Claire's elementary school is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year and the final PTA meeting of the year was combined with a birthday bash and a send-off for the Principal, who is retiring at the end of the school year. Somehow Claire's class was chosen to perform at the event - it was optional but looking at Claire's face when she found out about it, I knew there was only one option: she was in. Claire's class performance was going to be playing the bells - like chorus-style. Hmmm, this should be interesting with first graders.
Monday nights are gymnastics night, but Claire was glad to toss gymnastics to the side in favor of the bell ringing for this week. Jason took Chloe on to her class while I took Claire to school for their 6pm meetup time. Showtime was 6:30, so I figured Jason and Chloe would be a few minutes late but hopefully arrive before Claire took the stage. The cafeteria was fairly empty when I got there at 6:00 on the dot. Thankfully it wasn't any earlier because it was pretty warm in the cafeteria and I had a 30 minute wait as it was. I managed to hold Claire off from her nervous pacing all around the house and asking me fifty times "Can we leave now???" until the last minute, and she was still one of the first kids to arrive. I picked a seat right in the front row,saved a couple more and waited for the festivities.
Not long after I arrived I realized that our gig wasn't the only one going on that night with scores of parents, teachers and siblings starting to cram into the cafeteria. The temperature was rising with each passing minute and the paper programs were being converted to fans all throughout the room. I was starting to drip with sweat.
At 6:35 the show gets on the road with the start of the PTA meeting and some awards and hugs for the outgoing officers, the newly elected officers and the retiring principal. Next year's budget passes with a simple motion by a lady talking on a cell phone and without a nay from the stuffed cafeteria when asked for objections to the $60,000 budget. Can we get some air conditioning in next year's budget?
Finally the real show starts just before 7:00 with B93.7 DJ's Hawk and Tom who immediately start cracking on the unbelievable heat that we are sitting in. Tax cuts? No way! These poor kids don't even have A/C! I was sitting next to the retiring principal who looked mortified. Someone obviously forgot the schedule override on the thermostat.
Now, there are about 10 performances scheduled with an average of 15 kids per act, and 2-3 spectators per kid. Lots of people here, folks, and each person has one kid that they are waiting to see. So when Act One sidles onto the stage I was a little surprised to see that it was a solo act by a teacher singing a karaoke version of "Footloose." Not saying she was bad, just not worth the price of admission. Especially with sweat dripping into my eyes. Can we get some kids on the stage??
We were Act 4, after the "Footloose" dancing queen, the sign language club's rendition of Lennon's "Imagine" and a dance club's high energy 180 degree jumping while somewhat synchronized. Hawk and Tom introduced the group and noted their attempt to keep 18 bells quiet off in stage left while in the hands of 6 and 7 year olds. Not an easy feat. In a perfect line and wearing sparkly blue vests, the bells were silenced against their chests as they took their places on the risers on stage. All looked nervous, or on the verge of a heat stroke. Both were possible.
The two songs they played were "Canon in D" and "Your a Grand Ole' Flag" - two good bell ringing songs. Except not one kid on the stage heard any music, applause or even bells. I saw then how they accomplished their symphony - the music teacher sat on the stage holding a deck of cards that she flipped in time to the music. Kids: you see a purple card? Then all kids holding the purple bells ring. Yellow card? Let's hear the yellow bells. They stared with laser focus at those cards and rang like crazy until that card disappeared. Claire was a purple bell, and she rang that thing with all her might. It really was great!
I'll admit that we didn't stick around for all the other acts, and I peeled myself out of the sweat puddle on my chair to go collect Claire to head out for dinner. She was very proud of herself and her bell-ringing mates.
Feeling patriotic? Here's a little "Grand Ole' Flag" courtesy of the first grade bell ringers.
