What it all means...

When reading this blog, I hope you get the idea that we have lots of fun all the time. But it isn't all about playing on the beach or climbing the rigging on a pirate ship (yeah, it was super cool!). Over the years, I have played many concerts, experiencing a myriad of emotions; pride, love, faith, joy, as well as disappointment, sadness, and heartache. We recently played a concert in Bremerton, Washington, and most of those feelings went through my head. Zach and I, the 5th year ringers in the choir, were fortunate enough to have our parents visit for this concert. We played really well, and I was extremely proud of not only myself, but our choir. One of our fellow ringers got too sick to perform, and I felt the choir pull together for the concert, and also for him. After the concert, I started thinking about all my years in this choir, all the concerts, and all the people. Zach reminded me that that night would be the second to last night our parents would ever see us perform. This is a hard thing for me to think about, because this choir has been such a huge part of my life for so long. It has become more than an activity for Tuesday and Sunday nights, and grown into an occupation, a matter of personal pride, and a family. I hope this gives you a little insight into what these concerts mean to us, and now I want to talk about our music as a ministry.
I have gathered over the years that, being a Christian organization, the main goal of our concerts is to bring people closer to God. It also offers an escape from the rush of daily life, a time to relax and to breathe, a time to center oneself. In one concert, we hope to make you laugh, cry, relax, think, and feel something bigger than yourself, whatever that may be. People have told me many things after our concerts, how we restored their faith in what youth can accomplish, things we made them feel, things we reminded them of, as well as the occasional comment of disapproval. When you begin to play with this group, starting with practices and fundraisers, and our one sunday a month performing in church, you don't really understand the impact that we have on people. It's only after a few concerts on tour that it begins to sink in (and I can say that I'm still learning things about myself and about humanity after 5 long years). We can't say for sure exactly what it means, or pick the most likely effect, because our audiences are as diverse as we are, and all are there for different reasons, much like us. We all come from different places, we are motivated by a variety of things, but for that hour and a half, we are joined by the music. It breaks down the barriers within the choir, uniting us to a common goal, and it breaks down the barriers between us and the audience. Whatever our auxillary reasons, we're all there for the music.
Katie