Once upon a time there lived a girl named Annie who had a lot of trouble learning how to become a dancer. She always wanted to dance like the best of all dancers, and one day she did become a very good dancer. Annie found that the most difficult part of becoming a very good dancer was learning how to dance.
When Annie was barely tall enough to reach the door knob to answer a most mysterious knock upon the door, was when her mother first noticed that Annie may have an interest in dancing, or a not yet discovered ability to dance. Grandfather was knocking on the door with a rap a tap tap tap rap a tap tap like he was playing some sort of tune on the wooden door. The sound of the knock a rap a tap tapping grabbed Annie’s attention as she twirled around and skipped over to answer the door.
Grandfather had a distinguished way of walking and a sturdy was of talking. Annie was happy to see her Grandfather. Grandfather had come to pick up Annie for an outing. They were going to hear some music that Annie had never before heard.
They arrived at an outdoor park where Annie saw many people of all ages dressed in kilts. She saw many different colors of kilts. As a matter of fact, Annie could practically see only kilts whichever way she looked. Grandfather told Annie that they were at The Gathering of The Clans. Annie knew that he was talking about Scottish Clans. Grandfather told Annie to look for her family plaid in the colors, so Annie looked and looked at all the kilts, looking and looking at many different colors. Annie kept searching the colors in kilts for that special blue color that she knew was unique to her family plaid. Everybody was so happy at The Gathering of the Clans, and there were sounds of good ole greetings and chatter everywhere.
Annie saw many groups of men in kilts forming lines and walking in rows together as if they were marching. Each group of men wore their distinct colors in their kilts. Then Annie heard the sound of a very high pitched humming noise begin to play. The sound inspired Annie to hold her head up high to listen as the humming began to repeat the rhythmical resounding hummm with a beat, a man shouted, a drummer joined in and all of the clans knew right then and there that The Gathering of the Clans was in a march. Annie and her Grandfather followed.
The musicians played the strangest looking instruments Annie had ever seen. No more chatting while they all walked. Large cloth bags with black tubes sticking out were making the high pitched melodious sound. The music was produced by blowing into the tubes and squeezing the bag at the same time or intervals, Annie was not sure – but she watched with great interest. The sound was very high and fast. The beat of the sound was faster than anything she had ever heard before. Grandfather had told Annie before that the musical instruments were called Bagpipes.
After listening to the sound of the Bagpipes for a few minutes, Annie did what seemed to her the most natural thing to do – she began to move her feet. She moved her feet faster and faster until they moved as fast as the sound played on the Bagpipes; well almost as fast. She spread her hands out and raised her arms to the side so that she could balance.
There were people standing next to Grandfather who began clapping their hands in a rhythmic beat to the sound of the bagpipes and Annie’s dancing feet. The clapping hands were intended to help Annie dance, but when Annie started to listen to all that clapping her feet tripped over each other a bit. Annie then noticed that a small crowd of people were being entertained by watching her dance and she forgot to listen to the Bagpipes altogether. Trying to keep her feet moving fast, Annie covered her face with her hands; then she lost her balance and fell down to the ground in a heap.
Grandfather had to take a sad Annie with a cut knee home to find a band aid.
Annie did not try to dance again for a long time. She remembered too clearly how silly and humiliated she felt at The Gathering of the Clans day when she fell from dancing and hurt her knee. The pain of the hurt knee was not the reason Annie stopped dancing. Annie stopped dancing because crowd of people who were watching her seemed to her to laugh when she danced and laugh even more when she fell. The experience was strange and uncomfortable.
After a few years had passed, when Annie was much taller than the doorknob, she was capable of many accomplishments and she rode to school with other neighborhood children aboard a big yellow school bus. Annie would often be found busy working on schoolwork or playing with friends in the schoolyard.
The winter season had passed and smells of spring were in the air when Annie’s father brought home a new sound. The sound was the twang of Banjo strings. After hearing the sound of the Banjo play, Annie, for the first time in a long time, started to think about dancing.
The Banjo looked sort of like a guitar, but was round. Annie’s father told Annie that cowboys played the Banjo around a campfire. Annie’s father sat down next to Timmy, Annie’s brother. Father showed both Annie and Timmy how to pick the strrings of the Banjo. The Banjo made a happy twanging sound each time a string was moved.
“You just need to give it a little flick with your finger,” said Father before Timmy could pull at the strings too hard.
Timmy smiled every time he heard the Banjo twang. Making music was fun.
