Membership
Photos courtesy of Piney Hills Harmony Chorus.
WHY I AM A SWEET ADELINE A rookie singer experiences the joy of giving
I
’m new to the barbershop community. I joined Piney Hills Harmony Chorus back in the summer of 2018 and fell in love when I heard that very first harmony ring from our risers. Only a couple of months after I joined, we began singing Christmas songs, in JULY. But Christmas is my favorite holiday, so I enjoyed every minute. We were practicing for our Christmas show to be held at the Strauss Theatre in Monroe, La. (USA). As the days grew closer, the nerves grew bigger and bigger. The Friday before, we had our dress rehearsal at the theater and ran through the whole show, and it suddenly became more than real. This was it! We got to rehearse with our special guest, bagpiper Scott Arvin, who brought instant tears to my eyes as he started to play "Amazing Grace." I knew I needed to get the tears out then instead of during the show. The curtain rose for the first time for our afternoon show, and it was nothing but pure love and harmony. Within the blink of an eye, it was over. It felt as if we were on that stage for less than 10 minutes! I WAS ECSTATIC! We had filled the room with laughter and smiles. I eagerly awaited the evening show in hopes that we could make the next audience feel the same as the ones who’d just left. When it was time for the evening show, I was exhausted but ready to do it all over again because I now knew performing gave me the greatest feeling in the world. We made it through the first half without fault, then it was time for our bagpiper to make his grand entrance. We sat patiently behind the curtain enjoying the music, waiting on our cue. When he began playing "Amazing Grace," we got into position and the curtain rose. It was simply beautiful. No tears fell from my eyes
as we sang with him, but joy filled my heart. About that time, I spotted a gentleman in the audience and noticed he was wearing a veteran's cap. My eyes never left him the entire song. When the show was over, we made our way down to the audience where my husband and in-laws were waiting for me. I walked right past them because I was simply drawn to the gentleman who had caught my eye during the song. As I walked over to him, I thanked him for coming to our show and thanked him for his service to this country. When he grabbed my hands, the tears began flowing from both our eyes. His daughter, who was standing next to him, pulled me aside and whispered, "He just lost his wife of over 70 years last weekend. This is the first time I’ve seen him smile since it happened." I was at a loss for words at that point, which doesn’t happen very often. All I could do was embrace him as tightly as possible. When I pulled back, he grabbed both hands and just told me “Thank you” repeatedly and gave me the sweetest kiss on my cheek. My husband was waiting for me in the aisle, and as I made my way to him, I stopped and realized THIS was my reason for joining Piney Hills Harmony Chorus and Sweet Adelines International. This was it. Our voices did the impossible by making someone who had just lost the love of his life smile. I had doubted my voice for the longest time, but this one moment made me see why I was chosen to become part of this chorus. Now, I would be lost in this world without my sisters in song. Catherine Stoppleworth sings bass with Piney Hills Harmony Chorus in north Louisiana, USA.
October 2019 |
29
