students, and teaching, living

life as unscripted movie

every person’s life is an unscripted movie,

with the star challenged to find action and word

to get through each scene

before the next scene challenges anew,

as a teacher I am gifted

with a front row seat for some of the scenes,

I clearly see the actor

and revel in the quality of self revealed

in intent, in word, in action,

I can applaud with my own word and care

the quality before me,

then the movie shifts location, 

to be filmed away from me,

I often know little of how it turns out,

maybe an occasional review by someone who has seen later scenes,

sometimes the actor flashing back to a visit,

and my appreciation of the quality of the self living its story

reprises for a bit,

today I visited for a time with a former student

who will not be denied in her quest

to create a career with the songs her soul writes

and her voice and hands release to the world,

the meaning and music of her words

ethereal and grounded at the same time,

one song written to a mother fighting cancer

before and after the birth of her child,

Caitlin was asked for help,

and she writes a song,

and she performs a song,

and she shares a song,

mother and child make it through their scenes so far,

how wonderful that my former student knows her power

and uses it to help others

make it through their scenes,

the movie rolls on,

and we all can hope 

that the script we write with our lives

will be worth the screen time we use up.

by Henry H. Walker

April 27, ‘19