I have absolutely no shame in admitting that at least once a week I find myself wishing my life were a musical.

It makes no sense at all. I like dramas and comedies and books about education or journalism. But I love High School Musical. And Hairspray. And Hannah Montana. If it is cheesy, people break into song when doing everyday tasks and there are choreographed dance routines, then I’m in.

I don’t know when I first discovered that cheesy teen musicals made me feel better, but I tried to hide it as long as possible. Surely, a grown-up with a real job and college loans to pay off should not be so engrossed in Zac Efron’s major high school dilemmas.

Until last night, I hadn’t been able to defend myself when others figure out my silly obsession. I just chalked it up to my one weird thing that has no rhyme or reason. Teen musicals simply make me feel better. I don’t understand it. I told people. Then I finally got my answer.

Each year for work, all of the schools in the charter network I work for gather at a national conference for a week of professional development and mingling. On the last night of the conference we have a banquet to celebrate the successes the teachers, students and schools have had in the past year. Students from one of the schools attending the conference always perform at the banquet. I love the performances because I love seeing talented kids who have been given confidence in their artistic abilities.

And it’s the closet to a musical my life ever gets.

Until last night.

In the middle of the second dance performance, the sound cut out. One minute we were listening to and enjoying the flamenco. The next, the room was silent. To their credit, the students kept dancing. To our credit, in 15 seconds nearly every person in the room was humming, singing and clapping. By the end of the song we were all on our feet in all-out sing-a-long.

It was exactly what I always hope will happen when any error occurs in my day. I dropped my coffee? It would be better if the people around me broke into song about how the day could only get better from there. The wind whips my skirt all around me just before a rainstorm? What if we all broke out umbrellas and danced? My crush walks into the room? It’s definitely time to sing.

The sound goes out in the middle of a performance? Four hundred teachers in cocktail dresses should break into a rendition of Marc Anthony’s “I need to know.”

Silly high school musicals remind me not to take the world too seriously. They take things like rainstorms or coffee spills and turn them into something to laugh about. So why not? Life gives you lemons? Coordinate a dance move or two.

As I stepped onto the elevator after the performance, I was confronted with a gaggle of giggly 14-year-old dancers, still ecstatic about their performance.

“Did you hear them all singing?” a curly headed girl asked her friend. “It was like being in High School Musical.”

“It was so awesome. I wish more days in my life were like that,” her friend sighed.

Me too.

2 Responses to “Why I wish my life was a musical”

1. With my freeze ray I will… « Says:
   August 9th, 2009 at 9:54 am

   [...] 8, 2009 by samathom Here is  my TOD post for [...]

2. Jamie Hergott Says:
   August 11th, 2009 at 10:01 am

   AMEN SISTER.

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