Band room

Chairs

straightbacked for posture perfection

in neat rows

arranged up each step of the staggered blue-carpeted levels

sneakers and boots rooted

to the tiled floor

gray speckled white

plugs tumble to the ground when removed

and are impossible to find

ceiling crossed with bars and tubes

bright lights built in above our heads

clock in back above the rudiments poster

clock in front dangling above tempo markings

note names

articulation dynamics expression interpretation etc. etc. etc.

all the things we've been taught

all the things I'm trying to think harder about

it's not default to care

podium

set before the big clear stand

baton, drumsticks lying in wait atop it

the big screen TV mounted at the front of the classroom

with the agenda and the typos

practice rooms scattered around

little nooks of pianos and music and crinkled paper scales

doors that close but are always open

the office, "our" office

minifridge desk notes papers

fuzzy black sturdy assessment chair

sticky solid dark big assessment stand

big windows

sparkly purple pink petals in the sunlight in spring and summer

darkrose red in the fall

bare branches reaching towards the sky in anticipation of snow

cold mornings

soon-to-be hot chocolate

snowy hair

late arrivals

clomping in

unpacking cases

stashing folders in cubbies

taking pieces out to play

the cacophony of chaos gone right

gone wrong, sometimes

I'm going to miss it here