Good Teachers

I think sometimes when I work with professors or mentors, I can sometimes get to feeling overwhelmed. They seem to know so much and have so much experience that I feel so inadequate in comparison to them. Because of the generation gap, often it may seem hard to connect with them on a personal level. Today I learned two important things about my directors, mentors and professors.

1. They always assume you are better than you think you are. In our strive for perfection as musicians, we ourselves become our worst critics. We know how much better we can be, and we may feel disappointed or frustrated when we feel we're not performing up to par. Good teachers, I've realized, have a bigger vision than we have of ourselves. They can tell how much we've improved, and they know how they can encourage us to continue to improve. They see our potential, whereas we may only see our flaws. And no matter how we perform, they always love us. Of course, they always want us to put forth our best efforts, but even if it takes us longer to succeed at something, our good teachers still love us and still inspire us.

2. Our teachers and mentors (and yes, even our bosses) are humans like us. I notice that in the little things. Like today when Dr. Don climbed up on the step ladder to change the clock. Or when one of his students mentioned that she was hungry, without saying a word, Dr. Don pulls a bag of granola bars out of his cabinet and offers her one.

I've had a lot of good teachers in my lifetime, but the ones I can truly call mentors and friends are the ones I can connect to on a personal or spiritual level. We all have our stressful moments, and we all have deadlines and goals. When our teachers, mentors, bosses, and other such adult figures become our friends, it's a win-win situation for everyone involved. Good teachers draw us closer unto Christ.