How can I lie to the students I teach?

Everything I teach is a lie. That may strike you as crass, so let me put that statement in context. I teach band in Anne Arundel County, I'm 26, and I'm an Annapolitan.

This year marks my fifth year of teaching, and I love my job. Waking up at 5:30 a.m. to get to work on time is always worth it, because I get to see the best of the present generation. Every day, I ask young adults to set up a rehearsal space, put together instruments with that can be cumbersome and difficult, perform for about 60 minutes, and clear the room.

I ask them to be vulnerable, take risks, make their own choices, and to feel comfortable in their own skin. My goal in rehearsal is to give students a reason to feel, to emote, to be human.

Imagine yourself at 14-years-old; selfconscious, uncomfortable, and unsure of yourself. I want students to feel the exact opposite of those emotions. My room is inclusive, positive, and safe. Kids feel they belong there, and know that I want them to be there.

I ask for three things of each of my students; be musical, work hard, and be kind. Each request builds upon the other two, and it elevates us all. Issues are minimal if we all follow the “Big Three.” Students are self-motivated, and self-satisfaction is viewed with trepidation.

“Yes, but…” is frequently heard in our rehearsal space, as there is always something we could do better; a phrase that could be shaped more, a note or chord that could be played more in tune.

I have been struck, especially recently, by how much my “Big Three” do not resonate with our loudest members of society. Kindness is met with contempt or is mistaken for weakness. Hard-work is often drowned out by flash-in-the-pan charlatans who claim to have “earned their way to the top,” when the reality of the situation is they bought their way in.

Musicality (or any other substitute in this case; intelligence, whit, skill, etc.) is balked at. Vulnerable, open people are viewed as weak or naive. How can I teach in a world that calls me a liar? How can I stand on a podium and sell snake oil to kids who are going to walk out of my classroom and become besieged by people who tell them that they aren't worth it. How can I, as a human being, lie to the young men and women who are the future? Because I believe it.

As a straight, cis-gender white male I have been blessed with minimal adversity. All the reason I should champion those who are mistreated, those who have faced adversity, and those who don't have a home to go to.

I love every student I have ever taught. In my humble attempts at being human, I hope that I can show them that it's okay to make mistakes and to be who you are. We all need to teach children how to be human, and my vehicle is music.

Persistence, patience, and reflection are all characteristics that I admire, and all characteristics that I have found through music. The most important part of all music, however, is love. There needs to be love in every note, no matter how aggressive or somber or angry.

Love is a strong word, but I have always felt love in myself, and in my classroom. I wish that I could portion it out and let them take it home, but I hope they also experience that same love wherever they call home, and to whoever they say, “I love you” to.

We all have moments where love is drawn out of us, for whatever reason. But we need more love in this world. If I had one request, it would be that the world stop moving, and listen to the silence. In silence, there is love.