A Christmas bug

It is two day's after Christmas. I am staying at my parent's house; I've been here since Christmas Day. I am sick and my lifestyle the last two days has been nothing but eating, drinking lots of fluids, and sleeping.

I am sick and on the verge of laryngitis though apparently safe from writyngitis. My voice is at least an octave below my normal range; if I don't recover then I will have to ask Cindy to audition me for the bass section.

It started Christmas Eve at the cafetorium, during rehearsal. I felt a tickle in my chest and sensed that some bug had already infiltrated my body. It was only a matter of time before it took over to the point of my incapacitation.

"Vern", I said, seeing an opportunity to tease my tenor buddy, "I think I'm losing my voice. You're going to have to sing loud enough for both of us."

"Oh no, you have to sing!" That's Vern - he's so easy and delightful to tease, and he takes it so well. He has a way of setting himself up for a teasing and has such a good sense of humour about it.

I prayed that my voice would last through the service. All those weeks of preparation, of learning those two new songs - they were the highlight of the pre-Christmas season for me, yet this evening, Christmas Eve, was what really mattered. All those weeks of preparation would amount to naught if any one of us was off this night. Pull together, pull through. Even if only for the two new songs, Come On Down To Bethlehem and Love's Perfect Light. If I could just get through those two songs it wouldn't even matter to me if I couldn't do the standard Christmas carols that followed. No, not just get through the new songs, but get through with excellence. A Christmas Eve service calls for a higher standard than a regular service.

The key payoff to rehearsing is to learn which parts of the song are prone to mistakes. At which parts do I tend to lose my place, or or get confused about the timing, or tend to get the words mixed up, or tend to get confused about which notes to sing. With those sections identified, it then becomes a matter of diligence during the performance to remain aware during approach of a problem spot and to take extra care to hit the right note and the right words at the right time.

During last year's Christmas Eve service, our rendition of then new song went by so quickly, it was over before I knew it. It was almost anticlimactic. Not so this year. I felt very present in every moment, every phrase, every note. And of all the anticipated trouble spots, I think that we did not hit any of them. When we finished Come On Down To Bethlehem I was elated. We did it! I patted Vern and Hardy on the back in congratulation and encouragement. We did it!