My mom, bless her soul, had a student job at the University of Michigan back in the 30s. I stumbled upon this picture online this morning of two U of M students in the "piano room" of the Student Union. My mom played piano there every night from 5-7..well she said every night but who knows...anyway she left me a piano song book from that "gig" which I look on with amazement and a whole lot of nostalgia. "
Hail to the Yellow and Blue" is in there as is
the Victors and about 2 dozen other songs of lesser meaning...going back to the 1890s and perhaps earlier. I went to Michigan State (
our splendid alma mater) and the crisp fall football days, marching in the band to the stadium, sing this song outside the tunnel and having 2-3 thousand alumni all misty eyed....well. What better.
I was going to be a golfer at UofM but that didn't pan out. My dad started a restaurant on South U there in the 30s and it is still a local watering hole but my ties go back to Ann Arbor for now a half century. If you have never gone to school that is rich in history and tradition (UM, MSU etc.) it is hard to describe the longing for it but it is real and the older you get the more it means.
