important at a time like this.

Finally, when Sherry and I reached Mae and then Carol and her family the length of the hugs exchanged when there was nothing to say but “I’m here.”  Mae said “Thank you for being here.”  All I could think of to say was “Of course.”  And when I reached his daughter, I actually had a story to share.  I recalled her running the Chicago marathon.  I recalled both her mom and her dad being worried.  And I recalled the day when she did it as one on which there was tension and a sense of relief and pride when she finished.  She talked about her dad joining her to finish.  I talked about sharing my running with two of my three boys.  She also mentioned not running now as she is expecting and we joked about the very pregnant woman who had run the Chicago marathon and given birth almost immediately afterward.  That joking was a light moment.  But more importantly, the primacy of family lives on in a new generation who were already and will continue to be inspired by Mark’s example. 

Mark’s niece restated something that had been noted in the eulogies—keep saying Mark’s name to keep his spirit and all he stood for alive.  I don’t think there will be any shortage of thoughts and discussions of Mark in the coming week or weeks or even months or years.  And everyone last night will be inspired to keep the vision that he provided for the life of the laity in the Catholic church alive. 

My Annual Review and Look Ahead

Here were my goals for 2014…

(10) Run.  Do it a lot.  But keep it in its place.  Use it as a focal point.  Use it for goal setting.  Use it for friendship building.  Use it to seek meaning.  I’d say I handled this one quite well getting in 2222.2 miles PR’ing at 3 outdoor race distances, and ending my running year with a sub-19 5K on the treadmill. 

(9) Keep teaching Sunday School.  I did this for the spring semester.  But then it ran up against numbers (3) and (1).  I am still involved in ministry at my parish.  Just in a different way. 

(8) Keep writing.  Did it and look forward to continuing to do it.  All good.

(7) Find a place for music.  I have been listening to a lot of music—between my oldest son graduating from the School for the Arts with his horn and piano foci and his now being a student at a conservatory and then my 15 year old continuing to sing in the Maryland State Boychoir.  I have listened to a wider variety of music on Spotify and elsewhere—including a lot of country for the first time in my life (my apologies to anyone whose country interests I ever criticized before).  And I have begun to define better how music relates to my worship experience—I need to sing rather than to listen to really make my worship experience as powerful as it can be.    

(6) Bake more.  I am not sure that I managed this one.  This also came up against (3).  But I have certainly kept baking and worked on a few new things (like fancy pumpkin and banana breads).  And continued to work with my sons, especially my now ten year old, to teach them as well.

(5) Take more pictures.  I did some of this.  I am trying to make sure that I carry my cell when I run and then use it to tell stories better.  And I have also used pictures of some of the things that I have had shared with me (like five stones from my last MPH advisee) and gotten pictures of me with other runners that have helped to highlight my year. 

(4) While I have access to all types of electronic technologies, put them down more. I am not sure how well I did on this one.  I still use my devices a lot.   

(3) Recognize my limitations more.  Definitely recognizing that I have to say no to some things and I have to think about my limits more.  This has affected numerous other goals. 

(2) Structure my time better.  Certainly did this to some degree to achieve my running goals.  Certainly did this with family to achieve the goals of getting the kids to all their activities.  Got some more sleep too. 

(1)      Remember that family comes first.  Done. Must continue.  Have run fewer races.  Have gotten more sleep to try harder to stay awake through events.  Have traveled less so that I could help with kids getting places.  Have made this my number one priority.

Now to look ahead.  But I am going to make this year’s a little more objective and a little more measurable and I will review them once a quarter rather than just once a year. 

(10) Run at least four days a week.  I’m not going to try to run more miles than I did this year (2222.2).  I’m not even going to shoot for 2000 miles in 2015.  There will be years in the future for other mileage goals.  This year I’m mostly going to aim to keep up my three quality workouts a week and one with Back on My Feet.  I hope to use running as all that it was last year for friendship and writing.  No other goals—right now.  Then, I will plan to do some cross training and/or weight training as well to keep up my overall health.

(9) Bake at least one pizza/stromboli and one other bread or cranberry sauce each week.  (In addition to general meal prep that I do most of in our household.)  This will hone and continue to develop my skills in the kitchen.  It is something I love. 

(8) Do something with art at least once a week.  This could be as simple as a pencil sketch.  It could be a photograph that I somehow process.  It could be an artistically posed photograph.  It could be appreciating art more in the same way that I will work on appreciating music more. It could be thinking about art that I’d like others to work on.  I’ve got ideas for a second tattoo, but that might be a marriage-ending incident if I do that.  Although with the passing of Mark Pacione and the focus on living a little more in the moment because you never know when the end will come (Mark was a healthy 60), I’d settle for a simple tattoo at this point.  Of all the things that I have though about for my second (cornucopia, golden apples, loaves of bread, cassowary, and red egg) the red egg (associated with Mary Magdalene who is the patron saint of a contemplative life) really speaks to me most.  

