“These kids feel invisible. That’s why they all have MySpace.”
I participated in choir from 7th grade through High School, and went on to major in music, thinking that someday I would be a choir director. I did choir for a few reasons: I was a good church of Christ boy, and had been harmonizing since before I could speak. But I was also uncoordinated, out of shape, and a terrible student.
My dream was that if I could be good at choir, I would become a different person. It wasn’t like I dreamed of popularity or wealth. It was just a vague sense that I desperately needed to be good at something, and choir was my only option.
On some level, it worked. Although I never really felt accepted or had solos or starring roles, I did get to be a part of something. The relationships I built by participating in choir in college are still among my closest today. But in other ways it wasn’t a success.
The fact was, I didn’t cut it as a musician, and never went on to teach like I had hoped. Instead, I racked up an unmentionable amount of debt chasing after a misguided dream.
The premise for Glee feels like it was taken from my teenage sense of invisibility. Somehow I missed the message that my parents loved me, Jesus died for me, and I had infinite worth. Choir helped for a little while, but it really just put off the inevitable. What` can we do to keep the kids from feeling invisible?
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