The last weekend of July found me face-to-face with my homeschool dance program's production about the life of Helen Keller.
But before I launch into the details of the ballet, here's a glimpse of the process—
In the six months preceding the show, we learned choreography and became comfortable doing it while wearing our costumes. . .
On the Monday before our last regular class, we had picture day, complete with sack lunch, a multitude of costume changes, and a giant round of Apples to Apples. . .
When we reached the three-days-until-we-arrive-at-the-theater mark, we launched into the most momentous time. . .
With two days until opening night, we practiced on the actual stage, with the lights, costumes, and make-up. . .
An hour before the tech rehearsal, I moved into a "hobbit hole" side stage for quick changes. . .
And when 7:00 PM on Friday, July 25 arrived, followed by 1:30 PM and 7:00 PM on Saturday, the preparations translated into a joyful climax of three shows.
I treasure this experience and the friendships I've made through it. . .
And I treasure the opportunity to share a story through dance.
I'm sure I'll have a bit more to say on the topic later, as well as action shots to share that were taken at the theater by several talented photographers. For now, however, thank you for joining me in a look at the big picture ~
& here we are marching into April! That is, with this post. . . happy official May:) But while April is still fresh, here's my recap of the month. . .
First off, I'll admit that April contained phrases like 'piano recital', 'college visits', and 'checking account' that made me nervous. A lot of good filled up a lot of days, keeping my attention more divided than usual. . .
I'll begin by sharing things of which I don't have pictures:
A few special opportunities popped up for me at church in the forms of talking about the Ark of the Covenant in the girls' Bible study, reading a passage of Scripture in church, and then helping with the Maundy Thursday service.
At dance, I finished learning choreography for the Helen Keller ballet. I am continually amazed at my teachers' gift for choosing unique stories and portraying them with both depth and beauty. So much joy to appreciate visually and audibly even as we dance about someone's joy despite their lack of sight and hearing.
On the school end, life was quite normal. I reached the point in the year when you see the end of subjects, yet still have a ways to go.
Now for the things of which I do have pictures: My dad took the photo above when we went to see a play of The Screwtape Letters. It followed the book to a T and was very well done!
As it was quite a drive for us to get to the theater, I had time that Saturday to finish my triangular knitting project.
Another fun project was making these panda cupcakes for. . .
Youngest Sister's birthday! (yes, she has a cake in front of her. . . no, we didn't go into a sugar coma. . . the cake was enjoyed on her actual birthday and the cupcakes at her family birthday party :)
The third project of the month was decorating Easter eggs a bit differently—not sure we quite got the hang of it, but it was an enjoyable experience :)
Another enjoyable experience? Celebrating Easter along with my Meemaw and Youngest Sister's birthdays!
Then my week of crazy started. School and dance Monday. My first college visit Tuesday.
(Best part of the visit? The library. Coolest. Place. Ever. )
School, dance, then my second college visit Wednesday into Thursday. This visit was more fun as it included going with a friend and staying with my cousin in her dorm. . .
I was delighted to enjoy their sweet company along with ginger peach tea at the local coffee shop!
School, piano lessons, dance, and a piano recital finished the week off strong on Friday.
And, despite my nerves, the month unfolded somewhat beautifully.
Looking forward to what awaits in May. . .
Also, do you have any advice for me on college? I'm definitely in the gathering-information stage. As far as a major goes, I'm torn between english and physics.
The snow gave way to green, and I admired this tree as it bravely budded despite still chill temperatures. I found the combination of cranberry, blue, and tan to look especially pretty and rather fitting for March.
Another combination that seemed oddly fitting? Three Girls at Five Guys :) My sisters and I enjoyed a bit of an adventure on our own one Saturday while my parents celebrated a friend's 50th. Fun comes in many forms. . .
For me one of those forms is babysitting. Pictured above is Peek-a-Boo with sweet girl and Guess Who with her brothers. So thankful for the opportunity to see them grow!
I'm also thankful for our church's orchestra in which Middle Sister plays violin. Plus, an extra practice for her meant an opportunity for me to attempt knitting in a triangular pattern (finished project coming in April. . . :)
I enjoyed music in a whole other way upon attending a Third Day/Skillet concert with a dear friend (who happens to be a beautiful singer and an avid Third Day fan) one weekend. Superb music and company!