(7) Continue to work on appreciating music more in my life.  This might mean finding time to play an instrument I’ve learned before.  Working more with my mandolin (Bleak Midwinter would be an excellent song to play on the mandolin—or learning the chord progressions for old Hooters songs).  Or just appreciating the performances more from a critical listening point of view.  Many ways I can achieve this.  Goal—once a week of some time spent with music more than just having it on in the background.

(6) Blog once a week in my personal blog and once a week in my professional blog.  Of course, if I can fit in more, all the better. 

(5) Finish Decoding Spirituality—a series of essays I have written and am stringing together as a book—about  the ways in which I have worked to find meaning in the numbers around me throughout my life and the insights this has given me about how others might find meaning.  (Don’t worry—the conclusion wont’ be that everyone should be as numbers centered as I am.) 

(4) Sleep at least six hours each night.  Of course, all the experts say 7 or 8.  I would love to get 7 or 8 every night but I don’t know how I can possibly do all the other things I want to do his year (while continuing to recognize limitations).  But I don’t want to have an abundance of 4-hour or 5-hour nights sleep nights.  The best thing I can do for this—track and have an accountability buddy for my sleep in the same way that I have found that have accountability buddies for exercise makes such a difference. 

(3) Tell people “thank you” not just at the big times (like thanking Jackie after my PR in Philly and Lauren after my two person marathon relay) but for little things.  After the passing of Mark Pacione and several others who have been lost in recent years starting with Gerry Paradiso back in 2010, I have realized just how important it is to communicate appreciation to people as often as possible.  It doesn’t have to be a big production every time.  Sometimes a hand-written thank you note.  Sometimes a hand-written and hand-designed thank you note.  Other times just a high-five or hug with a thank you at the end of a run.  Sometimes a quick “thanks for taking the kids on a day I couldn’t” at home in the evening.  But always living a life full of gratitude to the amazing people around me.

(2) Stay in touch with friends.  In the past year I had reason to reach out to many friends from elementary school as I remembered the importance of people who had known me for a long time after my son and the young woman he had been dating for more than 3 years left for college as “just friends.” That led me to think about the importance of people with whom I spent a lot of time early in my life.  People who have know me forever. I have also realized how important accountability friends (last year for running) are.  They help me focus and keep it real.

(1) Family must stay #1.  No matter how much I run.  No matter how hard I work.  No matter how much I write.  Family is always first.  If ever there comes a year when that is obviously not true, I must reassess.

Happy 2015!

In Pursuit of Excellence

The last time I wrote was after my easy 4 miles on Wednesday.  Today, is Friday.  It is unusual to have a Friday to rest but I do.  I will have one last run tomorrow before the 5K race on Sunday for which I have been training diligently.  The person who helped me develop a training plan says I've done all the right things to achieve my goal.  Now the key is to remind myself of that goal and to visualize.  So what is the goal: 18:59 or better.  Other than the GBMC 5K last year that was short by everyone's GPS watch and for which I didn't feel like I had run a sub-19), I have not run a 5K at a sub-19 pace since I was a teenager.  In fact, probably since 1986.  Ronald Reagan was president.  I had not graduated from high school.  I was probably watching the Cosby Show, Cheers, Night Court, and Family Ties.  It's been a long time.

Yesterday, I ran 3x2x200. Short workout.  Intended for the track.  But there was lightning when it was time to go.  I do track workouts alone.  I do track workouts in the rain.  I've even been known to do one or two alone and in the rain.  But I don't do them alone and in the rain when there is thunder and lightning.  So, I did it on the treadmill.  It is not often that I set the treadmill for 10.8 MPH, 11.3 MPH, and 11.8 MPH--even for 1/8 of a mile.  And I don't expect to hit those paces during the race except for the very end.  If I can run my 6:06 first mile (a little net down) and come through with a 6:06 second mile (pretty flat), then run a 3-ish 800 M, all I will have left is 0.6 miles.  And at that point, anything goes.  And when I have 0.1 miles left, I will dig deep and give the race everything I have.  If all goes well, I'll be able to find it in me to kick like I was running at the end yesterday and set a new grown up PR--and hit my sub-19.

That is my pursuit of running excellence.  My run yesterday put me up to 828.4 miles which puts me coming off the Madison County Transit Nature Trail in Granite City, IL, getting ready to run counterclockwise around the Horseshoe Lake.  The Catholic church in this city is called Holy Family, and that is neat because I want to talk about a few things having to do with family today.