“Would you like to have a turn with the Banjo?” Father asked Annie.
“Sure!” she answered.
Timmy passed the Banjo to his sister and Annie pulled at the strings. There was something very comfortable about making musical sounds from the Banjo with family. Annie pulled gently at the strings, twang twang, twang, twang, twang, she played on until her little fingers began to hurt.
Then she passed the Banjo back to Timmy. “Here you do it, Timmy,” said Annie. She got up to walk away.
Father thought Annie looked sad. “Annie,” he asked, “I thought you liked music?”
“I do,” answered Annie. “unfortunately, I would rather dance to music than play music on a banjo or any other musical instrument.”
“Dance to music!” said Father, rather surprised. “I did not realize you considered yourself a dancer.”
“I am not really a dancer,” Annie quickly answered with a pout on her face.
“I’ll bet you could become a great dancer, Annie,” Father spoke encouragingly. “Timmy, play a tune for Annie and she will dance for us.”
“No I will not! I will not dance!” shouted Annie. “No no no nooooo’” Annie shouted as she ran out of the room as if she were running from a fire.
“Ha ha ha,” Father and Timmy laughed with wonderment. They wondered why Annie was sooo upset.
That night at dinnertime, Annie was happy again as she helped her mother in the kitchen. Annie was preparing to set the table with the family’s best dishes. Annie also folded napkins perfectly before placing silverware down.
Annie and her family were all seated around the dinner table when Mother mentioned a new dance theatre opening in their town. The local community interested in developing the arts was sponsoring the theatre. Businesses in their hometown were all contributing to benefit the dance theatre.
“I think we ought to go to the opening night show,” she said to Father, “don’t you think so, darling.”
“Why, of course. Absolutely we will go,” said Father. Then as he looked over at Annie, he added, “I do think we ought to make it an extra special night and bring Annie out with us.” Annie could barely contain her big smile. “Did you know that Annie is very interested in learning to become a dancer?” he asked Mother.
Annie put her head down and laughed, ”not at a theatre, Dad. I could never do that.”
“How could you know until you try,” was his reply.
“I never thought about dancing at a theatre,” Annie answered. “I was just thinking about being able to dance with friends in the cafeteria at school.”
“Oh?” asked Mother. “How do your friends dance in the cafeteria at school?”
“Welllll, like jive stuff,” said Annie. The seventh grade class was more interested in trying to dance like they looked cool than anything else.
“Well, would you show us?” Father asked.
“Naaaaaaaa,” Annie shook her head back and forth.
Timmy said, “I’m hungry. Please pass the macaroni noodles,” and the subject was changed.
Mother began to discuss how long noodles ought to cook until they are done ardente style or not.
Obviously, Annie had shown a genuine interest in dancing. However, there was a problem. Annie was afraid to dance.
Two weeks later, Annie went to Grandfather’s house for the day. The weather was beautiful as the sunshine warmed grandfather’s back yard. Mother and Father had gone shopping and they left Annie and Timmy with Grandfather for the day. They planned on raking leaves as spring clean-up duty was a tradition they all enjoyed.
“Well, Well,” Grandfather said. “How’s my girl doin’ today?” he asked Annie.
“Fine, Grandfather,” Annie answered.
“I heard about the local road race. Will you be running Timmy my boy?” Grandfather asked Timmy.
“I Sure am planning on racing and I have been practicing running. Would you like to see how fast I can run?” Timmy spoke as he stretched one leg forward into the get ready position. “On your mark. Get set.” He added.
Grandfather smiled and then turning towards Annie he asked, “What have you been doing lately? Will you be joining your brother in the race, Annie?”
“Naaaa,” she said. “I don’t want to race.”
“What would you like to do, Annie?” asked Grandfather.
“I don’t know,” Annie answered with her head down.
“C’mon Annie,” Timmy looked at her. “Tell Grandfather about dancing on the school cafeteria.”…
to be continued…
…
“What do you know anyways?” she asked her brother.
“Annie, I’ll bet you’re a terrific dancer,” Grandfather contributed to the conversation.
All of a sudden Annie felt that ache in her throat that came along whenever the subject of dancing was brought up. This time, the ache hurt so much that she began to cry. She covered her face with her hands.
Grandfather put his arm around Annie, and let her cry on his shoulder. “there, there, my little one.” He said after a while. “Stop cryin’, now, and tell your old Grandpa what seems to be the trouble.”
