Sunday, December 16, 2007
Tons of Pictures
If you aren't seeing all the pictures on this blog, make sure you click on the right hand column on "December" and it will open up the rest of the posts.
Capitol Performance
Aloha Ladies,YEAH!!! We get to sing together again!!! We have been invited to sing in the Capitol Rotunda as part of the opening celebrations of the remodeled Capitol. Our performance will be Friday, January 11th, 2008 at 7:00 PM.We will have ONE rehearsal on Thursday, January 10th in the smaller chapel on Tamarack (where we rehearsed on Thursday nights) from 8-9:30 PM.Please make sure you know your music as least as well as you did on November 21st. I would love it if you knew it even better. We will sing our whole concert. If there are any soloists or speaking parts who are unable to attend please let me know ASAP.
Comment from an Audience Member
I saw the second performance. I also saw and heard the first practice and many thereafter. What I experienced with the final performance was like the metaphysical "becoming one with the universe" thing. All of you became one voice. I don't know how to explain it better. It was as though all the love and energy and joy to be found in music, along with your skills and energies and unquestionable love for the song came together in one beautiful voice. You all seemed so connected, so focused that I felt I could go downstairs and grab someone, anyone, by the arm, and not one of you would have known that I was there. "One Voice" should become your trademark song. Thank you
Beautiful Quote from Elder James E. Faust
I wonder if you sisters fully understand the greatness of your gifts and talents and how all of you can achieve the “highest place of honor” in the Church and in the world. One of your unique, precious, and sublime gifts is your femininity, with its natural grace, goodness, and divinity. Femininity is not just lipstick, stylish hairdos, and trendy clothes. It is the divine adornment of humanity. It finds expression in your qualities of your capacity to love, your spirituality, delicacy, radiance, sensitivity, creativity, charm, graciousness, gentleness, dignity, and quiet strength. It is manifest differently in each girl or woman, but each of you possesses it. Femininity is part of your inner beauty.One of your particular gifts is your feminine intuition. Do not limit yourselves. As you seek to know the will of our Heavenly Father in your life and become more spiritual, you will be far more attractive, even irresistible. You can use your smiling loveliness to bless those you love and all you meet, and spread great joy. Femininity is part of the God-given divinity within each of you. It is your incomparable power and influence to do good. You can, through your supernal gifts, bless the lives of children, women, and men. Be proud of your womanhood. Enhance it. Use it to serve others.(James E. Faust "Womanhood: The Highest Place of Honor," Ensign, May 2000)
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Awesome comments from one of our members!
Dorothy DeCapot, an 89 year old member of “We Also Sing!” shared the following. I thought you would enjoy reading her remarks.
I would like to bear my testimony pertaining to a statement that we have all heard so many times – “If you are prepared, you shall not fear”.
In September Merrilee announced in Relief Society that she was starting up a choir and if anyone would like to join, just come and sing with us at our rehearsal. I hadn’t cared to sing in our ward choir anymore but suddenly I had a great desire to join the “We Also Sing!” choir. Then I said to myself, “Dorothy, don’t be ridiculous! You are almost 90 years old. The last time you performed with a choir was 20 years ago!” But the desire was so strong I wanted to do it. I believe if we have a desire strong enough, we can do just about anything. So I made the decision to join. After all, she didn’t say to come and audition, but come and sing with us. I could do that!
The first rehearsal was so much fun. I said to myself, “I may not be able to perform but it is fun to just come and practice.” I enjoyed Merrilee’s sense of humor, her quick wit and the funny faces she made that made us all laugh. I think we did as much laughing as we did singing. But she was strict with us too. She would say “stand up tall, throw your chest out, take a deep breath, stop your talking, look at me!” I bet our ward chorister would like to say the same things. We have sung these hymns for years and years, yet we keep our eyes glued down in the book. Sometimes we ought to try closing the book with our finger in place and see how well we can do. It would be a good exercise for the brain.
After making up my mind to go through with it, I began to think what it would entail. I recalled the last I sang with a choir of 100 people. We had to memorize all the songs and stand on risers for an hour. I didn’t know at this time what she was going to require of us. All I knew was we had 13 songs to learn. One ins Spanish, one in Latin, one in Chinese and at the last moment, she threw in a Hawaiian Chant! I had a hard enough time getting the English words out quickly. At the first practice, I was singing on page 3 of a six page song and suddenly everybody stopped singing! I heard Merrilee ask “did we all finish together?” Oh yes, just don’t ask me what page I was on!!!
I suffer with Macular Degeneration. That made it hard for me to find my place because I can only see to read with one eye. I tried high-lighting my words and that was fine, but then I had trouble turning the pages. I couldn’t wet my finger in public! So, to overcome these problems, I typed up the words on one page to each song and just memorized the music. That worked fine. She did let us use our music and we had them all in a notebook.
Now I had another problem. One night when we were standing up singing, holding our notebooks, after 15 minutes I thought my arms were going to break off. I knew this would require exercising to strengthen my arms. So I got out my bar bells and I pushed my arms up and down 10 times, curling 10 times, bringing my fist to my chest, spreading my arms out, taking a deep breath and slowly bringing my arms back and gradually releasing my breath. I knew I had to develop good breath control.
My next worry was standing up for an hour. It is ten times harder to stand in place for an hour than it is to walk around for an hour. So I started practicing. Instead of sitting down to watch TV, I stood behind my chair as long as I could. Then I thought, “what if we sit after each song?” That would present another problem! I would have to be able to get up quickly with everyone without hanging on to something to pull myself up. So, I pulled out my dining room chair with a hard seat and straight back and sat down. I then folded my arms and made myself rise up and down 10 times.
