Musicals

I have never been a fan of musicals. I can bear musicals on stage, because I enjoy going to the theatre. But when it comes to movies, The Sound of Music, Grease, and Annie can move over and make way for Pulp Fiction, American Beauty and Wedding Crashers. My biggest argument against musicals is how unrealistic it for a group of people to break out into song on a whim. Then I had kids ...

Kids sing. They just love to sing. They can't help themselves. It is part of the infectious joyousness kids have in their hearts. I have three children that are able to speak and I can already see what sectors of the music industry they are destined for.

Zoe will be a christian folk signer. Put a guitar in her hands, she will sit down strum the strings and sing "Jesus, Jesus". She typically follows that by falling out on the floor and wriggling around. I believe we may have a pentecostal on our hands.

Zach will be a world class beat-boxer as long as two things happen, he practices a lot and his father does not lose his mind and ban the act of beat-boxing from the house.

Zane's talent has the most potential of all of the children because he has already perfected the genre. When I was in high school I went through a phase of listening to heavy/speed/death metal. You know the guys who listen to this stuff, long hair, tight jeans, doc martens, chains on their pockets. Thankfully I never looked the part, but I did partake in the music. If you have ever spent time with Zane, particularly when he might have been cranky, you know he would fit in well as a lead singer for any number of heavy metal bands that may still be around (I would name a few, but I think I might date myself, plus highlight my once questionable taste in music).

Music permeates our lives, in ways that we are not even aware of. Doing a quick Google search, I found countless studies on how music affects mood. Listening to a grunge song like Pearl Jams 'Jeremy' can invoke feelings of aggression and violence. Classical music, like Beethoven or Bach can calm and relax a person. An upbeat, fun song like Jason Mrazs' 'I'm Yours' can actually induce joy and happiness.

With or without us realizing it, our life has a soundtrack. We are exposed to music in the car, the mall, on tv, in movies, church, through ipods, itunes and the list goes on. Songs, like sites and smells can take you instantly to a time or place. To this day if I hear the song 'Molly' by Sponge, I am taken back to my '96 Honda, driving to work while in high school. 'In the arms of an Angel' by Sarah McLauchlan sends me back to Denton Apartments where Julie and I first met.

Music has power. We use it to mark events like weddings and funerals. We use music to set a mood for a situation be it a candle-lit dinner or a room full of hyper toddlers. We use it as background noise so not to feel alone.

In our house now, we do sometimes break out in spontaneous song. We do it as a family, we do it to have fun, we do it to show love.

So maybe, just maybe musicals are not that far fetched ...