So the story came out at last. As it happened, Annie had been with her two girlfriends in the school cafeteria. Along came Billy Bee Bop, with the black shiny shoes. He told Annie and her friends that he was going to win a blue ribbon for the best dance routine. Then he told Annie to stay out of his path on the dance floor. Annie wanted to practice for the dance contest so she didn’t pay much attention to Billy Bee Bop…until he said that she had frog’s feet. A few people started to laugh when he said that. Annie fellt as if they were laughing at her. Then she tripped over her own feet and fell.
“I see,” said Grandfather when he was done listening. “And you haven’t danced since?” he asked.
“No,” said Annie.
“Why not?” asked Grandfather.
“Because I don’t want to fall and I hate it when people laugh at me,” Annie confided to her Grandfather.
“What made you fall?” asked Grandfather.
“I don’t know, Grandpa. I just try to listen to the music when I dance and then the sounds get all mixed up and I fall.” Annie did her best to explain.
“I know what you mean,” said Annie’s brother. “I’ve seen dancers do that, but the fall is part of the move. Alls you need to do is keep moving while you’re down on the floor.”
“Not me,” said Annie quickly. “If I dance it will be on my feet. If I can’t do that then I’m not even going to try.”
Grandfather invited the children out to his back yard garden. Grandfather’s garden was Annie and Timmy’s favorite place. There were many different colored flower blooming in the garden. The grass was soft and thick – and there was a fence with grapes growing on it all around the edge of the Grandfather’s whole big back yard garden. The three of them sat next to each other on a large wooden swing that hung between two trees under the blue canopy sky.
“Now, today we will play the listening game,” Grandfather told Annie and Timmy.
“The listening game?” both Annie and Timmy said at once. “How do you play the listening game?”
“First you have to listen loud,” said Grandfather.
“Listen loud?” questioned Annie.
“Yes,” replied Grandfather. “What is the loudest sound that you can hear?”
“I can hear a truck on the street out front,” said Annie.
“Oh I get it,” said Timmy enthusiastically. “I can hear the sound of a police sirene.”
“o.k., O.k., very good,” said Grandfather. “Now listen a little bit lower.”
“Oh, like I can hear the sound of Grandmother putting away dishes in the kitchen,” said Annie.
“And I can hear the sounds of some children playing in the yard next door,” said Timmy.
“Now, a little bit lower,” said Grandfather softly. “Listen a little bit lower.”
“An airplane,” said Timmy pointing at the sky.
“That is a very good little bit lower sound, Timmy.” Grandfather asked,”can you listen any lower?”
“I can not hear anything lower,” said Annie.
“Birds!” exclaimed Timmy.
“Oh ya, birds,” agreed Annie quickly and quietly.
“Now listen lower,” commanded Grandfather.
Annie and Timmy sat quiet for a few minutes as they listened hard.
“Do you hear the sound of the wind blowing through the leaves of the big oak tree?” Grandfather asked them.
Annie and Timmy both turned to look up at the tree, They saw the leaves blowing ever so gently and then they heard the quiet hush from the sound of the delicate breeze. Their faces looked amazed as they heard the lowest very low sound of a quiet breeze and they both nodded their head.
When their Mom and Dad came to take them home, Annie and her brother were sort of sad to say good-bye to their Grandfather. Visits with Grandfather were always filled with interesting things to do. Annie and Timmy never forgot the many wonderful things they learned when they were with their Grandfather.
Back at home that night, when Annie was brushing her hair in her room, she turned on her music player to listen to her favorite sounding music. The sound of the music was being played by an orchestra. No words were mixed with the music. Annie thought about the listening game while she listened to her favorite music.
Listening to the sound of the orchestra took on a new thrill for Annie. She heard the sound of her favorite piano louder than all of the other sounds. Then she heard the sound of the piano as it got lower and she continued to try to trace the sound of the piano all the way through the musical composition. As she listened to the tune, she almost lost the sound of the piano once because the piano’s sound got very low; but then it suddenly gout much louder. As she listened real hard, she realized the piano never actually stopped playing even when the sounds of the other instruments seemed to play louder.
Afterwards, she played the sound of the tune allover again and listened once more. This time she listened to a lower sound, the sound of the flute. She listened for the sound of the flute all the way through the musical composition.
The different sounds became more clear to Annie as she learned to listen for each one of them all the way through the musical composition which she played over and over again into the night.
…to be continued…
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