MR. JUNIOR's CLASSIC MUSIC LOVE SECRET

Mr. Junior and I have different tastes in music at times. However, we have a system running smoothly in our lives. On the way to his early learning centre, we listen to 'his music', and on the way back home, we listen to 'my music'.

His type of music is hard to name as he is generally pretty particular about what he likes and it is hard to guess what he will say yes to especially while listening to the radio. It is perhaps mostly pop music but not the very loud or the busy ones and I am  happy with it as well. However, I also enjoy variety and I try to expose my children to it too. That's why I thought it would be great to find a way to offer some opportunities to my children to have a taste of other music types too rather than the only ones they like.

Music doesn't actually have a big role in my life to be honest but when I do listen to it, I often prefer some calming type of music such as classic music or jazz unless I am happy to sing along or dance and that's when we both enjoy similar types of music (for example, we both enjoy listening to'The lion sleeps tonight' over and over and we both like to jump around and dance to it).

My love of classic and instrumental music in general began when I was at highschool when one of my brothers gifted a Mozart CD to me and later on took me to a great concert. A good friend of mine is also a ballet dancer and hanging around with her for quite a few years too helped, I assume.

Here is what worked really well for us: Use of imagination. It wasn't very hard to come up with this solution as I am still to this date doing this regardless of I mean to or not. I just can't help thinking of possible dance moves or a story that goes with the music I am listening. Recently, I turned on 'my music' in the car again and asked Mr. Junior what he thought was happening/what story it was telling as he listened to it. He was perplexed and asked me what I thought it was about. I started sharing with him what I thought the story was. As the tunes changed, the moves changed too. He loved it!!! He loved my stories and he started imagining also. He still prefers me to tell him a story that goes with the music rather than him sharing one with me but, hey, this little game gave us something unique to share, an opportunity to let go of our limits and let our imagination go wild and also the love of classic music.

Since that day, he LOVES classic music and the stories that we come up with. At times lions jump out of nowhere and run wild until they find a puddle and then they start jumping on it, sometimes it is the kids hiding from some other kids and going on their tippy toes, or someone trying to sleep but it is not working because he has some brilliant ideas that just came to mind and made him too excited. He gets up and writes the ideas down before he relaxes and goes back to bed etc.

I believe that every time he listens to classic music even as an adult in the future, he will remember our little stories and who knows, may be one day, this may be how he will help his children to enjoy a certain type of music when he is a parent!