A homeschool winter dance the following weekend was also entertaining. What made it fun was going with girls from my ballet program (perfect group, right? :) We got ready together, danced together, and finally enjoyed IHOP together.
Now for the fun transformation of the month: The puppies are now one year old! Still high energy, still mischievous puppies, and still rather cute :)
This, along with school and dance that managed to stay un-photographed, was my March. Soon I'll tackle April. . .
Last week, Middle Sister and I spent Monday thru Saturday at a dance intensive. Each day began with praise, ballet, and modern. After that came lunch and jazz. Finally we had the opportunity to take a variety of electives, giving us a taste of hip hop, contemporary, Broadway jazz, house, Russian character, modern improv, and others.
While it was certainly intense, we had fun as we learned a lot!
Youngest Sister and my mom were kept busy with VBS and the puppies.
My dad was kept busy taking Middle Sister and me to the intensive on his lengthened commute to work.
Continuing to tell about my week on a youth choir mission trip to Cheyenne, Wyoming. . . .
Sunday morning, June 9, we visited an air force base. We sung at the church, and the chaplain gave us a tour of the base. We saw and learned about nuclear missile carriers, including how only the President can authorize the release of nuclear weapons.
Sunday afternoon (as well as Monday afternoon and Tuesday evening) we helped with a unique ministry at Sunnyside Baptist church, the place we were temporarily calling home. I was asked to give a testimony in our church about it, so I'll just share those words here:
Hi! My name is Megan and this week I got to take part in a ministry that took me by surprise at Sunnyside Baptist Church in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Every summer, they hand out 50,000 water bottles to people attending the Cheyenne Frontier Days. Besides offering a drink, these water bottles are hand labeled with stickers that share scriptures about salvation. When we arrived at the church, pallets of water bottles lined the gym walls, ready to be unpacked, labeled, and repacked. We soon split up into teams and worked together to ready some of these pallets. In three days, we labeled a little more than nine pallets, totaling close to 17,000 water bottles. It was refreshing to be a part of something that will bring refreshment to others.
On Sunday night we performed our full concert at Sunnyside. There were few who attended, but they were very hospitable.
Monday, June 10, was full of preparations for an Upward basketball camp, backyard Bible clubs, and construction work at Sunnyside. My camera managed to stay in my bag. I was a part of the group doing backyard Bible clubs, so I got to help cut out stickers and read through lessons.
The day also included a visit to a local senior center. While waiting to sing, one of my friends and I talked to a lady named Connie who had grown up in Georgia, then moved to Wyoming. It was fascinating to hear about her transition.
Monday night everyone helped with a cook out/ carnival for Upward basketball camp enrollees. While we were ready for forty or more kids, only two showed up. Between cup stacking, face painting, a cake walk, and other games, we still had lots of fun.
Tuesday, June 11, officially began the activities. My backyard Bible club had three kids: one little girl and, later, a brother and sister. We shared the story of Creation with the kids, telling them that they are God's most special creation.
Tuesday afternoon, after a second visit to the senior center, we visited Vedauwoo State Park. Talk about Creation! I readily admit that my expectations were low. I thought we'd see a pretty forest and a few big rocks. A look around the park, however, rocked my preconceptions. We split up into groups, each with a leader or two, and were given a couple hours to explore. My group spotted another group already a ways up one of the rock-covered mountain and wondered how in the world they got there. A loud conversation ensued, pictured above, in which we got the advice of "go that way". Somehow, we managed to climb up the mountain too.
I attempted to capture the view by taking a video. It was a struggle to get to the almost-top of the little mountain. In the middle of climbing a particularly steep rock, one of my friends got stuck, her shoe fell off, and no new hand hold appeared. I reached out my own hand, but she worried she'd pull me down. We called our leader over. I started praying. Aloud. It made me feel somewhat suspended in the moment, calm as help came through our leader.