Finally after going through these exercises every day, and attending all our practices, I felt confident about performing. I had faith that as long as I did my share, the Lord would answer my prayers to help me. I am happy to say at the time of the performance, I was relaxed and knew my stuff! I did not fear and I enjoyed every minute of it!!
So I repeat, “If you are prepared, you shall not fear.” In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. –Dorothy DeCapot (89 years old)
I would like to bear my testimony pertaining to a statement that we have all heard so many times – “If you are prepared, you shall not fear”.
In September Merrilee announced in Relief Society that she was starting up a choir and if anyone would like to join, just come and sing with us at our rehearsal. I hadn’t cared to sing in our ward choir anymore but suddenly I had a great desire to join the “We Also Sing!” choir. Then I said to myself, “Dorothy, don’t be ridiculous! You are almost 90 years old. The last time you performed with a choir was 20 years ago!” But the desire was so strong I wanted to do it. I believe if we have a desire strong enough, we can do just about anything. So I made the decision to join. After all, she didn’t say to come and audition, but come and sing with us. I could do that!
The first rehearsal was so much fun. I said to myself, “I may not be able to perform but it is fun to just come and practice.” I enjoyed Merrilee’s sense of humor, her quick wit and the funny faces she made that made us all laugh. I think we did as much laughing as we did singing. But she was strict with us too. She would say “stand up tall, throw your chest out, take a deep breath, stop your talking, look at me!” I bet our ward chorister would like to say the same things. We have sung these hymns for years and years, yet we keep our eyes glued down in the book. Sometimes we ought to try closing the book with our finger in place and see how well we can do. It would be a good exercise for the brain.
After making up my mind to go through with it, I began to think what it would entail. I recalled the last I sang with a choir of 100 people. We had to memorize all the songs and stand on risers for an hour. I didn’t know at this time what she was going to require of us. All I knew was we had 13 songs to learn. One ins Spanish, one in Latin, one in Chinese and at the last moment, she threw in a Hawaiian Chant! I had a hard enough time getting the English words out quickly. At the first practice, I was singing on page 3 of a six page song and suddenly everybody stopped singing! I heard Merrilee ask “did we all finish together?” Oh yes, just don’t ask me what page I was on!!!
I suffer with Macular Degeneration. That made it hard for me to find my place because I can only see to read with one eye. I tried high-lighting my words and that was fine, but then I had trouble turning the pages. I couldn’t wet my finger in public! So, to overcome these problems, I typed up the words on one page to each song and just memorized the music. That worked fine. She did let us use our music and we had them all in a notebook.
Now I had another problem. One night when we were standing up singing, holding our notebooks, after 15 minutes I thought my arms were going to break off. I knew this would require exercising to strengthen my arms. So I got out my bar bells and I pushed my arms up and down 10 times, curling 10 times, bringing my fist to my chest, spreading my arms out, taking a deep breath and slowly bringing my arms back and gradually releasing my breath. I knew I had to develop good breath control.
My next worry was standing up for an hour. It is ten times harder to stand in place for an hour than it is to walk around for an hour. So I started practicing. Instead of sitting down to watch TV, I stood behind my chair as long as I could. Then I thought, “what if we sit after each song?” That would present another problem! I would have to be able to get up quickly with everyone without hanging on to something to pull myself up. So, I pulled out my dining room chair with a hard seat and straight back and sat down. I then folded my arms and made myself rise up and down 10 times.
Finally after going through these exercises every day, and attending all our practices, I felt confident about performing. I had faith that as long as I did my share, the Lord would answer my prayers to help me. I am happy to say at the time of the performance, I was relaxed and knew my stuff! I did not fear and I enjoyed every minute of it!!
So I repeat, “If you are prepared, you shall not fear.” In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. –Dorothy DeCapot (89 years old)
Lost and Found
Aloha Ladies,
We found a black sweater (Ann Taylor LOFT) XS at the Tabernacle. We also found a cream colored hanky. If these belong to you, please e-mail me at merrileewebb@gmail.com and we'll take care of getting them back to you.
We found a black sweater (Ann Taylor LOFT) XS at the Tabernacle. We also found a cream colored hanky. If these belong to you, please e-mail me at merrileewebb@gmail.com and we'll take care of getting them back to you.
A Light Shall Break Forth Poem
Aloha Ladies,
This is the poem that Tauni Crowther wrote as her introduction to "A Light Shall Break Forth". It was a very fitting introduction and we thought you might like to have it to refer to.
A beacon is shining for truth and right,
a message of hope... for the Lord is our Light!
Armed in His love, in strength we'll go
sharing His light so all might know.
Marching as one, we'll battle the field
for Armies of Heaven stand as our shield.
The Lord is our captain,
so whom shall we fear?
Onward! Press Onward!
The Victory is near.
United in song,
Forever we'll Sing!
Praising and honoring...
our Savior... our King.
This is the poem that Tauni Crowther wrote as her introduction to "A Light Shall Break Forth". It was a very fitting introduction and we thought you might like to have it to refer to.
A beacon is shining for truth and right,
a message of hope... for the Lord is our Light!
Armed in His love, in strength we'll go
sharing His light so all might know.
Marching as one, we'll battle the field
for Armies of Heaven stand as our shield.
The Lord is our captain,
so whom shall we fear?
Onward! Press Onward!
The Victory is near.
United in song,
Forever we'll Sing!
Praising and honoring...
our Savior... our King.
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