Of Pain & Practice

Frank hurt his shoulder moving all our stuff yesterday, so when he went to work this morning he came right back. He couldn’t move his shoulder past a certain point, and he was in a lot of pain. His boss sent him back home. He didn’t do much but lay in bed, and I joined him. He went to work this afternoon, but I was glad to have him here in the morning. We sometimes like to lay in bed and talk, but most nights we’ll just curl up in each others’ arms until we fall asleep. That’s always easier said than done, because we have to turn around several times before we get comfortable.

I practiced a while for the concert I’m playing on the 1st. I don’t want to over practice, but I do want to be prepared. Switching between the violin and cello might be a little challenging, but I think I can manage. I wasn’t too thrilled about doing a solo, but Miss Helen and Alex egged me on until I couldn’t say no. What inspired me more than anything was when Alex started practicing with Mr. Norman for her solo. So I picked cello since Alex doesn’t play cello, so I don’t get competitive and forget the whole point of playing is all about. Miss Helen was gracious enough to let me use her cello, and that is always a high point in any day for me. Her cello sounds so good I can be having a bad day and still sound good.

I’m real excited about this concert on Saturday, because it’s the first concert where I will be playing as Mrs. Wilson. It seems as if the music world is taking me seriously at last, and I’m more than thrilled to be playing among the best of Ocala. With Miss Helen having a bad shoulder and barely being able to play, she has been giving me all her jobs. At first I was so worried that I wouldn’t be good enough to fill in for her, but I keep getting calls and requests to play, so I can’t be that bad. I’ve been practicing a lot more than I used to, so that always helps.

I need to practice Handel’s Messiah. It has some rough spots, and I don’t want to goof up a perfectly good job because I didn’t practice. December is always so busy for musicians, but we love the business. In the spring the Marion Civic Theater always has jobs, weddings in the summer, and Christmas preparation in the fall. It’s a full life, but one I enjoy very much.

Frank was suggesting that once we move closer to town he trade in his Cruiser for an automatic vehicle. That way I can drive myself to my jobs and drop him off and pick him up from his. He teased me and said he wondered what I would do with a car to drive, and I replied I would do what I’m supposed to – drive him to work, drive myself to rehearsals, weddings, and concerts, and then pick him up at the end of the day. Guess I better get good with directions…as I will have to be doing a lot of it in the near future!