Opus Arrives!

6:45 a.m. with Ms. Ghelf--Ready for the Day

The group on stage

Emmie with Ms. Ghelf and her friend Ashlynn (the other girl from her elementary school who made the choir)

Today was Emmie's big day at Opus. Ever since she found out she was selected for this honor choir, she has put in many hours of practice to be ready for this day--from getting up early several days each week to rehearse with her teacher to spending time at home memorizing her music. And today all her hard work paid off.

She started out at the middle school at 6:45 a.m. to board the bus to travel to Iowa State University for her day-long event. Her teacher, Ms. Ghelf, was there to greet her and share a treat bag with her for the day. Once she arrived at the university, they rehearsed all morning with a selected director. She was able to eat lunch in the dorm cafeteria with "the big people" (ie. the college kids) which she thought was quite a thrill. We got the whole run down of the wide array of eating choices, including the vast collection of desserts. She finally decided on a Philly Steak and Cheese wrap (if I remember correctly) and twist ice cream. Quite a highlight.

After lunch, they went back to rehearsing and going over the logistics of actually performing on the stage. Then they changed into dress clothes and awaited the program. Kris and I arrived at around 3:30 for the 4:00 start and had pretty good seats (pre-assigned, thankfully), considering the size of the auditorium.

Her group performed first, with three other choirs to follow. They told us that over 3,000 students auditioned to be part of the four 180-voice choirs.

Emmie did a great job. I was so proud of her as she stood there on the stage performing. She is growing up into such a lovely young women. It's hard to believe that I am already at the point where my children are starting to stretch their own wings and develop their own life experiences. What a thrill to watch as a mom.