Cornelia and I recently attended
a rehearsal of the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center in
Washington, DC. The first piece on
the schedule was Korngold’s Violin Concerto with the very famous,
Israeli-American violinist Gil Shaham as soloist. It is such fun to be at a rehearsal in the elegant Concert
Hall and see the orchestra in jeans and the conductor in just pants and a shirt
with a sweater thrown over his shoulders. He took off the sweater before
picking up his baton!
Out came Mr. Shaham in jeans and
polo shirt and the conductor told us he’d just gotten off a plane from Europe
and had come directly to the Kennedy Center. This is all so different from seeing an actual concert when
the men in the orchestra are in black tie and the women in long black dresses
or dressy pants outfits!
The orchestra and the famous
soloist played beautifully together throughout the piece. To me it sounded flawless! As the conductor was discussing his
suggestions to the soloist and the orchestra, Cornelia asked me what word came
to mind and I said, “Joy”. I saw
it on the expressive face of Gil Shaham as he played a piece he is famous for
and one he has probably played hundreds of times. It was so obvious that the notes and the majesty of the
piece still brought joy. His face lit up as he played. He smiled and moved in a
way that signified he was feeling the joy the music was sharing with him and
that he was sharing with us. A
recent review of his performance in the New York Times described him as
“brilliant with flawless precision and gleeful command.” We certainly agree with that assessment!
Observing a talented musician so
enjoying his work reminded me of how important it is for anyone to find joy in
their work. I feel so sad when I
hear people say “it’s just a job” or “I work for the pay”. Yes, work is work and we all work to
get paid but how wonderful it is when we find a job that brings us joy!
I am not talking about having to
love every second of every day at work because there isn’t a job anywhere that
is perfect. Just today I observed a cashier in a busy restaurant finding joy in
that repetitive job. She smiles at
everyone and engages people in conversation. She makes you feel special because
she greets you like a friend. For
a while I thought it was just me that she did this with and then I observed her
interacting positively with everyone who comes to her to pay their check. I know I would find it hard to find joy
in doing her job, but to her credit, she has made it work for her and, she
brings joy to others by showing them her smile and her wishing them a beautiful
day!”
My wish for you is that you find
joy in your work!
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