I've been very busy for a couple of weeks so I apologize for not posting anything. Many changes are happening for me at work and I'm taking a graduate class so things have not been terribly settled. Meanwhile Martin Luther King Day and the Inauguration of the new President have been monopolizing the headlines.
This Sunday the St. Luke Choir did an anthem this morning that consisted of the men singing the faith song "I Believe" while the women sang the Bach-Gounod "Ave Maria." This was termed a "Quodlibet" which is a piece of music combining more than one melody (think "Lida Rose" and "Dream Of Now" from the Music Man.) We did not do a bad job of it, and it was glorious to hear our soprano sub Kristen on the high note at the end, but there was a noticeable spot in the middle where we didn't hear each other and we consequently lost our place for about a bar or so.
Okay, so there's a lesson there......no matter how well you think you know what you are doing, it pays to listen and pay attention. If you are not in synch with what the other folks you are collaborating with are doing, nobody gets anywhere. It's hard to listen and adjust to someone else; I find it a huge challenge to be patient and wait for others. (just ask my husband about getting ready to go to the gym in the mornings). Especially in a choir, it's not a race to see who gets to the end of the piece first (that would be interesting though) but a work done together, "in concert." One of the most important skills in music performance--and life--is to be able to listen to what others are doing and adjust how you fit into it.
We saw Obama do a little of this during the oath of office gaffe where Chief Justice Roberts reversed the word order, moving the adverb "faithfully" modifying the verb "to execute" to the end of the sentence instead of with the verb. I don't think he wanted to, but I think he ended up saying it Roberts' way. How much more gracious is that than saying "I'm sorry, you've got it wrong. Start over."
I enjoy attending live community theater productions, and if possible I always try to make it to a show on opening night. I think that the performance is more electric and fresher the first time with an audience, when the players are just learning how the pieces fit together and the whole work is perceived. Collaborating in artistic ventures is the joy of it for the performers and a very large part of the appreciation by the audience.
So it's a beautiful day to listen and wait and see what happens......
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Take My Life....Please!
It's the New Year--rarely have we been so glad to start one--Christmas is over, the trees are down, the decorations put away, the cookies and chocolate fortunately almost completely gone.
We had what could barely be called snow (what happened to the good old snowy days?) but the parking lot was icy despite the cheery sunshine.
This morning's service was remarkable in many ways, from the gorgeous Bach music from Marcia, Ray, and Clyde, the climactic faceoff Pastor David explained he would be joining with peacemaking colleagues at a Philadelphia gun shop, the consecration of church leaders and a very moving message about the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
However, the thing I most want to remark on was that we had a little chancel drama! Marilyn and Nancy kicked off the second scripture reading (the Holy Spirit descending on Ch rist after his baptism) with a little role-play dialogue of two observers discussing the events of the day and their imperfect understanding of what had occurred at the baptism of Jesus. "Ooh, cool!" I thought, leaning forward with excitement. It was great to have a little interpretation to make the reading relevant. Chancel drama is a wonderful tool in worship--it's entertaining and a break from routine. Most importantly, it's truly effective in helping people remember and take away the message.
I'm about to go to our global sales meeting this week and I will have to do presentations that I have been preparing for two months, along with my colleagues who work with me on basic science textbooks and review books for medical students. It's a big effort, and I am always extremely anxious for this meeting to be over, so my prayers today were along the lines they often are--help me to find a way to feel that I am serving God even while working fulltime at a corporation. The anthem today was thought-provoking, "Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee......Take my intellect and use every power as Thou should choose." While I often seek out God as escape or refuge of some kind from the challenges and stresses of work, I know that there is no joy without struggle, and that effort and work are always rewarded with the satisfaction of knowing we've done our best!
In fact, we can't really do our best without being synched in with the Holy Spirit. And the more we consecrate ourselves to God, the more good work we are able to do. So let's keep high expectations and high hopes of ourselves and of others, trusting that we'll be able to tap into the power of God to get us through.
We had what could barely be called snow (what happened to the good old snowy days?) but the parking lot was icy despite the cheery sunshine.
This morning's service was remarkable in many ways, from the gorgeous Bach music from Marcia, Ray, and Clyde, the climactic faceoff Pastor David explained he would be joining with peacemaking colleagues at a Philadelphia gun shop, the consecration of church leaders and a very moving message about the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
However, the thing I most want to remark on was that we had a little chancel drama! Marilyn and Nancy kicked off the second scripture reading (the Holy Spirit descending on Ch rist after his baptism) with a little role-play dialogue of two observers discussing the events of the day and their imperfect understanding of what had occurred at the baptism of Jesus. "Ooh, cool!" I thought, leaning forward with excitement. It was great to have a little interpretation to make the reading relevant. Chancel drama is a wonderful tool in worship--it's entertaining and a break from routine. Most importantly, it's truly effective in helping people remember and take away the message.
I'm about to go to our global sales meeting this week and I will have to do presentations that I have been preparing for two months, along with my colleagues who work with me on basic science textbooks and review books for medical students. It's a big effort, and I am always extremely anxious for this meeting to be over, so my prayers today were along the lines they often are--help me to find a way to feel that I am serving God even while working fulltime at a corporation. The anthem today was thought-provoking, "Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee......Take my intellect and use every power as Thou should choose." While I often seek out God as escape or refuge of some kind from the challenges and stresses of work, I know that there is no joy without struggle, and that effort and work are always rewarded with the satisfaction of knowing we've done our best!
In fact, we can't really do our best without being synched in with the Holy Spirit. And the more we consecrate ourselves to God, the more good work we are able to do. So let's keep high expectations and high hopes of ourselves and of others, trusting that we'll be able to tap into the power of God to get us through.
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