Alto II

We went to Emma's choir concert on Saturday night.

(It should be stated from the outset that I feel a little emotionally raw about Emma's concerts in general because by the time I tried to get tickets for their Christmas concert, they were sold out which is sort of devastating.  I had a dream that you could get tickets to watch in a room where you could see the concert reflected in the glass of the door.  They were called "mirror tickets."  This is what my life has become.  My psyche hoping there's a room where I can watch at least a reflection of the concert....)

This concert was just Men's Chorus and Women's Chorus and (do I say this every time?) it was just wonderful.  I loved how both choirs sounded better than last concert.  They've been rehearsing a lot and it shows (and they were pretty spectacular at the last concert).  I love BYU and how talented the kids are and I love that my daughter gets to participate.

The men went first and I started crying when they sang Homeward Bound because it was beautiful and I love that song and I cried every time I heard it when Braeden was on his mission and earlier in the afternoon, Adam had said, "Mark could be on a mission in 2 1/2 years."

And we both had teared up a little.

Because imagining Mark gone is like imagining a piece of my heart leaving (and I already lived through that when I sent Braeden so I know that hurts my heart).  I know, I know, I'm very grateful for the experiences Braeden had and I'm ultimately glad he went.  And I also know I'm a little melodramatic.

Blame the sold out concert tickets.  I am.

Anyway, the Men's Chorus got me crying and even though I had pulled it together, the Women's Chorus sounded so beautiful that I may have started crying again. We were in the balcony so I could actually see Emma's face.  Watching her sing fills my soul.  Her lovely expressive face reflects how immersed she is in the music.  Emma is an alto II and there were times in several songs when the low notes really resonated and I'd poke Adam and said, "That's Emma!"  I didn't hear her voice specifically but as far as I was concerned, she was solely responsible for the sonorous magic.

When you're a mom, you can think your daughter is solely responsible.  That's science.

I may have ugly cried during their finale, which was This Is Me (from The Greatest Showman).  Emma was one of 30 girls identified as a "strong dancer" so she stood out in front.  I was so proud of her and so proud of all the glorious girls.

It was a lot of girl power.

When the lights went up and Adam and Braeden were wiping their tears, I felt a little less silly.  (Mark has ice water in his veins and does not cry.)

We went to CupBop for Korean food and then walked across the street to the South End Market which is on the corner by Regency where I used to live but for the life of me, I couldn't remember the names of any of the stores and shops that used to be there.

The boys got Leninade because it's "a taste worth standing in line for" and they are weirdos.  I remembered that I hadn't taken a picture of anything so I had them quickly pose.

How I love those three!

Even though the two knuckleheads tried to get the Leninade to photo bomb the picture:

Somewhere during the evening, I realized that Emma is the alto II of our family.

Her brothers, despite their deep voices, are more like the sopranos.  They are show offy and awesome and add a lot of razzmatazz just like sopranos do with their impressive descants and high notes.  Emma's strongly bringing in the low notes though.  She brings beauty and artistry and a richness to our family.  She holds her own and is herself and is fine not reaching the high notes (or the high shelf).

I am just here to enjoy the harmony.