It’s the time of year when my kids want to share songs and piano pieces that they’re doing for church or recitals and I have a couple of classes in particular where individual students ask quite often.  Today was no different as I had three students ask if they could share a couple of songs and a piano piece.

The fact that my kids feel safe and comfortable singing in front of their peers is wonderful.  While I want them to develop the skills to become better musicians, they understand that nobody is perfect and it’s okay to try and make mistakes.  My first little girl came up to the piano and played a simple version of Jingle Bells for us.  There was a little glitch at the end, but she patiently sounded it out and finished to applause from her classmates.

The second child wanted to sing the 2nd verse of Angels We Have Heard on High because she couldn’t remember it the last time she shared and now she could do both verses.  Not all the pitches were there but the smile and confidence were and she finished with a flourish.  As she sat back down, my third little girl stood up to sing.

This petite little girl with the ponytail and the big smile confidently walked to the front of the room where everyone waited to hear her sing.  Then these words drifted effortlessly out of her mouth – “Why did you put me through this hell….” and I immediately said “oops!  Let’s stop that song”.  I motioned for her to come over to me and I took that worried little face in my hands and said quietly, “honey, I’m not sure that song is appropriate for here, but don’t worry, you’re not in trouble.  Maybe we can choose another song for next time”.  She smiled her sweet little smile, said “okay” and bounced back to her seat while I surveyed the audience to see if anyone had caught on.  No,  apparently we lucked out.  Or maybe they heard and weren’t shocked?  That does concern me a little bit.

Okay, I should have known better than to just let a kid start singing in my class without asking first, and if she had been a 4th or 5th grader and not that sweet bubbly little girl, I probably would have.  It just never occurred to me that words like those would tumble from those lips.  Am I being naive?  Is this what kids are listening to at the age of eight?  Is this what parents are allowing them to listen to at the age of eight?  How in the world can an eight year old understand somebody putting you through hell?

Maybe it’s a song the adults listen to at home and they think it’s “cute” that she knows all the words.  Maybe she just picked it up listening to it and of course doesn’t have a clue as to what she’s singing.  So many times we sing songs in class and I have to be careful that they’re not too “childish” for them.  I’m not saying we can’t sing kid songs but they have to be wrapped in an accompaniment that’s either really fun to play or sounds like something they would listen to on the radio.  Or Spotify.  Or whatever the kids listen to music on these days.  Man do I sound old or what?

It makes me sad however that kids aren’t allowed to be kids anymore.  We seem to push them to become little adults at an earlier and earlier age.  It’s in how they talk, how they dress, how they color their hair (that one kills me) what they’re allowed to play and what music they’re allowed to listen to.  It goes back to one of my previous blogs where I asked the question, do tech savvy kids make us think they’re more mature than they are?  Or is it just easier as adults to let them do what they want to do, regardless of the damage it may cause.  After all, it’s easier to quiet a toddler with a screen than to actually engage in conversation or reading or singing with the child.

So lesson learned.  Never judge a book by its cover and always ask first what they’ll be singing for us.  Otherwise, next thing you know I’ll have some sweet little kid singing something like “Stairway to Heaven” or “Highway to Hell” to the class.