Let's Do This

Keeping Up

How in the world am I supposed to read this? These are my exact thoughts as I scanned a small sheet with numbers on them and yard lines. Are these for marching?

It is the second full week of band camp and they say its time for us to learn drill.

A whistle blew and our heads snapped up.

"Everyone, put your drill cards up and come gather at the 50 yard line!" The brass instructor shouted over everyone.

I put the paper in my flute case along with everyone else and jogged towards the 50 yard line.

"I know it's early and we're hardly awake. Are you guys tired?" He shouted when all couple hundred band members were there.

A few people mumbled yes.

"No seriously guys, are you guys tired?" He said once again. Now about half the band were saying yes.

"Okay. Everyone go to the front sideline".

The freshmen hesitantly walked there wondering what will happen, while the upperclassmen walked there as if it was normal.

The brass instructor was now on the loudspeaker. "Run a lap around the lot. Everyone who is on the end will have to do 25 push ups in the end and so will the people that are walking."

Without hesitation we all ran. Not even halfway through, I noticed this is not gonna be easy.

Most of us were our of air and were running towards out water jug when we finished. Only the seniors and juniors seemed fine at the end. We're not an unhealthy band, just that our lot is seriously big (excuses, excuses...but really yeah).

The band once again gathered at the 50 yard line around the brass band director.

"You guys tired?!" He shouted grinning.

"No!" The band roared. I smiled to myself knowing that he probably did this every year.

He went on telling us what will happen next. "Okay, first were splitting into sections and your section leaders will do what ever they want to help you. Then we will start to learn pre show". A few cheers went from the band, excited that we will finally learn drill.

~

Learning drill is not easy for a freshman. Just saying. But thank goodness I wasn't the only one confused on what I was doing.

A junior named Kilana helped me a ton. Though, she is a little bit ghetto and not someone I would usually be friends with, she's starting to grow on me. Still, she really doesn't really grasp the fact that I'm just a freshman and I can't learn everything right off the bat.

I don't blame her, I have a feeling I might accidentally be like that.

The first thing that terrified me was that I'm in the exact front. Yep, put the poor freshman in the front, genius.

In the beginning, all the woodwinds are in a row, but later in the pre show, they slowly dissolve into a set that is diagonals and straight lines. So everyone has to be in the set, in the exact inch.

And since I can't see anyone, the only person I can depend on to get me to the right set is me because, the people beside me are far away and out of my peripheral vision.

Thank goodness for yard markings.

~

For this week, we stay outside until lunch, then after lunch is master class for region music, and then inside for woodwind or brass sectional, dinner, then outside again.

When lunch ended, Niko and I waltzed into the classroom where the flute masterclass will be held for the symphonic and W.E. band. The chairs were set up in a half circle with a tall chair in the middle facing all of them. Only him, me, and our section leaders were there waiting for everyone else.

Once the room began to get more crowded, I tried to hide my nervousness. Everyone here is so insanely talented, and I'm just...meh. How did I even make symphonic? The last chair part makes sense. I sucked it up and started to tune into the world.

A woman with sandy brown colored hair walked into the classroom, and sat in the tall chair in the middle of the room.

She introduced herself and I recognized that she was the brass band directors wife.

"Okay, let's start with breathing."

~

You know those times when you just want his slap yourself in the head for?

Those moments are more often to come by now.

About to exit the band door, Jacob happened to go out the door I did, and he was holding it open for me (aww, jk, I'm hopeless). But once I went through the doorway, I felt something come into contact with my foot. Too my horror, I tripped over a brick. Why in the world is there a brick there? Who knows.

At least I didn't fall.

He was just staring at me when he kept the door open and grin across his face. Anthony came out of no where and bursted out laughing, which made Jacob start to laugh. I raised my hand to my face and had let out a small laugh. We all left without saying a word.

What in the world just happened.

I have a feeling I'm going to be of those one flutes that no one likes because I over dramatize everything.

Maybe, maybe not.

Hopefully not.