A pleasant voice is one of the finest attributes you can have

I am naturally soft spoken, probably because I grew up in the age of children being seen and not heard. Mother taught us not to invade others’ sound barriers. The lesson went something like, “And if I hear from anyone that you were being loud and drawing attention to yourselves on the bus, there will be dues to pay.”

Of course, there was always an “anyone” on the bus, so we learned to snicker instead of laugh out loud and whisper instead of speak our minds. Both of these led others to believe we were poking fun at them, and we probably were.

I live close to a school that seemingly has one recess after another all day. After teaching so many years, the sound of children having fun in playground games is still lovely to me. Each day I cherish the sounds of the career I loved, except for the little girls who scream. I don’t mean yell at the top of their longs. I mean high-pitched, screechy screams, for no apparent reason other than the delight of shrieking.

There are at least two in every recess. You probably think I am really getting to be a grouchy, old lady, but I can’t seem to help it. These shrieks go right in one ear and don’t come out the other. I realize it’s better for the whole school that they are not practiced inside, but it makes me want to tell their mothers, “Watch out. You’ve got a real attention seeker coming up.” Still, on the sensible side, I guess it’s not a bad idea for children to be able to scream in self-defense.

I don’t think I could manufacture one of those high pitches if I had to. I can yell — just suck in the diaphragm and open wide — but scream? No. My response, when startled, is a quiet intake of breath, like Oh-h-h-h-h-h. You may often hear me say to myself, “Tone of voice,” when I am upset about something and realize I am talking in angry teacher tones. It happens easily.

We are taught, “A soft voice turneth away wrath.” Some people have the unfortunate habit of answering others’ statements in a sarcastic tone of voice so that they begin to believe everything they say is wrong or stupid.

To me, a pleasant voice is one of the finest attributes a person can have. My ears turn off quickly to whiny, nasal or gruff voices. I am happy to fit in as a choir alto, seldom having to reach for anything higher than C above middle C, never having to worry about whether I am singing or screeching. It is amazing to me the beautiful, extremely high soprano sounds or comforting very low bass sounds some people are able to manage when blessed with a voice not just stuck in the middle.

There are so many things in today’s world that seem to be a good reason to raise our voices. Perhaps it is best to try to do that in an authoritative way, rather than to scream at others. It doesn’t always work, but it is yet another of my desires to live in a kinder, gentler world.

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