Life lessons learned from Dad, class
School subjects help foster more appreciation for father’s choices, musical taste

By Melissa DeLoach
Senior Reporter

As soon as the commercials start, Dad starts dancing.

He swings his arms and shakes his hips to any advertisement that plays music. Be it the Fruit of the Loom men or the Budweiser frogs, he always has a unique move — or not — that fits with the theme of the advertisement.

When I was younger, my sisters and I would join him in front of the television and dance until the show came back on. How could we not? He was so cool.

Driving with dad was even cooler. He knew all the words to every song that played on the radio station. We would listen to him sing the tunes of The Supremes and Queen.

But about the time I went into middle school, Dad’s dancing days became more obnoxious than entertaining.

Why was Dad so weird? And Mom, how could she sit there and let him make a fool of himself, rolling her eyes as she occasionally spun around the room with him?

His music selection was, and still is, about as diverse as it can get. He didn’t listen to Vanilla Ice or Paula Abdul. He still listened to the Beatles.

Yet, looking back, Dad lives with four women. And if that isn’t hard enough, we are four women who continually make him run to the grocery store to buy pads and tampons. Not too many men would go to these lengths to make the women in his life happy.

And to complain about his music is wrong. If I was a teen-ager in the 60s I would be a fan of the Beatles too.

Now that I’m older, the tuner on my radio is adjusted to the oldies and hard rock stations. Just hearing The Fab Four — John, Ringo, Paul and George — hammer out the notes reminds me of Dad beating on the steering wheel and singing along.

However, Dad’s music may have just been getting me ready for college and preparing me for the exposure to new ideas.

If only he could sit next to me in Rock to Bach on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I wish Dad could see my face as I grow to understand and appreciate the music he grew up with, and loves.

Rock to Bach is just one example of a class that allows students to gain a glimpse into the past experiences of their parents.

Students are attracted to this class because the instructor uses videos and plays music to aid his lectures. Sometimes students even sing along to the music played in class.

Often I think some professors focus too much of their attention on research. As a result, the quality of their teaching can suffer.

TCU professors can really learn a lot by looking at the teaching style of Rock to Bach. It may be a class of over 100 students, but rarely is there an empty seat.

It’s at least given me another reason to call home and talk to Dad.

Senior Reporter Melissa DeLoach is a junior broadcast journalism major from Waco.
She can be reached at (m.d.deloach@student.tcu.edu).

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