Wednesday we had the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School's commencement ceremony.  I read all the names.  We finished in record time.  It was a great event.  It was a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the pursuit of excellence with family.  It was also reflective of pursuit of excellence within the "family" of Carey employees.  We made that ceremony come off as seamlessly as possible and the teamwork aspect was great. 

Wednesday evening, I went to the last 3rd grade parent-teacher evening I will ever attend at the Waldorf School of Baltimore.  We talked about 3d grade highlights and a bit of a 4th grade preview.  And we painted wet on wet.  My appreciation for art has increased since I got my tattoo. My appreciation for the hard work to produce good art has increased even more since I got my tattoo.  When I get my picture, I will have to show it.  (It is not cery good)   Wet on wet painting is one thing that requires patience and control to pursue excellence.  Done often enough one learns how to work with the flowing colors rather than be frustrated by it.  It is kind of like running.  Painful/difficult at first, perhaps.  But after doing it enough times it becomes second nature.  One learns how to work with one's body and the random things that occur around it in the pursuit of excellence for running.  The experience made me slow down and breathe deep, so that was also very relaxing at the end of a long day.

We talked about geography as a unit in fourth grade.  The teacher mentioned that some adults don't have much of a sense of direction.  One of the joys of running alone or designing courses to run with one or two friends has been an incredibly more developed sense of direction about the roads on the runs that I do.  I would not call it a pursuit of excellence for me, but it is definitely part of my development of excellence. And for the kids, it may clearly be a pursuit.

Finally, in terms of family and pursuit of excellence, I attended the Baltimore School for the Arts senior honors recital last night.  Seven young adults getting ready to move on to study music in college who were able to develop a 15 minute repertoire of music to perform in two parts.  Amazing.  Pursuit of excellence celebrated with family and facilitated by family.  It will be fun to see where these kids (including my oldest son and his girlfriend of three years) go.  

Constellation

I blogged early on Sunday, and then ran again on Monday.  (Hard for me to believe I have not blogged since then as I had had quite a bit I could write about.)  In any case, Monday was an easy 5.1 around the neighborhood to bring me to 312 miles putting me at Leatherwood Rd & Deerfield Rd just west of Lore City, Ohio.  Small as Lore City may be there is a Catholic Church of St Peter (my confirmation name) and St. Paul (a great writer and thinker).  And it is a church-based experience I'd like to talk about in today's entry.

The church-based experience represents a constellation of things in my life.  And since the blog is called Connecting the Dots and Nourishing the Soul and constellations are all about connecting dots, I think this is very fitting.

I don't have a particular constellation in mind, although perhaps one that is complex and has a lot of stars that may not fit together as obviously as the three in Orion's belt.

In any case, on Sunday afternoon, my son sang in the Maryland State Boychoir's annual concert to honor African American History Month. And the boychoir sang ad a church in west Baltimore.  Driving my son there, we drove across North Ave west past Coppin State University (I don't believe I'd ever been that far west on North Avenue), then south on Rosdeale, and east on Baker to the Whitestone Baptist Church.  Not huge, but by no means small.  One trip to drop him off.  Back home to pick up Sherry.  Second trip back there.

In any case, the concert was wonderful and listening brought a lot of things together that touch on multiple pieces of my life in addition to listening to a great concert.

First, they had a series of discussions by the ministers at the church, announcements by the boychoir director, songs, and poems.  One of the poems was by Langston Hughes.  That reminded me of the fact that my oldest son had not played a Friday night gig as a backup to spoken word artists in a long time.  One of the spoken word artists who appeared most often when my oldest did play calls himself Slangston Hughes.  

Second, the songs sung were largely (but not entirely) spirituals.  Having been to a couple funerals or viewings recently (and even experimented on my mandolin in the not too distant past), I am all too familiar with Precious Lord, Take My Hand.  It was very beautiful as sung by the boys.  The audience was specifically invited to several songs.  Many took it upon themselves to just sing along to this one. That was also moving.

Third, listening to the boys sing Ev'ry Time I Feel the Spirit.  Another beautiful song and one I have used in my own teaching of Sunday School at St Pius X.

Fourth, everyone was specifically invited to (and the program provided words for) Lift Every Voice and Sing.  Beautiful.  Powerful.  Everyone singing out.  Everyone participating.  So many spirits joined together in harmony no matter where they came from--well to do families who can pay every expense for boychoir, boys who want to sing and are supported by the boychoir, and members of the local congregation.  

