American As Apple Pie

As a child, I remember going with my parents to vote in the tiny town of Byers, just 3 1/2 miles away from our farm home. I'm not sure I realized the significance as they disappeared behind the red, white and blue canvas curtain of the voting booth with ballot in hand. But when I reached age 18, I, too, wanted to make my vote count.

However, in all those years since, I've never been part of a caucus. Kansas' caucus have traditionally been later in the process. Each party's nominee was pretty much a foregone conclusion, so it didn't seem like it made any difference anyway.

However, this year was different. With the tally for delegates still in flux, it seemed more relevant this year. But, as I saw the line at the Reno County Republican caucus stretch for a hundred yards down the sidewalk outside the Atrium Hotel, I again wished that our house was on the other side of the county line.

According to Facebook, my friends and neighbors in Stafford County were in and out of their caucus in a matter of minutes. But in Hutchinson, cars were circling the hotel lot, trying to find a place to park. We had errands to run, so we decided to do them and come back.

The next time, the line was only a few dozen feet from the front doors. But it was deceptive. Inside, the line snaked and curved through the hotel lobby, doubling back. We were many and varied. Young parents carried babies, pushed empty strollers and tried to entertain squirming toddlers. Teens accompanying their parents on a Saturday morning, shuffled their feet as the line slowly moved, while their fingers raced and dashed over their phones.

Some senior citizens leaned against the lobby chairs and sofas for a brief respite before moving on to the next rest point. Some wore their political leanings on their sleeves with campaign T-shirts, but a lot more promoted their favorite college instead. After all, it was game day for K-State, KU and Wichita State.

It took about 45 minutes to reach the table where we handed over our driver's licenses and our voter registration records were checked. We were handed a sticker and went into a hotel ballroom, where we traded the sticker for a ballot. Once we got there, it took only a few seconds to put a pencil mark by a candidate's name and drop it in the voting box.

Brent says it only took 5 minutes in Riley County. Some caucus goers in Wichita waited 3 hours, so 45 minutes didn't seem so bad after I heard that.

 

Was it a wise use of my time? I doubt it. But at least I was part of the process. And, in a democracy, that should be celebrated.

Our trip to the caucus came as we were driving home the morning after seeing our niece, Madison, in the opera, The Consul, at K-State.

Photo from K-State Theatre

Even though we can get disillusioned by our political system in America, The Consul was a reminder of what living in a police state would be like. The opera is set in a large European city, probably in the 1930s or '40s. A freedom fighter comes home with a bullet in his leg, courtesy of the country's corrupt Secret Police. For his family's survival, he flees to a neighboring democratic country, leaving behind his wife, Magda (Madi's character), his mother and an ill baby boy.

Photo by K-State Theatre

Magda goes to the consulate to try and get exit visas for the rest of the family to join her husband and escape persecution. But the whole process is an exercise in futility and bureaucratic red tape. The show doesn't have a "feel good" happy ending.

Perhaps that glimpse of oppression gave me a little more appreciation for the political process as I stood in line on a beautiful spring morning in Hutchinson, Kansas. Flawed as it is, I can still be part of our political process.

Opera: A Training Ground for Life Skills

Once upon a time, I was in an opera. One husband, two kids, two granddaughters, one Central Kansas farm and 36 years later, it may seem the stuff from which fairytales are made.

During my senior year at Kansas State, I was Miss Pinkerton in Gian Carlo Menotti's "The Old Maid and the Thief." I was a home economics and mass communications major, so it was a bit unusual for me to land a role in the opera. But I did take private voice lessons and used music courses to satisfy some of my humanities requirements for my degree.

Memorabilia from my opera experiences in 1979.

I still think my opera gig and our week-long tour to Western Kansas was one reason my Food Science professor wouldn't raise my grade a few tenths of a fraction to an "A." She said she didn't think I was fully committed to my major - even though I'd spent much of the prior year as chairman of the College of Home Economics' Hospitality Day (the old terminology for open house)

Hmmm ... I wonder if I'm still bitter about that B+ and her remarks about my commitment. But, in the long run, being part of the opera and the opera tour provided more life experiences than a "A" in Food Science. And, for the record, no employer has ever asked me for my grade card (though this Type A overachiever would have been more than happy to share it).

The opera memories came rushing back over the weekend as I watched our niece, Madison, in "Hansel and Gretel." She was the Gingerbread Witch. Madi, like me, got a fun "character" role. I was a frazzled, easily agitated busybody. Madison was a manipulative, expressive witch with a "taste" for lost children. Madi, a vocal performance major, is much more talented than I ever was. And she doesn't get as nervous - or maybe she's better at hiding it than me.

Madison is on the far right. Photo found on Facebook.

I still have memorabilia from the opera, but I don't have any photos of myself as Miss Pinkerton. There wasn't a cell phone in every pocket back in 1979.

I do have my directions for applying my extensive makeup and a photo from a Collegian advertisement - just in case I'm ever in the mood to become Miss Pinkerton for the day. I wouldn't have to draw on so many wrinkles or apply so much shading these days!

The memorabilia collage I made 36 years ago still hangs in our home office, but I hadn't really looked at it for years. It's been fun to reminisce by reading the reviews and remembering the friends and fellow cast mates who sent me flowers or well wishes via the Collegian personal ads. My opera score is marked with stage directions and notes about diction and phrasing.

That B+ in Food Science pales in comparison to the opera experience. I would always have more chances to study and learn. I still do that every day.

But being in the opera was a little like learning to work in the real world outside academia. I relied on other people to show up and be engaged, and they relied on me. I learned to juggle extra practices and obligations on top of an already-crowded schedule. I learned about dealing with different personalities and egos in pressure-packed situations, including my own. I learned teamwork and working toward a common goal. I was able to use God-given gifts in a fun and productive way.

And isn't that what life should be about?