Verse 1, Verse 2, Chorus, Bridge

I think new experiences are really quite exciting; whether or not you think my new experiences are exciting is up to you...if you don't actually find enjoyment in hearing about them, though, I would suggest you reevaluate why you would want to read the blog. I'm off topic already.

Screens. Screens are not new. I take that back - compared to how they knew what words to sing in church in the 1800's, screens are new. In this day and missions base community, they're not new. Doing screens is new to me, though.

The wonderful Abby invited me to get trained, in case I do get to help Tim R's team out with it... So yesterday morning I got up at 4:45 and got to spend the day feeling like I was on a worship team -- Abby taught me the first set, and then the second I did on my own (scary! :/). It was splendid. A friend said a while back how your team is like your family, and now I understand why! Everyone was so kind to each other, encouraging and blessing each other like crazy after the sets about how they all did, and Tim was basically like a little pastor -- we got like 5 minutes of great teaching on some revelation about Psalm 139. As I said, it was splendid.

Plus, it turns out I actually really enjoy screens itself. I like stuff like that -- where there's a set procedure and everything just fits exactly where it should be; it's like math, very exact...nothing ambiguous. It's a good experience in not being too hard on yourself, too. I kinda messed up with some bridges that sounded very similar and took a few tries for Tim and the chorus leader to get on the page...sorry, guys! :(

I have to say, one of the most fun parts about it is getting to listen to the talkback mic. There was really only a couple times it was actually helpful to us (leader says: "we need the words for Here is our King" cue mad dash to get it up ASAP), but it's still just fun to listen. I'll honestly admit, it made me understand a bit more realistically what it would be like to be a musician up there. Tim would give them a chord progression: "D/F#, G/B, C#m..." and I would want to move my fingers to play it on the desk where I was sitting. Other times, though, he would just give them the numbers: "6, 5, 4, 1..." and I thought to myself "wow...I'm not sure I could follow". I'm sure I could get the hang of it, and musically I understood what he meant, but it still seemed like it would be a little stressful. The musicians here are seriously some of the most gifted people ever.

Alright, there's my exciting experience. At least, I'm fairly sure it was exciting. If you don't think so...just trust me. :)