Imparting Ideals

As the semester pushes onward, we look forward to some of our favorite fraternal events. These opportunities to, as Father Mills said, "withdraw from the active, noisy, materialistic rush of the world ... and in peaceful quiet meditate upon and consider together some of the deep things of life," are often spent examining the ideals we associate with Sinfonia. While we benefit greatly from these discussions and use them as a primary method of imparting our ideals to future Sinfonians, we must remember that they represent only the introduction of an idea, not the culmination of a teaching.

Realistically, this teaching never reaches a true culmination. We teach our ideals to our future and initiated Brothers daily through their expression in our words and actions. This teaching and leading by example does not require us to be conscious of who is watching or to make any additional effort; it is merely a by-product of allowing our ideals to permeate our thoughts and refine our conduct. The true effort is not in the act of teaching, but in the constant endeavor to embody our ideals.

"...just as the musician who finally perfects a difficult passage on his instrument must continue to practice in order to maintain the new, higher level, to be truly changed we must work to embody our ideals daily. Any real influence Sinfonia will ever have on music in America rests upon our individual and collective efforts to live and act better." - Sinfonia, the Next Level - A Higher Level, National President John Mongiovi