Not the Last Rodeo

Oh Houston.

What shall I write about?

About how I left my purse on the airplane and the honest John Denveresque man in seat 12B from northern Iowa with a Montana cell phone number jumped through all kinds of hoops to look me up on the internet and drive across Houston the next day to return the purse to my friend Casey? No.

About how I had an old school full scale anxiety attack during my Brahms piece in front of a couple hundred people including Doris and a dozen other teachers whom I truly love and respect? No.

How about the commitment of the Houston Suzuki community to honor our beloved teacher trainer Doris Harrel? Yes. The last Houston workshop with our Doris. Retirement. This is the topic for today.

How about Fran getting a lovely dinner arranged with a beautiful cake and all manor of decorations.

How about the Houston Area Suzuki Teachers's making a donation on Doris' behalf to the Suzuki Association of the Americas, called a Star award. They also presented Doris with a beautiful star necklace from James Avery Company, a Texas jeweler, to help remind her of her impact.

How about Ray and Carolyn Ayers making an over the top generous donation to a new fund, in honor of Doris, to promote future teacher training in Houston. This was also matched by the Shell Oil company, to ensure that even if Doris is not traveling to Houston, their group can continue to host this workshop, and bring in the top teacher trainers from around the country.

Everyone was tender. Doris is a legacy here. The groups that she has shepherded here and in Austin are a model for future teachers and students. I'm going let someone else write about that. (Pressure is on, Vicki. . . )

Was this the last rodeo? No. Doris told me she paid her yearly teacher trainer dues, just in case something came up. Like a teacher training emergency? Smile. Hopefully, so that she can take a little time, in her own home, to mentor the next generation. I hope she will enjoy the next phase and I am curious what she will tackle. I'm sure it will be done with the same zest and love for children and music as always.

And with folks like the Ayers around we know that the Suzuki Piano Method will continue to be a blessing to the teachers and students of the Houston area for years to come. It won't be the same without our founder holding the reins, but all of us together can continue, each in our own way, to foster and share what we learned, from our piano mother. . . Dr. Doris Harrel.