Ballet Magnificat

Pictured is an 'angel' dancing during a performance of "the Prodigal's Journey," a contemporary telling of Luke 15 set to Ballet and music. (Newton, KS 2/26/06) I do not think there was a dry eye in the house by the time the story was told in its entirety.

Ballet Magnificat is a Christian Ballet Company. When the dancers are not on stage, they are in the wings in prayer. Their dance is a worship experience.

I have a friend whose daughter dances in "Angel Feet", a local faith-based dance company for young girls. They danced the opening number. It was precious. Earlier in the weekend, they had the privelege of doing workshops with the Ballet Magnificat members. More than dance techniques, it was about mirroring God in your life, and letting your dance reflect your faith. Is that cool or what?!

Check out their web site. If they are performing near you, it is worth going.

Ballet Magnificat

My dreams will be filled with sweet dancing tonight!

Shirley

Cold Kansas Morning

This morning as my daughter and I were out taking care of friend's horses while they are taking a holiday, I was wandering out in the fields to see where the horses were doing whatever it was they were doing. It was a beautiful February morning, cold, crisp and quiet. I heard the soft whistle of quail taking flight from some brush. I grabbed my camera from my pocket, but it was too late. I hid in some trees to see if any would come back, but got too cold. (I'm still getting over a cold and have some laryngitis, so that did not take long). When I started to move, I discovered I had been inches from a bunny.
He bolted in zigzags as if to laugh at me "Ha! You Ansel Adams wanna-be, photograph my dust!"
Oh well. The sky was beautiful, and some dried Kansas prarie flowers begged to be photographed before I had to go home to homework. I'm anxious for Spring Break; I'm taking my kids on a hike. (I'm looking at caves too! Yea! Fun!) Till then I'll enjoy a beautiful Kansas morning in February!
Shirley

Snow and Adventure

As the Winter Olympics get off to a start, I was thinking how I wish I was skiing right now (did I mention I should be doing homework instead of daydreaming?) then I got to reminiscing about my own semi- almost-like-the-olympics adventure. [tic] I was on ski holiday with my church group at Angel Fire New Mexico the first weekend of February 1999. (You can see moose on some of the slopes there!!) During a brief rest at the lodge, I saw these videos of people racing down the mountainside on shovels! It looked wild! It looked adventurous! And they would let just about any fool partake of the adventure if the "I promise not to sue if I get killed or injured and will wear a helmet in this dangerous sport" papers were signed. So I signed!

I discovered that I was competing in the 26th Annual World Championship Shovel Races. CNN, ESPN, FOX, Sports Illustrated, and others would be covering the event. Crazy! I also found out that shovel racing began back in 1973 after lift operators, who were looking for a quick way down the mountain at the end of the day, tried going down on their shovels. To their delight, it held elements of adventure, just enough danger, and competition. Thus the sport was born!

Some people had been doing this sport for years. Some men had reached speeds of 65 mph. Need I remind you, this is setting on the scoop of an aluminum shovel with the handle between your legs. Talk about reckless abandon! Women tend to be a tad more conservative and weigh less, so their speeds are a little slower, but some have gone over 50 mph!

As I took my one and only practice run, I reminded myself that I am a mom, so reckless abandon had its limits. Balancing was tricky, but I figured if I could get off the lift running (without skis) and not do a face-plant, I could pilot a shovel down the mountain. Maybe...I had seen plenty of people wipe out. I took it nice and easy, but it was still a rush!

My second and third runs were actual competition. Some of these women were serious competitors with many runs under their belts. I was on a lark for the adventure of it all. Still, a hint of competition ran through my veins and I decided with each run I would go a little faster. Maybe I wouldn't end up in last place if I could even qualify. I just didn't want anything torn or broken. I had dislocated a knee and hip in a ski mishap several years before trying to impress some boy. (Stupid Girl!) So no throwing caution to the wind this time. Still - I was going to be sitting on a grain shovel flying down a mountain! Was I crazy?!