Fifth, the final comments by the music minister at the church who is a boychoir alumnus.  He invited everyone to take the ideas of the day--doing positive things for the community especially through music--back to their congregations so that we see more of this in Baltimore and help to improve the city.

What powerful ideas.  What powerful thoughts.  

All of this reminded me of how much I love singing and love music.  Even if it no longer has the prominence in my life that it did when I played bass in the worship band at our church or sang in the community choir at the kids' school.  I still love singing.  I love coming together with other people who love singing.  I love listening.

It is art.

It is expression.

It is powerful.

And the ideas that singing captures span so many aspects of my life, my family's life, and my city's life that that is why I think of a constellation.  If I had to choose one with five stars, Cassiopeia may be the only obvious one, but I am not sure I'd ever want a "vain queen" (as she is sometimes described) to represent anything other than a lesson of what to avoid in my life.  

64 is 2 to the Sixth

The title of today's blog is a statement of mathematical fact.  Why is it relevant today?  I did not run 64 miles.  I only ran 6.4 miles.  For a total of 273 one day before the end of the seventh week of the year (tomorrow will be day 49).  That puts me at an average of 39 miles per week (with a week of only 33 miles over just 4 days).  On track for my 2000 for the year.  And I'm on US 40 in Ohio now.  State #4 on my journey.

So why the mathematical statement.  Well, I ran 6.4 because I got to the Y a few minutes late to do a full hour.  And I wanted to get to 273 total.  So, 6.4 worked.  And being the nerd I was as a kid (the guy who had all the powers of 2 up to 2-to-the-sixteenth memorized), I made a connection.

So, on yet another day of treadmill running, Since one of the themes of any additional art that I might commission some day (tattoo or otherwise since Sherry is not thrilled with the idea of another tattoo) is a cornucopia, I thought about six things that have doubled (rather than just doubling one thing six times) since I started my serious running again in 2006/7.

(1) My love of running.  This year so far it has been solitary again, but it is social as well as physical.  It is spiritual.  And it is critical for my sense of well being.

(2) My appreciation of the talent it takes to play music well.  While I have stopped playing so much music myself over the past year, I watched how little progress I was making.  And I watched my oldest son and his girlfriend continue to develop.  I saw what it takes.  I saw how long they worked and how hard they worked.  And I realize now more than ever just what it takes to become an exceptional musician.  Similar to what it would take to be an exceptional academic.  Or an exceptional writer.  Or an exceptional runner.

(3) My appreciation of art and what it takes to make good art.  This started with my tattoo.  Observing the creative process.  But it continues even more from watching my second son who will likely follow my oldest to the Baltimore School for the Arts but this time for visual arts rather than music.  Seeing what it takes.  Even occasionally giving it a try myself.  And realizing just how much effort is required.

(4) My appreciation of how much effort it takes to parent my kids.  I have done the single parent thing for a week at a time now and then when Sherry has had the opportunity to go on short vacations by herself.  However, over the past six weeks, I have spent a lot more time doing the single parent thing repeatedly while Sherry has taken Christopher (or in one case both Christopher and Kelsey) to audition at various colleges.  I really do appreciate what Sherry has to do.

(5) My self-expression.  When I began running again in 2006/7 I had not even journaled seriously in ages.  Now, I write all the time.  And I share.  And it relieves a lot of stress.  And my self-expression is not just writing.  The tattoo is a part of that as well.

(6) My search for answers.  Particularly in the past year with numerous sudden and unexpected passings.  And my search for answers in ways that combine what I do at work, what I teach in Sunday school, what I hear in church, and what I think about while I run.

Which brings me to say that I have a pretty amazing and complex life.  An interesting constructed reality in which things like the fact that I happened to run 6.4 miles could lead to an entire entry about things that I appreciate at least twice as much as I used to.   

A Run, Business, and Dinner

This is a long entry.

Today, I ran at a time I do not usually run.  I ran in the afternoon.  In the morning, I needed to be prepared to take my two younger children to school.  The youngest had his third grade play today.  A play about Moses called, “The Child of the Nile.”  The school is not religious but does a lot with both Christian and Jewish traditions and uses the Old Testament as literature for third grade.

Usually my wife would have just taken them and I would have tagged along after dropping our oldest son off, but my wife and oldest left for Michigan immediately after the play. The oldest one auditions on two instruments for the School of Music at the University of Michigan tomorrow.   

After the play, I took my middle one for a call back for his visual arts audition at the Baltimore School for the Arts.

Then I went to work.  Got about a half day of work in.  Picked up the kids and went to the Y to run.  At this point I would MUCH rather run outside.  And the temperature was right.  But with busy streets and many still un-shoveled sidewalks in front of people’s houses, I decided to take at least one more day to run inside.

