Today I did what I haven't done in years. I sang at a memorial service. I didn't know the man that passed away, but was hired to sing an Italian aria because he had been a fan of opera.
My degree is in Vocal Peroformance, so I'd spent five years singing German, French and Italian. It was mostly a matter of dusting off a song from my senior recital and working it up again for the service.
Boy, I could really tell that I haven't been doing regular vocal excercises for more than 7 years. A song that had once been fairly easy to sing presented some real challenges today. It was far from my best rendition of the song, but the family seemed very pleased, so I have to assume I'm safe and that they weren't huge fans of opera themselves.
The most enjoyable part of the service was the pastor officiating. He wasn't spouting the empty "wishful-thinking" phrases that I've heard at many other funerals. He was offering hope backed by real truth, while recognizing practical realities about the grieving process.
The service was held at my church and the pastor was a guy I've known for a few years. I may be a little biased, but I've gotta say that it remains my privilege to be involved with people that care about people, and who ultimately put the pursuit of truth before everything else.
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