Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.
(Psalm 101: 1)
This week, we had nearly 100% attendance at VIP rehearsal. All of our singers (except one, who was attending a mandatory school rehearsal) were there. In the middle of cold and flu season, this is unheard of! I am so grateful for the health of the choir.
And generally speaking -- ever try to get 47 teenagers to be in one place at one time? With everything the VIPs (and their parents) balance every day, I'm a little amazed when we all manage to make it to the music room on Monday nights. Just getting there is reason to give thanks!
More than that, I am thankful that when the singers gather, they're really there. They're focused, they're paying attention, and they're plugged in with each other and with what's happening in the room.
Over the course of the past few weeks, I've been listening to VIP concerts recorded during our last choir tour to South Bend and Chicago. A virus struck the choir and one by one, singers started to come down with awful symptoms including severe laryngitis. (A choir director's nightmare!)
During the Tour, we performed a stunning arrangement of "Here I Am, Lord" that demanded a lot from our awesome sopranos. In the last concert of the Tour, they performed despite their illnesses. To my ears, beneath the beauty of the song, I can hear the sopranos holding on with all their strength and clawing their way to a good performance. They're using every skill they have, and offering every ounce of themselves in that song. They were fighting to be present. And with God's help, they succeeded.
I am grateful that we have singers who work hard to be present, in every sense of the word.