On our way back down the mountain, we spotted a moose in the trees. We stayed quiet. Thankfully, it didn't seem to spot us. We found out later that another leader had taken a picture of a moose, and the moose had charged her and our wonderful bus driver. While running away, our bus driver stepped in a hole and hurt her calf. She had to wear a special boot the rest of the trip, but thankfully no bones were broken and her driving was not affected.
Wednesday, June 12, slipped in with more backyard Bible clubs (and Upward basketball camps and construction work), as well as a concert at another church in town followed by a beautiful sunset. We didn't have any kids at our backyard Bible club location, but they had eleven kids at another one. We heard that the kids were rough, but receptive.
Breakfast on Thursday, June 13, startled me. I was seated and watching our choir director as he looked around the room for someone, one of the leaders, to pray. Then his eyes met mine and he mouthed Will you pray? I looked at him and mouthed Me? I thought there surely had to be someone else he was really asking. Still, he looked straight at me. Will you? I nodded, knowing my answer was yes, though I would never have volunteered it. He quieted the room. I talked to God. We ate our food and I marveled at how a few sentences aloud could grow me.
Thursday morning was the last time my group did backyard Bible camp. We hung out at the playground with our music going and activities ready. No kids showed up, once again, but we placed quite a few flyers at different apartment doors. Some of the flyers told about VBS the next week at Sunnyside Baptist Church. All of the flyers had information about the church. We hoped that someone would take note.
On Thursday afternoon we sang at a juvenile detention center. We saw kids our ages, with quite normal faces, wearing clothes slightly too big. We sang a song about things changing in a moment, but God staying the same.
On Friday, June 14, we packed our stuff, loaded it onto the bus, cleaned the church that had been nice enough to let us make it messy, and headed down to Ft. Collins, Colorado. There, I went white water rafting for my first time. After the complications of renting and putting on wetsuits, hearing the safety spiel, and riding another bus out to the Cache la Poudre River, we finally got in rafts (I sat in the front right spot) and learned how to paddle. The water was high, causing us to move quickly, but without the danger of all the rocks. Everyone in my boat managed to stay seated for the entire ride, only experiencing the river in waves that refreshed us in our hot wetsuits. On a calm part of the river, our guide asked us to sing one of our choir songs. We sang our one a capella song, a version of Move by MercyMe. Things got a bit interesting as we realized we were all altos, but it was a lot of fun. Our choir director passed by in his raft and was grinning.
After sleeping on a church pew on Friday night, we woke up bright and early on Saturday, June 15, and headed home. It was a long, but good ride. The bus was a bit quieter than it had been the previous Saturday. Everyone was ready to reach the church, be picked up by their families, and get a bit of sleep in their own beds before coming back the next morning to do our concert in each service. When we finally pulled into the church parking lot, my dad, who had been out of town with work all week, picked me up. I arrived home to my mom, growing sisters, and growing puppies. I told them about my time and they told me about theirs, all of us glad we had been able to talk throughout the week thanks to cellphones, but glad to be face to face again.
Sunday, June 16, Father's day, came very quickly. There was a breakfast/awards ceremony before church. Each student was awarded something, such as Mission Trip Romance (given to my friend who was given a pretzel engagement ring by a seven year old) and Chief Mischief Maker (given to the boy who was a part of every prank). I was given the Marry Poppins award, prefaced with "this girl would smile even if her arm was cut off." Glad we didn't test that theory!
All three church service concerts went well. We sang our songs and even remembered the words. I talked about the water bottle labeling, finding it unnecessary to read from my slip of paper. Turned out those words had soaked into my head too.
As in the last post, I see the theme of "words matter" throughout this trip.
The President's words matter.
Words printed on a water bottle matter.
Activities provide opportunities to share words that matter.
Everyone's words matter.
Words in the Bible matter.
Words shouted on a mountain matter.
Even in the most physically scary times, it's words that really matter.
Sometimes it's the very lack of words that matters.
Kids have a good idea of the words that matter.
Words spoken to God always matter.
Words about a place that has hope matter.
Words about a God that is hope matter.
Our choir director is always showing us that words matter.
Words, however delivered, matter.
Unique awards are words that matter.
When words can be soaked into your head, they must matter.
John 1:1 states that "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
I see that this trip was about words sung, words spoken, words written, and, most of all, the Word from whom everything else comes~