Today’s run?  My now very familiar 8 min/mile pace for one hour.  So 7.5 miles to bring my total for 2014 to 170.7 miles.  60.2 of them have been in the Brooks Launch.  Definitely liking the shoes.

The run was uneventful, although I do have to say that it is much more exciting to people watch at 4:30 in the afternoon on a Thursday than in the morning most days.  Not that any one person was particularly interesting.  Just that the number of people was so much greater that it made it more interesting.

Where does this put me? I am now continuing west on Pennsylvania Route 31.  I am really in between towns, having left Somerset (actually, my wife and oldest stopped at the Somerset rest stop today on their way to Michigan and ate a fast food lunch).  Having left town, the only real landmarks on today’s run were the Pike Run Church and the Laurel Hill Creek and a few ponds near a camp ground more or less just off Route 31.

A comment on work two days ago.  I mentioned that I had been asked to be the master of ceremonies for an event organized at the behest of the Dean but which the Dean could not attend.  I was given cards with speaking points.  Having been asked once to hold the cards while holding a hand held microphone, I now know why the Dean usually has a wireless microphone and will ask for one (or a podium) next time I am asked to emcee.  I stuck to the talking points to introduce the guitar duo that was performing.  What I enjoyed was the opportunity to adlib a little bit afterwards.

In particular, the guitar player who did all the introduction of the pieces played mentioned that the guitar was a very versatile instrument and was suited to many types of music.  I appreciate that.  As an easy start there is country, rock, jazz, and classical.  Then, within classical there are any number of genres.  As I sat in the front row and watched the musicians play, I thought about the how the guitar players played, what it said about their effort, and how business students who will turn into business leaders could take some lessons from the experience.

So, after giving the basic post performance “Let’s give the performers an extra round of applause” and before wishing people a happy and prosperous Lunar New Year and inviting them to the reception in the lobby, I reflected a little bit on the playing.  I first pointed out how much better they were than I had ever been.  I was sort of able to play some chords for camp-fire sing along type of songs at one point.  But I was not really very good. 

Then, I mentioned versatility, precision, teamwork, and second nature.  How do those relate do the musicians?  And how does that relate to business?

Well, not only is the guitar a versatile instrument but the musicians played a mix of Spanish and Chinese music (and perhaps one other).  The musicians were versatile as well.  When we train students in the business school, we hope that they are versatile in the types of business problems that they will be good at dealing with some day.  Some problems for which much time can be taken.  Some problems where decisions need to be made immediately. Some problems with very clear decisions.  Some problems with very difficult decisions that raise all sorts of ethical questions.  Some personnel questions.  Some financial questions.  Our students, particularly our MBA students, should be able throughout their careers, should be able to address them all.

Precision?  Well, watching the musicians play amazed me.  I have always been amazed watching guitar players. I got good enough at piano as a child to call myself a bit above a beginner.  But not really very good.  But I could imagine how pianists fingers move quickly over the keyboard.  I have always been even more amazed at the precision on a fret board with six strings.  How to know which fret to press down for which string and which string or strings to pluck or strum.  When our students go out and become business leaders some day, they will need to have the same level of precision.  Precision in their analysis.  Precision in their decisions.  Precision in their consideration of different options.

Teamwork?  Clearly, for the performing duo, their playing complemented each other quite nicely.  In business, we are training leaders at the business school.  But even leaders have to understand teamwork.  In my position, I have five direct reports.  But I am also one of nine who sit at the table with the Dean each week to discuss the school and make decisions.  I have to work with others.  I have to get others to participate in their teamwork.  And given that no one person knows everything to run the organization there is a need for a lot of teamwork generally.

Finally, second nature.  The musicians looked like the playing was second nature to them.  They occasionally had to look at the fret boards or at whatever music they had.  But generally they just glanced at each other, looked out to the audience, or appeared to be concentrating.  The key is that they could just play.  When we are training students, we do not expect them to “just know” or “just make decisions.”  But as the students develop in their careers they should evolve to a point at which they can make decisions that are second nature to them.  They should take the lessons we teach, their motivation, and their wisdom, and make decisions that should become second nature to them.

After thinking about that while running today, I came home and made dinner with my two sons who are home at the moment.  We had angel hair pasta; some garlic pressed and lightly cooked in olive oil; some of the water from cooking the pasta; the fat from cooking pancetta mixed with the olive oil and water; mixing in the crumbled pancetta; and then topping with some fresh ground pepper and Parmesan to taste. 

It was wonderful.

So, lots to contemplate today.  Family activity.  My running. Steady progress toward my 2000 mile goal.  Music and business.  And very good food.

Life is good.