The Five L’s

I have a goal.  As a new choral season begins (I’ve recently resumed rehearsals with the Roswell UMC Sanctuary Choir and will soon start rehearsals with MOS), I am reminded of something I try to achieve at every rehearsal.  I call it the Five L’s, which stand for Listen, Labor, Learn, Laugh and Love.   At the conclusion of a rehearsal, it is my goal that all participants (including myself) will have experienced each of those five actions to some degree.  We listen – to the music and to each other.  We labor – working together for a shared purpose brings enormous satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment.  We learn – listening and working together will almost always lead to learning something new.  We laugh – I believe a rehearsal without laughter is an opportunity lost.  And finally, we love – of course, we should certainly make every effort to love the music we are rehearsing, but I think it is also important to love and care for each other. 

I think if we keep the Five L’s at the forefront of our minds when we enter the rehearsal, and recognize that each of these words are action verbs, we will depart the rehearsal with a recognition that the time we’ve spent together has been worthwhile and important.  Anyway, that’s my goal.