Thursday, May 29, 2008

Missing Mr. Herrmann

[Writing about an absent friend was this week's Totally Optional Prompt. See what others came up with here. ]




Missing Mr. Herrmann

You are in my consonants,
the ones at the beginnings and ends
of words making a difference
between a good chorus or great.

You are in the vowels I sing,
clear with no dipthongs,
making sure that the audience
can understand the lyrics.

You are in my eyes that watch
the conductor's baton,
ever alert to unexpected changes
in tempo.

You are in my fingers
as I turn pages as quietly
and unobtrusively as possible
just as you taught us.

You are in my confidence,
encouraged by your trust in me,
even though you have been
gone for twenty years.

You are on my mind in December
when I remember how we used
to sing carols at your house
because it was a way for us to say,
"Thank you."



14 comments:

Crafty Green Poet said...

this creates a lovely portrait of Mr Hermann

Stan Ski said...

A great tribute to a respected influence.

sister AE said...

Hi, Juliet and Stan. Thank you, both.

anthonynorth said...

As tributes go, that was marvellous.

gautami tripathy said...

One beautiful tribute!

drifting

sister AE said...

thanks, anthony and gautami!

Maria said...

Oh, how lovely. How very, very lovely.

sister AE said...

Thanks, Maria.

Pauline said...

beautifully put!

sister AE said...

Hello, Pauline. thanks.

Anonymous said...

That's a lovely remembrance.

sister AE said...

Thanks, Richard.

carmilevy said...

I loved this. It's as touching a tribute to a treasured and lost teacher as I've ever seen.

How touching that teachers' gifts live on in the actions of their students for decades after they're gone.

sister AE said...

Hi, Carmi. Thank you. He was pretty special to me. I'm glad that came through.