thankful

It's been awhile since I've posted about MY musical happenings! And in October, I was musically happening! =)

During the month of October I was blessed to have 4 different playing gigs! That's totally a record for me! I did one concert in little hick town about an hour from me. It was band music, which was kinda fun, but really just a good warm up for my other gigs. Then I did one in my town, actually just a couple miles up the road. I played principal and it was in a concert with the VonTrapp family singers, the great grandchildren of the Captain and Maria! Yes for real! (Did you see the Oprah Sound of Music Reunion? Well the 4 siblings sang in the last minute of her show and I was like WOW! I just did a concert with them! ) The concert wasn't really that big of a deal...it was with a little orchestra that was at least half volunteer and it was in a gym....so a perfect place to make my principal horn debut...I haven't played that part except for sporadically during my senior year of college! Then the next night I played a concert (with Brian) with a chorus. We did a 21st century choral work by Theofanidis and it was AWESOME! I mean some of my most favorite music I've performed, not necessarily my part, but getting to hear the choral part so many times was awesome! Theofanidis was even there! Then the next week I played with Brian in the symphony for their Halloween kiddie concerts. That was challenging because I've never played Sorcerer's Apprentice before and it goes very fast so it was challenging to keep up!

It absolutely blows my mind that I didn't quit playing horn over the past 4 years. Despite having my first baby 6 weeks after graduating from college and then moving to an apartment for a year that I felt I couldn't practice in but I did teach 10 students, one day a week....and then the next year I could practice but hardly had a reason to. I did get to play in the opera pit twice there (!) but I couldn't find a single student in Kansas City....and then I moved to another city where I had zero playing opportunities or students, and had another kid. Kids are little time sucking devices, especially their first several months, in case you are unfamiliar....I mean I haven't been practicing a ton over the past 4 years but I have been enough to keep it up and I'm confident that I'm better now than I was the day I graduated college. I can't convey how frustrating it is to try to "get it back" when I have had extended periods of not playing very much and several times as I've been in that stage of trying to get it back I have wanted to just forget it. But I promised myself I couldn't quit until my student loans are paid off. But that's a joke I have with myself...because they are never going to be paid off.....but after all this time I've been losing my life, in a sense, to take care of my family, I never would have imagined that I would be blessed with this many opportunities to play, getting my old life back in a sense. The Lord's goodness to me is overwhelming. I know I am undeserving of these opportunities. He knows I'm happier when I am busier, and He knows I love that music related busyness. Here I even have about 6 students!

The day after my last concert (for a while anyway) the Bishop called me into his office and asked me to be the Primary President. Primary is the name of our church's organization for children ages 18months-11. Our ward needed a new Primary President because my sweet friend DanaLee Fox passed away on October 17 and she had been the Primary President. Here is a sweet article about DanaLee. I was officially sustained a couple weeks later on the day of our Primary's annual Sacrament Meeting Program and DanaLee's parents happened to be there. It was a very emotional day for me, under the circumstances. But I feel really humbled and blessed to have the opportunity to serve these children, even though it may only be a few months before we move. I know there must be an important work I am to do and I pray daily I can have the Spirit with me to help me accomplish it. I marvel that my life's experiences have brought me here....musically and spiritually!