Savage Taxidermy in Onancock

I became a single working mother, quite unexpectedly, when my youngest was 2 years old. Needless to say, because of work schedules and re-entering the work force in a brand new job, I didn't have a lot of vacation time. Later when I started working for the school system, I had my summers off, but that left no personal time during the school year to do parent things like being room mother, or yearbook coordinator or chaperoning field trips. 14 years have gone by since then, and I have earned enough vacation time that I was able to take a day this past weekend to chaperon a school trip for my daughter. The last time I chaperoned anything for her was 2nd grade and their field trip to the theatre. I have written about my baby before, and most of you know she is a singer. Music is extremely important in her life. She is a member of her school's Honors Choir and she is also a member of their Beauty Shop quartet. For those who don't know, Beauty Shop is the female counterpart to Barber Shop. This is her second year participating in that group. She auditioned as a freshman and got the baritone voice part. This year she auditioned and was switched to lead. She is also the only one of all 8 singers, men and women, who is returning for the 2012/2013 school year. All the others were seniors this past year and have graduated. All of this meant that both groups were brand new. As the veteran, my daughter asked if I would chaperon. I said yes, and last Thursday we all embarked on our voyage to Salisbury, MD to Harmony College for 3 days of BARBERSHOP! Harmony College is a program that is sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic Barbershop Harmony Society and brings High School and College quartets from around the country together for their Youth in Harmony program. The weekend is definitely about singing but so much more. The students have the chance to bond with each other in dorm living and spend 3 days pretty much functioning as a unit. There is very little time to do anything else but attend classes, coaching sessions, and practicing what they've learned to use for their performance on Saturday night.
 The drive took about 5 hours with tunnel traffic, and there were 5 of us ladies in a Toyota Camry. Thank God my brother-in-law let me borrow his car because mine is a Yaris. The girls quartet was formed 3 weeks ago. In 3 weeks, along with final exams, they had to learn a song in barbershop harmony [which, let me tell you, is not easy, my friends], teach 4 new voices to blend together, shop for outfits and shoes, and rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. Our route to Maryland was via Route 13 through the Eastern Shore. Not really a mecca of activity. The drive was dotted with Walmarts and Antique Stores and the ever popular Savage Taxidermy in Onancock, VA. We all got a giggle out of that one. We finally arrived around 10PM and got our keys and headed to our dorms. I was rooming with the mom chaperoning the boys, and we ended up talking until 1 AM, not the brightest idea, since we had to be up at 6AM, but we became fast friends, or as my daughter called us, "besties". I attended a few of the coaching sessions with the girls, and I watched as each one of the girls came into their own. By the time they performed on Saturday night they embodied their name, Perfect Fit. I was so proud. The boys were amazing as well and we rocked the house! I was so thrilled to be able to share that experience with my daughter! We left for home on Sunday a different group than we had started. 4 girls and guys who knew each other before are now friends, and I have 7 new children! I can't wait to see what the year holds for them!

SING OUT, Louise!

Music has always been an important part of my life. I grew up surrounded by music. Both of my grandparents sang in the church choir, and I cannot ever remember a time that I have not sung. From age 3, I started in our church's cherub choir. My grandfather taught me all of the songs from The Sound of Music before I ever began school, and I sang my first solo, Away in a Manger, as a kindergarten student at St. Catherine's. I love music, and I love singing, and luckily, I have been told I have a talent for it. This statement must be true because I have actually been paid to sing on several occasions. The point is, music, and specifically singing is a huge part of me. All parents secretly hope that their children will like what they like, follow in their footsteps, so to speak. When my children were very small I wondered if they would possess this same talent and love for singing. Their father is also a very talented singer, and I imagined how awful it would be if they were not good at singing. All their lives they would be asked, "Can you sing like your mom or your dad?" and they would have to answer, "No" Fortunately both of them can answer that question in the affirmative. They both love to sing, and they CAN. My youngest, however, has a passion for it that one rarely sees in someone her age. In the words of her older sister, "She sings like an angel." I have blogged about her voice before when she had the opportunity to sing O Holy Night at the Christmas Eve service this past December. She has an amazing ear, and can pick up harmony in a snap. I had to know she was going to be a passionate singer because when she was very little, just shy of 3, and just starting to go to the bathroom on her own, I could hear her in there singing, never a recognizable song, just something she made up. To the delight of everyone whose heard her, she decided to expand her venue beyond the bathroom. As a 4th grader she was asked to sing at the dedication of her school's auditorium, she had two major roles in musicals before she ever left elementary school, and as a freshman in high school earned the highest score in the District as a second soprano. As she began high school this past year, she only wanted two things, to make the honors group in the school, Madrigals and to make the school's female Barbershop group, Beauty Shop. She accomplished both, and that's pretty rare for a Freshman to do. She is off on her first adventure today to attend Harmony College, a Mid-Atlantic conference for 4 days that brings together all things Barber Shop, with her other three Beauty Shop members. She will perform for the first time with the group on Saturday, and I wish I could be there, but I know that she will have an amazing time and I can't wait to see what other doors open for her. So "Sing out, Louise! Mama's rootin' for ya!"