By Dean Olson
On this day — September 17th, 2013 — you and I, as proud Americans, celebrate the 226th anniversary of the formal signing of one of the grandest documents ever conceived by human hands … The Constitution of the United States of America! Or as many have called it, the Supreme Law of the Land! The date we commemorate is the day it was adopted in 1787 by the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. Eleven states held conventions, and it was ratified. It actually went into effect several months later on March 4, 1789. WE THE PEOPLE benefit from it, two and a quarter centuries later, primarily from the first ten amendments, known as the Bill Of Rights!
So, I would like to take this time to honor the delegates of the Philadelphia Convention back in ’87. Ah, the Founding Fathers. Men of principle and courage, and never forget that… may they always be remembered as great thinkers and visionaries for all time. Yeah!! Let me give a shout-out to James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, to George Mason and also to Lynn Ahrens!
Who??? Lynn Ahrens? Who is THAT? Isn’t that a girl’s name?
Hey, wait a minute…Oh that’s right, there weren’t any women at the Philadelphia Convention. So, let me pause on that note, and answer the point, who is Lynn Ahrens? Well, let me tell you, she’s kind of an important historical figure, too.
She is the songwriter who penned the music and lyrics to a song called “The Preamble” which debuted on Schoolhouse Rock in 1976. Okay, kids born in the 1960’s… NOW, does that ring a Liberty Bell? Ms. Ahrens’ body of work on the very popular ABC-TV series alone includes such memorable tunes as “Interjections!” – “No More Kings” – “The Great American Melting Pot” and “A Noun Is a Person, Place or Thing”. Lynn Ahrens, who also is singing voice behind these catchy little songs, is second only in popularity to the great jazz song-smith Bob Dorough, who is responsible for “Conjunction Junction” – “Three Is a Magic Number” – as well as all the remaining numbers in Multiplication Rock. From my generation’s perspective, these were all building block companions to our education as young kids. It gave me the understanding that rote learning through music had a valid place in our lives as students. I didn’t do well in memory and recall during my elementary school years, so I kind of wish Schoolhouse Rock was available and applicable for all the grades above the third grade. Only a thought.
The actual preamble to our Constitution states our founding fathers’ intentions as to what the document means – as well as their aspirations of what it could achieve as the new nation grew. As you well know, the passage goes like this:
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
This opening paragraph actually serves no governing purpose; it is there simply as an introduction. It sets the tone for what you will read in the document. Those who know the song by heart are aware that an integral phrase [“of the United States”] was taken out to make the “lyrics” flow better. But I give full credit to Ms. Ahrens for teaching me, through the power of song, this lengthy but important prologue. It stayed with me. 
I’m sure that the other students in my sixth grade class can say the same thing. Thirty-six years later, we can still clearly hear the melodies and lyrics in our heads. My teachers taught me just fine, but music is definitely a great vehicle for learning. I believe it’s proof positive that Schoolhouse Rock was a worthwhile and noble project.
Happy Constitution Day, Everybody!!!
