By: Marlene Oxender
My parents were young adults in the 1940s, and I remember thinking their taste in music was “old.”
Their ideas and thoughts were from long ago. They were old-fashioned, and they didn’t keep up with the times. They still liked music from the Big Band Era.
But my generation – we were the Baby Boomers. We listened to rock and roll. We were young. We were modern in our thinking and in our choice of music.
I had plans to keep up with the latest trends. Like the décor in my home. The music on the radio. The clothes I wore.
Now that I’m older, I have decided it must be human nature to simply live comfortably in our ways, and many things will stay the same.
There are those who keep up on sports and follow their favorite teams. They get together with friends on big game days. It’s fun to hear them speak about the game and find out if their team won.
I remember my dad watched the Cincinnati Reds win the World Series back in the 1970s. I am grateful for his interest in baseball, and I had the experience of watching his team win. Twice. In 1975 and 1976. And I knew the players by name.
Many years ago, when my daughter was in college in Cincinnati, she and a group of friends were waiting to be seated at a restaurant.
Her friends pointed out that Pete Rose was standing in the lobby with them. Then they had to tell her who Pete Rose was.
She knew from their excitement that it was a neat thing that this guy named Pete Rose was standing next to them. She called home later in the evening to tell me.
I was excited to hear her news and replied, “Oh really?” to which she responded, “Oh, you know him, too?”
When I was a young girl, there were times when someone older than I was amazed at something the younger generation didn’t know.
I still remember when an older friend spoke of a kewpie doll. I didn’t know what a kewpie doll was, so I asked him. He chuckled and told the others I had just asked what a kewpie doll was.
Now I understand where those older people were coming from. After all, my daughter didn’t know who Pete Rose was. It makes you think of other things they may not know. Like where Mayberry is and who the actors were. Opie and Aunt Bee. The sheriff and the deputy.
Kids today don’t know who the Clampetts are. They don’t know about Texas tea and black gold. They don’t know The Beverly Hillbillies’ theme song.
They don’t know the song about the three-hour tour. They don’t know who John-Boy is and how his family said good night. And rotary dial phones – they don’t know how to use them.
If my grandchildren were asked what kind of music their grandmother likes, they’d tell you I’ve been known to listen to John Denver.
When my grandchildren had mentioned they’re not all that fond of his music, I felt they just needed a little help, and then they’d appreciate his voice and the way he played his twelve-string guitar.
So, we listened to a few of his greatest hits, and I watched as they nodded their heads in the wrong direction. I was in disbelief. It was as if they can’t hear what I hear.
And so began my questioning of young people. I asked them if they know who John Denver is. Most of them knew he was a musician who played guitar and sang about being a country boy. They’re a bit surprised to learn a few of his songs are still popular today.
After I learned that my great-niece Josie recently broke out in song, singing about country roads taking her home, I knew I’d ask her about it the next time we were together.
So, at our family Christmas party, Josie and her cousins sang for us. I ended up with a perfect video of Josie, Etta, Allie, Emmy, and Joelle singing “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” Their performance at our family gathering will be remembered as a happy time.
No one could have imagined we’d someday be carrying our phones with us. A phone that allows us to quickly record the moment.
A phone full of tutorials capable of teaching us how to do nearly anything – like how to play the guitar. How to use the map within the phone and trust the voice that’ll tell us the best way to arrive at our next destination.
Those who don’t know who Pete Rose is can read about him and the skills it took for his team to make it to the Baseball World Series.
We can read about Mayberry and listen to the whistle that opened each show – a whistle that takes many of us back in time.
We can listen to the greatest hits from the Big Band Era and see if we can hear what our grandparents heard. Glenn Miller and two others died at sea in December of 1944 when their plane crashed during a flight headed to France.
The biographical movie about Glenn Miller’s life was filmed ten years later in 1954, with Jimmy Stewart playing the lead role. In 1956, the Glenn Miller Orchestra was formed and is still touring worldwide.
It’s likely true we never know what we’ve started. What our legacy will be. We’re just playing ball. We’re learning how to play musical instruments. We’re listening to music we’ll never forget.
We can marvel at those who have the talent it takes to line up musical notes and come up with jingles that’ll be whistled decades later.
We won’t forget the words about country roads taking us home. We’ll know when we’ve arrived at our next destination, for the choir of angels won’t be quiet about it.
We’ll happily meet up with those who once laughed with us. Who sang with us and played ball with us.
We won’t have to update them, for they already know that the memories we’d created together are what got us through life on earth.
But maybe we’ll discuss the greatest gift of all and the only thing that really matters – going home to the place where we belong.
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Marlene Oxender is a writer, speaker, and author. She writes about growing up in the small town of Edgerton, her ten siblings, the memorabilia in her parents’ estate, and her late younger brother, Stevie Kimpel, who was born with Down syndrome. Her two recently published books, Picket Fences and Stevie, are available on Amazon. Marlene can be reached at mpoxender@gmail.com