Finding Gratitude in 2024

Gratitude. It’s difficult to fine, amirite?

In some ways, it’s been a rough year. It’s been a year of endings. It’s been a year of dashed hopes (especially politically). And it’s been a year of some beginnings.

Endings

• At the beginning of the year, I totalled my VW Beetle (actually, it happened on 12/31/2023 at 7:43 am – I know the time because I had glanced down at the dashboard to see what time it was and when I looked back up, a car was in the intersection). I am now driving a 2024 MINI, which I love (although my insurance rates skyrocked as a result of the accident plus having a brand new car).
• My husband lost his job of 12 years. They eliminated the fast track in the ER at University of Maryland-Midtown, and his last day was September 30. (I know, who thought a doctor would be out of work?) He had anticipated staying there until retirement, which we saw as 8-10 years down the road. (I had a similar anticipation about my job at the Cathedral, and we know how that turned out.) He has started a new job this week (which is, weirdly enough, with Concentra, the medical company he used to work for in Milwaukee).
• The Archdiocese of Baltimore closed 30 churches, two of which I was singing at regularly. A third stayed open but the organist retired and they shifted the services so that it’s not really cost-efficient for me to stay. (And there was a fourth church I was singing at in the county that simply was not paying enough for me to schlep out that way. It has been a very sad few weeks of final Masses at these churches, which are seeing record turnouts at their Mass of farewell that they haven’t seen in years.
  I’m still subbing at Immaculate Conception, and I’ve just picked up some days here and there at Govans Presbyterian.
• I sang in the chorus of Fidelio with Washington National Opera this past fall, and I’ve decided that, at least for right now, the drive to the Kennedy Center is too much for me. I started singing with what was then the Washington Opera in 1988 (!) and left in 1996 when I moved to Milwaukee. I returned in 2018 (after auditioning a few times and being waitlisted) and did 5 shows before the pandemic shut everything down in 2020. I did a couple of things since they reopened in 2021, but at this point, I think I’m done. So I’m not planning to reaudition in January 2025, and I’m going to suspend my AGMA membership until I make a final decision to “retire” from opera chorus.
• Kamala Harris did not win the White House, which I think is a completely travesty.

Beginnings

• I started my book! I haven’t done much with it since Fidelio went into production week back in October, plus I was preparing people for the MDDC NATS auditions. I’m going to get back on it on Friday.
• I also started a novel, but haven’t done much with that – I want to get back to it.
• I gave a workshop on vocal technique for the aging voice.
• Maryland Thespians just asked me to present as a teaching artist. I’m not sure which topic yet – I offered two:
  • Musical Theater History/Performance masterclass (a very shortened version of the course I offered in the fall of 2020)
    
  • Basic vocal technique for musical theater singers, which will probably be similar to the vocal boot camp I did in January 2021 (I was really working hard on staying relevant during the pandemic, wasn’t I??)
  • I’ve picked up some new students, and I’m feeling much more positive about how the studio is going right now.
  • My term as president of the MDDC NATS chapter seems to be going well, and we’ve done some great things as a chapter. In fact, I intend to run for another term! And I may have a big announcement to make after January 24 – stay tuned!
  • In fact, these beginnings are why I’m thinking that my opera chorus days are behind me.

So on this Thanksgiving Eve 2024, I have gratitude. Gratitude that I’ve continued to survive and make things work, that I have supportive family, friends, students, and colleagues who feed my curiosity, recognize my accomplishments, and encourage my ideas, no matter how fanciful they might be.

Usually, this is an end of year kind of a post, but I want to get back to writing my book, and this was on my mind.

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Happy Thanksgiving! If you are a new student and are interested in trying a four- or twelve pack of lessons (in-person or virtual), you may register here and use the code GRATITUDE2024 to get 10% off your purchase. This deal is good through Cyber Monday, December 2.