BEGINNINGS (MORE THAN JUST A SONG OFF “CTA”)

As I was preparing to jot down a few notes regarding this months topic, I was struck by the irony of the Sirius/XM 40’s channel playing Ella Fitzgerald’s version of the Cole Porter classic “Begin the Beguine”, which, in the second irony in this sentence alone, was recorded in 1956. It immediately got me to wondering, “what the hell is a beguine.” Turns out, it is a slow couples dance that’s indigenous to the Caribbean islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe. I found another definition that said it’s a member of any of several lay sisterhoods in a branch of the Roman Catholic church founded in the Netherlands in the 13th century. I’d go so far as to say - that ain’t what Mr. Porter had in mind.

With the beguine begun, I started to think back to significant beginnings in my life. The beginning of life as part of a team with my first marriage. But, that didn’t work. My first marriage took place while in a drunken/drug induced stupor in Southeast Asia. That was how many of us got through Vietnam, We assured ourselves a semblance of sanity after the war by making sure we would never remember what we were going through. After nearly 2 years there, I don’t have much of a clue about what happened after getting off the plane. That marriage lasted as long as my memory of being there. Mission accomplished.

Next I went back to what many consider to be the end of their freedom - the birth of one’s first child. For me it was the beginning of what came to be a lifelong calling - raising children to be productive adults. I have 5 with 20 years between the oldest and the youngest. That was when I finally realized what caused it and was able to restrain myself.

The beginning of a great 46 year career began in a less than auspicious manner. I was home from basic training. It was 1966 and there was a new “soul” station in my hometown of Hartford, Ct. I loved the music (no Beatles fan I) and, on a whim, took a ride to the radio station where I met a young DJ named Don Tracy. I was fascinated and smitten by the biz. This was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. During one particular visit, Don turned on my microphone and said, “I’d like you to meet my bouncing’ baby brother, Bob Tracy.” I opened my mouth to respond and absolutely nothing came out. Thankfully, I’ve never really been one to pay much attention to “signs”. I might have ended up with a career in aluminum siding.

So, I decided to go with the beginning of a less than stellar educational life. Education was very important in my house, so, excitement for my first day of school was building. I couldn’t wait to be like the big kids and go to school. I was beside myself with anticipation. My mom came into my room to wake me, but I was already up and dressed as well as a 5 year old can dress himself in the dark. I shared a room with my younger brother, who was NOT joining me on this great new adventure and I didn’t want to wake him, which I’m sure I did while fumbling around in the dark looking for a pair of socks. My parents took me to Bowers school where my kindergarten class was ready to have our fears allayed by Mrs.Donaldson and Miss Smith. I’m sure it was a wonderful day, filled with the smell of finger paint and the terrific culinary treat that was kindergarten paste. We were only 5, so we went to school for half a day. See we were baby boomers and there were just too many of us for tiny Bowers school (it seemed huge at the time, but, I’ve been back as a grownup), so they split us up into morning and afternoon sessions. When I got home, I was totally satisfied with my “school experience” and just exhausted enough to go to bed at a decent hour. If I remember correctly, that would have been 7pm. The next morning, the anticipation was gone and my mom had to wake me up. As she shook me and told me it was time to get up, I asked, “What for?” to which she responded, “school, it’s time to go to school.” With all the logic I could possibly summon up at that tender age, I said, “But, I went yesterday,” as I turned over to go back to sleep. Hey - I tried!

As you can see, I’ve never been real good at beginnings. I’m much better with endings!