[Parenting] The Position of Direction

How would you feel if one day you walked up to the conductor's podium, baton in hand, and faced a symphony orchestra that was ready to perform? Tony Chuang, a young Taiwanese who won the first prize at the International Conductor Competition in Denmark in April, describes himself this way: "I am immersed in the music, I follow the music, and I remember everything I need to remember".

From the mouth of a champion conductor, it is as simple as that. For the role of a conductor, he has to remember at least two things. First, he has to memorize the music he is going to conduct, which he has probably practiced countless times before going on stage; second, and very importantly, he has to remember the configuration of the whole orchestra, where the violinists are, where the winds are, and who is in charge of the timpani, and not only should he memorize them, but also be able to familiarize himself with them so well that it seems as if the music coming out of the whole orchestra is coming out of his baton. He must not only memorize it, but he must be able to play it so well that it seems as if the music of the whole orchestra is coming out of his baton.

After winning the award, Mr. Chuang Dongjie said that life is just like a symphony orchestra, everyone has to stand in his own position and play his own music according to the conductor. If you think about it carefully, isn't the society we live in also a large orchestra? Everyone has his or her own position, and everyone has his or her own musical notes to play.

You may say that this is a pluralistic society, and the music played by everyone may not be consistent and harmonious, but let's think back to the words of Tony Chuang: Whether or not you are able to immerse yourself in what you are doing, and to follow your heart, the most important thing is whether or not you have remembered everything you should have remembered.

Excerpted from Mandarin Newspaper by Lui Ching Tat