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Darke
County Senior Scribes
Mask & Lyre Club
By Delbert Blickenstaff, M.D.
Mark was a 16 year old Junior at Plymouth H. S. Both of his
parents were in the teaching profession, his dad being Principal at
Warsaw H. S. This suited Mark just fine because it saved him from
being teased by his classmates.
Music was Mark’s favorite subject and he used his fine baritone voice
in the H. S. Chorus and in a male quartet. His present goal was
to be admitted to the Mask & Lyre Club. Mark was the only one
of the twelve applicants who accompanied himself for his audition
number.
Mark’s dad was an accomplished guitarist,, and it didn’t take him long
to teach Mark the simple chords in the ballad, “Red Wing.” Mark
was the hit at the auditions, the other students gathering around him
afterward to watch him finger the guitar.
When the auditions were over, all 12 students having been accepted into
the Mask & Lyre Club, everyone was celebrating with punch and
cookies in an adjacent classroom. Mark was talking to his friend
Hank when the lights suddenly went out, leaving the room in total
darkness. The girls squealed, of course. Mark and Hank
thought they knew where the light switch was so they followed the wall
until they found it. Mark turned the light on and everyone
cheered.
Then Mark made a decision which cost him dearly. He decided to
keep his hand over the light switch to protect it from any
prankster. When Ms. Miller saw Mark standing there with his hand
on the light switch she immediately assumed that he was the one who
turned out the lights. She stormed over to Mark and slapped him
in the face, shouting “Don’t ever do that again!”
Mark was stunned. Hank said “Hit her back.” Mark was hurt
and confused. Ms. Miller obviously had acted without
thinking. Had he actually been the prankster he certainly would
not have stayed there. And why didn’t she simply ask him what he
was doing? He couldn’t think of anything to say.
Later, contemplating his introduction into the Mask & Lyre Club,
Mark decided that Ms. Miller had provided the Mask and he had provided
the Lyre.
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