13 May
2008
13 May
'08
8:15 a.m.
nicely put, tina! i couldn't agree more.
for my part, on the "isn't that interesting" front, i've noticed that
there are many callers in my circle who are (or have been) various sorts of
educator/teachers and/or are first-born children. both of these loose associations seem
pretty logical -- as has been pointed out, good calling involves good teaching while
managing groups of people, often of varying skill levels, effectively enough to ensure a
positive experience for the greatest number. and eldest children often have spent years
practicing orchestrating & leading, and are
"quite-comfortable-telling-others-what-to-do-next". as tina points out,
it's just an observation, sort of like observing that there are lots of
math/engineering professionals attending modern urban contradances.
ah, which brings me to another association - many callers are prone to observing, noticing
patterns and making guesses about why those patterns might be occurring. hah! :-)
chrissy fowler
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~http://www.belfastflyingshoes.org home 207-338-0979 cell
603-498-3506> > > Message: 2> Date: Sun, 11 May 2008 12:26:22 -0700 (PDT)>
From: Tina Fields <tfields8(a)yahoo.com>> Subject: Re: [Callers] Callers with
higher degrees> > Greg makes a very important point here. The 'elitism'>
factor really never occurred to me when asking this> question; it really came out of
surprised curiosity. Like> many of us, I'm just interested in weird phenomena.
There> aren't that many Ph.Ds/MDs/JDs etc. in the country, and> it's wild to
see how many wind up calling too. > > My dad was a brilliant square dance caller,
and he had a> junior-high education. I'm the first one in my family to> even get
through high school; the relatives were worried> that "that much education might
ruin yer girl." And I> could not agree with Greg more. As a college teacher,>
artist-in-residence with kids, and outdoor leader alike,> I've noticed that the
best teaching is really a form of> servant leadership or midwife education rather than
egoic> performance; that is, the 'guide on the side', not the> 'sage on
the stage.' This is, of course, exactly Greg's> point about good calling. >
> One of the reasons I find calling so compelling is the> challenge of making sure
everyone - band, dancers, sound> person, dance manager - all are having a good time,
feeling> confident, appreciated, and in sync; all the while not> screwing any of it
up myself. (As a newish caller, that> last bit is the tricky part.) Callers have to
focus> effectively on many parts at the same time to create one> cohesive, joyful
whole -- talk about a humbling meditation> practice! > > If I offended anyone
inadvertently, please take this as a> sincere apology. The question comes out of
curiosity, not> snobbishness.> > Tina> >
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