Occasionally we talk about our "not the best / not the most committed ringers." Here's a story to share.
Last night eight of my ringers were scheduled to play for an advent service. The music was with organ and flute, chosen by the organist. Unfortunately, none of the ringers (director included) particularly cared for the piece, but we agreed to the commitment and followed through.
Anyway, I have a ringer (Lisa) who has been stretched in too many directions lately and has been particularly frazzled. She missed a portion of the ONLY rehearsal we had with the organ and flute together, last week. Last night she got the the church just prior to our run-through with the organist and nearly burst into tears when she realized she'd taken her folder home (to work on counting for new pieces), so she didn't have her music. Just about ready to leave for home, I called her back. I had switched from using a bell-only copy to a full score and told Lisa we could quickly mark my music for her. I pulled out the music and there we had a bell copy, completely marked with her notes! We looked in amazement. I knew it was my writing, but had no idea when or why I would have marked Lisa's notes on my music. At any rate, we were extremely grateful and started our run-through. Unfortunately Lisa was so frazzled, she played terribly, reversing the bells and missing entire sections. When we finished, I told her I wanted her to stop worrying about it. I suggested in a friendly way that she calm down, because everything was going to be just fine. She looked at me with hesitation. I left it there.
Well, you all know what happened.... Lisa played brilliantly! She never missed a beat...and she had the lead in notes on every bell entrance. Her ringing technique was better than I've ever seen it. (Usually when she gets nervous her volume fades terribly). It was wonderful. I was so excited for her when we finished I was practically bouncing on the podium! She came up to me right after we were done, hugged me and said, "Thank you for having more confidence in me than I have in myself!" I almost cried. It only takes a small incident to realize the impact we can have on others....even without words.
By the way, on my way home I remembered why her notes were marked on my music. When she missed the full rehearsal last week, a sub stood in. But, Lisa had her music with her, so I quickly marked the extra copy then. So cool.
Written by:
Kathleen Nickodemus
kdadnick@concentric.net
St. Lorenz Lutheran Church, Frankenmuth, MI
4 Dec 1997
Archived original can be found at: inspiring story