When all was said and done, I placed 6th out of the 15 women to qualify. No medal. Those went to the awesome competitors. But not bad either. It was certainly a fun adventure!

Fictating Again!

Do you talk to people/characters on tv as if they could actually hear you?
I do!

And for all the good it does - that silly woman still walked away from the man of her dreams even though I was practically screaming at her not to!!

[Wait a minute! Maybe he could be the man of my dreams now!
-Or not! ] (HaHaHa!)

Fictate comes from two roots: dictate and fiction - ergo, to dictate to a fictional character (or someone not actually present like on tv) as if s/he can hear you is called fictating.

Like telling the weatherman it is raining outside your window while he's telling you it should be sunny and warm.

Or yelling at the quarterback to throw the ball.
[Yeah, there's a winner even when he does hear you!]

There will be much fictating this weekend as throngs gather round their tvs to watch the SuperBowl. For some of you (and you know who you are!) it's a good thing the referee is oblivious to your critiques of his calls!

So how about you...do you fictate?

Shirley

Music Theater

I love music theater! I love to lose myself for a moment in the music and story on stage - especially when I am one of the actors.
I had to write a paper for a class recently that had me recalling some of my roles. My most favorite was Mabel in Gilbert & Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance. It was community theater, but we had a lot of great talent and so much fun! Just look at those police (keystone cops!) shaking in their shoes as Mabel (in a nightgown no-less) sings in typical G&S satire: "Go ye heroes...go to glory... though ye die in combat gory, ye shall live in song and story...!" Easy for her to say! er sing!


Our director was wonderful! She has a talent for taking what is available, and orchestrating it into a work of art! (There is an allegory or two in there somewhere). There were some long nights. But it was worth it in the end. I am a single mom, and when I did Pirates my kids basically didn't see me or lived behind stage for eight weeks. Thanks kids. You gave me a gift to let me do something I adore. That was make-believe. My greatest role in life is being a mom! I agape you!

In 1973 I read someone's paraphrase of I Corinthians 13 for Band Members. I liked it. So I came up with my own adaptation for music theater.

A Paraphrase of I Corinthians 13

If I can sight read music, say every line perfect and dance flawlessly, but have not love,
I may as well sing the wrong notes, say the wrong words, and make a fool of myself.
And although I have the gift of perfect pitch, can transpose by sight, understand chords and intervals and can write a song, if I don't have love, my music may as well be dissonant.
And though I can choreograph a dance and teach a team to perform it, if I have no love, I might as well refuse to teach and leave things in chaos.

Love is patient - even when the person next to you keeps making mistakes and makes you look bad.
Love is kind when someone laughs at you for forgetting your lines.
Love is not jealous when someone else sings the part you really wanted.
Love is not proud when you are chosen to sing the lead.
Love does not make fun of the one who turned left while everyone else turned right.
Love is not too proud to admit you were the one who sang a wrong note.
Love does not take pleasure when someone gets laryngitis, enabling you to get a better part.
But rejoices even when you are the one with no voice and you sit in the audience for this performance. Love bears up while another sings the part you had practiced for hours.

Love believes God has placed you where you are for a reason - Hopes for the next place to be exciting - Yet is willing to wait for God's timing.

Technical difficulties, Long practices, Out-of-tune pianos, Lost props, and Wrinkled costumes, will all pass away. But love will last forever.

Since I don't fully understand the production of life - I can only tell you something about my part in it. Some day, the Great Director will come - And I will be able to see the script & score and understand why I had the role I did.

When I was younger, I practiced - but I was only concerned about getting the notes, words and steps. Now I realize that diction, articulation, dynamics, and movement are important too.

Now I may wonder why I am in this place in this moment, or why He chooses to move me at any given time. But when I see Jesus, I will see that because I was willing to be where He placed me, I harmonized with His melody to help make His song beautiful, and His production a "hit."

In the meantime, I've learned these three things: endurance, patience, and love; the greatest of these is LOVE.

Shirley